Media
There Went The Neighborhood - Audio Interview: Harold Simons
Harold Simons attended Jones School in the 1950s, and he remembers his sixth grade teacher Harry Mial as an important role model. He went on to teach physical education and coach varsity basketball and golf at Huron High School from 1980 to 2007.
More interviews are available in the There Went The Neighborhood Interview Archive.
Media
There Went The Neighborhood - Audio Interview: Patricia Manley
Patricia Manley attended Jones School in the 1950s, and she recalls her teacher Harry Mial as an important role model. In high school, she was discouraged from applying to college or joining the cheerleading squad, but she persevered and became a teacher and coach at Huron High School.
More interviews are available in the There Went The Neighborhood Interview Archive.
Media
There Went The Neighborhood - Studio Interview: Jennifer (Mitchell) Hampton
Jennifer (Mitchell) Hampton attended Jones School in kindergarten, fifth, and sixth grades, and she remembers being one of very few white students in the school. She shares memories of her classmates and teachers and her perspective on racial attitudes in Ann Arbor in the 1950s and 60s.
This interview was filmed during the making of the documentary film There Went The Neighborhood: The Closing of Jones School, produced by the Ann Arbor District Library and 7 Cylinders Studio. More interviews are available in the There Went The Neighborhood Interview Archive.
Media
There Went The Neighborhood - Studio Interview: Alma Wheeler Smith
Alma Wheeler Smith grew up in post-WWII Ann Arbor with two activist parents, Albert and Emma Wheeler. She recalls participating in picketing and demonstrations against segregation and redlining in Ann Arbor. She shares her perspective on her parents’ involvement in the decision to close Jones School.
This interview was filmed during the making of the documentary film There Went The Neighborhood: The Closing of Jones School, produced by the Ann Arbor District Library and 7 Cylinders Studio. More interviews are available in the There Went The Neighborhood Interview Archive.
Media
There Went The Neighborhood - Studio Interview: Joetta Mial
Joetta Mial moved to Ann Arbor in the 1950s with her husband Harry Mial, who was the first Black teacher at Jones school from 1954 to 1957. Dr. Mial also pursued a career in teaching and became principal of Huron High School. She recalls conversations that were happening in the community about school desegregation.
This interview was filmed during the making of the documentary film There Went The Neighborhood: The Closing of Jones School, produced by the Ann Arbor District Library and 7 Cylinders Studio. More interviews are available in the There Went The Neighborhood Interview Archive.
Media
There Went The Neighborhood - Studio Interview: Russell Calvert
Russell Calvert attended Jones School from kindergarten through sixth grade in the post-WWII era. He recalls the strong influence of Black business owners like his father, Burgess Calvert, and Charlie Baker. He tells the story of “The Old Neighborhood” before it became known as Kerrytown.
This interview was filmed during the making of the documentary film There Went The Neighborhood: The Closing of Jones School, produced by the Ann Arbor District Library and 7 Cylinders Studio. More interviews are available in the There Went The Neighborhood Interview Archive.
Media
There Went The Neighborhood - State Theatre Interview: Don Simons
Don Simons was interviewed after a preliminary screening of the documentary film There Went The Neighborhood: The Closing of Jones School at the State Theatre on April 16, 2023. He recounts his experiences as a Black athlete in Ann Arbor.
More interviews are available in the There Went The Neighborhood Interview Archive.
Media
There Went The Neighborhood - State Theatre Interview: Diana McKnight-Morton
Diana McKnight-Morton was interviewed after a preliminary screening of the documentary film There Went The Neighborhood: The Closing of Jones School at the State Theatre on April 16, 2023. She describes her father’s business, DeLong’s Bar-B-Q, which operated across from the farmers’ market.
More interviews are available in the There Went The Neighborhood Interview Archive.
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Media
There Went The Neighborhood: The Closing of Jones School
As part of Ann Arbor 200, the Ann Arbor District Library and 7 Cylinders Studio (7CS) have produced a documentary film about the closing of Ann Arbor's Jones School. In 1965, the Board of Education closed the majority-Black school. Ann Arbor joined a nationwide trend of school desegregation during the Civil Rights Era. But for these young students, the loss of a neighborhood school foreshadowed changes to their close-knit community. Gentrification came to Ann Arbor on the heels of desegregation.
In the making of this film, 7CS filmmakers and AADL archivists interviewed over thirty former Jones students and Black community leaders. They shared memories of Jones School and "The Old Neighborhood"—the areas now known as Kerrytown and Water Hill. A filmed walking tour, studio interviews, and historical photos form the core of the film. Run time is approximately 40 minutes.
The AADL Archives has many additional materials to explore relating to these topics, including dozens of Ann Arbor News articles that appear in the film:
