Blog Post
White Market
by jschaen
White Market, a locally owned market at 609 East William Street, has been in business for at least 84 years. While the exact date it opened is unknown, a newspaper article from 1984 indicates that it was "in business as early as 1928." In 1939, the shop was at the retail space next door, 607 E. William St.
Blog Post
Ann Arbor, Then and Now
by jschaen
The Ann Arbor News' archive highlights major events and news-worthy stories through the city's history. But beyond that, it also gives a glimpse into what life was like for residents on a daily basis. Hidden between photos of big events are images of the stores and streets. They can give us a window into what Ann Arbor was like for the people who lived here, and they can highlight what has changed... and what hasn't.
The following are old images of Ann Arbor paired with views from today, which let you see which buildings have withstood the test of time and where things have grown and developed.
308 South Ashley Street, 1937
1937:
Blog Post
The Blind Pig
by oldnews
The Blind Pig is Ann Arbor’s legendary live music venue. It is best known for being the local venue where Jimi Hendrix, John Lennon, and Nirvana performed. Established over thirty years ago, the Blind Pig, or the Pig as referred to by locals, continues to be a premiere live music venue for indie, rock, hip hop, and electronic bands. Originally the venue functioned as both a bar and café, but now functions solely has bar/club with frequent live band performances. In addition, the 8 Ball Lounge located below the Blind Pig is now a well-known dive bar with a cult following all its own.
Click here for more articles about the Blind Pig
Blog Post
The Ark
by oldnews
The Ark has been Ann Arbor’s premiere venue for folk music for more than four decades. Originally established in the mid 1960’s, the Ark has fought to stay afloat as a non-profit venue for live acoustic music. A series of fundraising events eventually led to the establishment of the Ann Arbor Folk Festival, which is still a yearly tradition. The original setting for the Ark was a historic house on Hill St., known as the Hill House. Unable to raise sufficient funds to maintain its upkeep and unable to appease its property owners, the First Presbyterian Church, The Ark was forced to move to a new site on Main St. Meanwhile after months of legal debate, the Hill House was destroyed in order to allow for the church’s new parking lot. The decision to tear down the house was met with much protest by the Ann Arbor community. In addition, the Hill House was deemed an historic monument, but this was not enough to safeguard the communal monument. The Ark made one more move to its current site on S. Main St. where it continues to thrive and bring prominent Folk musicians to the city.
Click here for more articles about the Ark
Blog Post
Samuel P. Sturgis, Local Photographer Remembered
by oldnews
Celebrated Ann Arbor photographer Samuel Payne Sturgis passed away on March 11 (see obituary).
A graduate of the Rochester (New York) Institute of Technology, Mr. Sturgis served in the Naval Reserve as photo reconnaissance pilot on USS Bennington in the South Pacific, and received the Distinguished Flying Cross and Air Medals as a combat pilot, retiring in the early 1950's.
He joined the Dey Studio in Ann Arbor as a portrait photographer, earning "Michigan Photographer of the Year" Award from the Michigan Association of Professional Photographers in 1959. In 1962, he opened his own studio at 1112 South University, a space designed by local architect David Osler.
His extensive collection of antique photographs of Ann Arbor, Ypsilanti, and surrounding areas, donated to the Bentley Historical Library at the University of Michigan, is available as the Sam Sturgis Photograph Collection. A few of these outstanding photographs are part of the Making of Ann Arbor collection and the Downtown Ann Arbor Historical Street Exhibit program.
Over the years, Mr. Sturgis's works have been widely exhibited and he has been active in community service. See Ann Arbor News articles.
Blog Post
Going to the PowWow?
by Grace22
If this weekend's Dance For Mother Earth Pow Wow inspires you, check out the CD More Kid's Pow Wow Songs. The Library also has many other recordings of Native American music.
You can read a story about a young Jingle Dancer in this book by Cynthia Leitich Smith. Or, try the photo essay, Pow Wow by George Ancona, and Pow Wow: A Good Day to Dance by Jacqueline Dembar Greene.
Cloudwalker; Contemporary Native American Stories is a collection of six short stories about modern Native American children's lives and how they blend traditional Native culture with mainstream American culture. Children of Native America Today is a photo essay featuring 25 of the more than 500 native cultures of the U.S. as well as a section on urban Indians.
This year's Dance For Mother Earth is the 40th annual Pow Wow at U.M. Here's a link to articles and photographs from past Pow Wows.
