Unearthing the Historical Treasures of Corktown

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

By Lori Ella Miller, Detroit LISC Scribe

Detroit was founded more than 300 years ago. Some might say this great city is a time capsule holding three centuries of landmark achievements and historical milestones.

All around the city, the history of Detroit is reflected in its grand architecture, business communities and neighborhoods. Detroit’s Corktown is a prime example. The city’s oldest neighborhood, Corktown is located just west of the downtown commercial district, bounded by Michigan Avenue, Porter Street and the Lodge Freeway.

With the opening of the Erie Canal, Detroit became a bustling gateway city. In the 1830s, Irish immigrants from the East Coast and from Ireland flocked to Detroit and settled in Corktown. Many migrated from Ireland’s City of Cork – hence the name.

The historic Corktown District is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is designated as a City of Detroit Historic District. Today, Corktown’s streets are home to a cluster of restored Victorian-era homes, colorful row houses and beautiful green gardens. Corktown is a tight-knit community boasting 4,000 residents and a host of flourishing businesses, popular restaurants and entertainment establishments. It is also home to a number of iconic structures, such as the Detroit Train Station, Most Holy Trinity Roman Catholic Church and until recently, the original Tiger Stadium.

The Greater Corktown Development Corporation (GrCDC) is actively working on the redevelopment and re-densification of this diverse and vibrant urban village. GrCDC Executive Director and longtime Corktown resident Tim McKay is currently spearheading a multi-faceted development campaign that will capitalize on the rich cultural heritage of the area.

"We are utilizing our history for community engagement and economic development," said McKay. "It is also a tool that can instill a sense of pride in the neighborhood."

McKay is passionate about his community and he has turned this passion into a mission: to make Corktown the epicenter of cultural tourism in Detroit. Currently his efforts are centered on the redevelopment of the famed Worker’s Row House. This modest, three-apartment tenement on Sixth and Porter streets was once home to generations of working-class families during Detroit’s industrialization era.

"While working on the Worker’s Row House, we began to realize the strength of its history," added McKay. "We came up with a variety of programs and ideas that would help us interpret that history."

The GrCDC has plans to transform the Worker’s Row House into a cultural museum and interactive center that will feature self-guided and audio tours of the building, displays, oral history by actors and photographic archives.

Unearthing Corktown's Past

In order to enhance the historical record of the Worker’s Row House and gather artifacts, McKay turned to Dr. Tom Killion, associate professor of anthropology at Wayne State University (WSU). With support and funding from Detroit Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC), the two organizations were able to launch an archaeological research project at the row house. WSU anthropology department initiated the Corktown Archaeology Project (CAP), and assembled a team of WSU archaeology students to excavate the backyard of the Worker’s Row House.

Photo Caption: Dr. Tom Killion, associate professor of anthropology at WSU (left) and Tim McKay, Executive Director of the GrCDC, convene at the Worker’s Row House excavation site.

"Corktown has a vision to turn its great historical assets into cultural attractions that will give folks near and far another reason to visit Detroit," said Karen Tyler-Ruiz, Senior Program Officer at Detroit LISC. "Detroit LISC is thrilled to be able to support this innovative and strategic work."

Dr. Killion stated that the university plans to use the Corktown project as a model for future digs in other areas in Detroit.

"Through our collaboration with Tim McKay, the Greater Corktown CDC and Detroit LISC, we are engaged in research that can direct the way we construct our past and tell the history of Detroit from the ground up," said Dr. Killion.

Photo Caption: Dr. Killion supervises the WSU graduate students conducting field research at Worker’s Row House.

After three years of fieldwork and research at the Worker’s Row House dig site, the CAP team, led by McKay and Dr. Killion, unearthed more than 2,000 artifacts, personal items and household goods that provide a unique glimpse into the everyday lives of early Detroit residents. These items included white clay smoking pipes, toys, ceramics and pottery, animal bones, coins, a copper buckle, a wash bin and President Van Buren’s 1840 re-election campaign memorabilia.

Photo Caption: Toy fragments, ceramics and other personal items were among the many artifacts found at the row house dig site.

The items from the dig will one day be displayed in the proposed Worker’s Row House Museum, but until then, the majority of them are currently on display at the Wayne State University Museum of Anthropology. The WSU Museum of Anthropology recently celebrated its 50th anniversary with the opening of the exhibition entitled: "Mythical Foundations/Material Consequences: Archaeological Research at the Worker’s Row House in Corktown, Detroit." WSU students and faculty, community leaders, prominent anthropologists, GrCDC staffers and Detroit LISC personnel attended the exhibition opening.

Krystal Hubbard, one of the WSU students who worked on the dig, was also on hand. "The Corktown project was my first excavation experience," said Hubbard, who is earning her master’s degree in historical archaeology. "I was born and raised in Detroit…who knew that our history could be so rich. This project gives a deeper value to our city."

Photo Caption: WSU archaeology student Krystal Hubbard carefully examines the layers of human history revealed during the excavation.

What Does the Future Hold?

The WSU Corktown exhibition is open to the public until 2010. According to McKay, the Detroit Historical Museum will also debut an exhibit, entitled “Corktown Works” – slated to run from January to April 2010.

The GrCDC anticipates that the new Worker’s Row House Museum will open in 2011. There are also plans to renovate the property adjacent to the row house. This structure will become an official Visitor Center, housing a gift shop, a café, kitchen, meeting space and sales office.

While the history books recount stories of famous Detroit residents, the Worker’s Row House project and museum will recount the untold stories of the working-class people who built and worked in Detroit during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It will truly bring Detroit’s history to life.

Of special note....

The collaborative community-based project between the Greater Corktown Development Corporation and the WSU Department of Anthropology garnered the prestigious 2009 Governor’s Award for Historic Preservation.