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Tagged: Idlewild

Arts & Culture
11:32 am
Wed September 5, 2012

Idlewild, the "Black Eden," celebrates 100 years

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Credit Michigan Department of Natural Resources
Bathers at Idlewild Beach in 1940
Credit Photo donated by the family of Carlean Gill / seekingmichigan.org/look
Carlean Gill at Idlewild in the late 50's or early 60's
Credit Hubert Brandon
Idlewild's annual music festival
Credit Hubert Brandon
An Idlewild resident enjoys the lake
Credit Idlewild Centennial Commission / Michigan State Housing Development Authority
John Meeks is a long-time Idlewild resident
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They called it the “Black Eden.”

From the 1920’s to 60’s, tens of thousands of African Americans poured into the resort town of Idlewild, Michigan. They came to escape steaming summers in segregated cities, and to see some of the greatest musicians of the age.

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