Blog Post
Michigan Basketball & The Cazzie Years
by Debbie G.
Read all about it! The University of Michigan Wolverines are in the thick of the NCAA’s annual contest to name the No. 1 men’s college basketball team. To celebrate this annual hoopla, the Ann Arbor District Library is offering an opportunity to turn back the clock and experience the triumphs of an earlier Wolverine team, the 1963 ~ 1966 squad. The ups and downs of the three-time Big Ten champions was chronicled in the Ann Arbor News, especially in the passionate reporting of Wayne DeNeff. These photos and articles are available online through the Old News site, presenting the dramatic story of a great team.
Blog Post
Philip A. Duey and the Original "Go Blue!"
by Debbie G.
Michigan's heading to the Big Dance this month and "Let's Go Blue" will be heard throughout the land as the Wolverines do battle in the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament. But there's an earlier fight song composed by the highly acclaimed Men's Glee Club director Philip A. Duey that, according to the Ann Arbor News, wowed them at the premiere on Saturday, April 2, 1966. Duey got out of bed at 3 a.m. just a few days before the concert and "went to his piano and composed the words and music for the new song in two hours." Professor Duey and "Go Blue!" received a standing ovation and Duey was "besieged by congratulatory phone call and letters."
We've digitized a selection of Ann Arbor News articles on Dr. Duey who served as director of the Men's Glee Club from 1947 to 1969 and transformed the UMMGC into an internationally-renowned organization. AADL has a recording of Duey's "Go Blue!" by the Men's Glee Club. Listen to an excerpt here. Want to perform your own version? We've got the sheet music in our reference collection.
Here are the lyrics to the original Go Blue! A bit more of a tongue-twister but maybe the magic of the Cazzie Russell years will rub off on the 2012 team if we all sing it together. Check out our Old News Feature on the Michigan Men's Basketball glory years of 1963 ~ 1966 as they marched to three consecutive Big 10 championships and three memorable trips to the Big Dance. We've digitzed articles on the Bloody Nose Kids. Why the nickname? Find out in our podcast with George Pomey, a starter in those magical years who went on to coach for the Wolverines and do color commentary at the games. He's Blue through and through.
Go Blue! by Philip A. Duey
In old Ann Arbor town there are men of great renown,
They are ever out to fight and win the game.
On the court or on the field,
There's a will to never yield,
And to bring our Alma Mater ev'ry fame.
Here's a university whose name will ever be,
The greatest and the fairest in the land.
And we praise her far and near,
With our voices strong and clear,
For we know, where ever we go,
That none with her may stand.
Chorus
Go Blue! Let's go, Blue!
We're here to cheer for you.
Go Blue! Let's go, Blue!
No matter what the others have got,
They'll never come up to you.
Go Blue! Let's go, Blue!
We're here to cheer for you.
M-I-C-H-I-G-A-N Michigan!
Go Blue!
Blog Post
This weekend is the 40th Dance for Mother Earth Powwow
by amy
Ann Arbor's Dance for Mother Earth Powwow celebrates its 40th anniversary this weekend at Pioneer High School. The Powwow, hosted by the U-M Native American Student Association (NASA), is one of the largest university powwows in the nation. We've added to Oldnews some of the articles and photographs from past powwows that we found in our Ann Arbor News archive.
Grand entry is at noon and 7:00 p.m. Saturday, March 17, and noon on Sunday, March 18. Learn what to expect if you're a first-time attendee. For more information, visit www.umich.edu/~powwow.
Blog Post
Corner of Main and Liberty to Lose A Landmark
by amy
Several local restaurants have recently joined the ever-expanding list of Ann Arbor's Lost Eateries. Champion House closed suddenly last week, as did Old Country Buffet over the weekend. But I was particularly saddened to hear that the Parthenon Restaurant, which has stood on the corner of Main and Liberty Streets since John and Steve Gavas opened in 1975, will be closing its doors. Later this year Cafe Habana, formerly located on East Washington, will be moving into 226 North Main.
The Parthenon has command of possibly the best-known intersection in town, located on the same corner as Cunningham's Drugs and Mack & Co. a generation earlier.
We found some articles, a photo, and restaurant reviews on the Parthenon in our Ann Arbor News clipping file and have digitized them here for you to savor. While you're at it, you can also read about the Flim Flam Restaurant, which recently closed its doors after 30 years in business. Don't miss the Flim Flam's recipe for their famous eclair!