Title: Idlewild : the rise, decline, and rebirth of a unique African American resort town /
Authors: Stephens, Ronald Jemal.
Year: 2013
Subjects: African Americans Michigan Idlewild History.; African Americans Michigan Idlewild Social life and customs.; African Americans Michigan Idlewild Social conditions.; HISTORY / United States / 20th Century.; SOCIAL SCIENCE / Ethnic Studies / African American Studies.; Idlewild (Mich.) History.; Idlewild (Mich.) Social life and customs.; Idlewild (Mich.) Social conditions.
Abstract: " In 1912, white land developers founded Idlewild, an African American resort community in western Michigan. Over the following decades, the town became one of the country's foremost vacation destinations for the black middle class, during its peak drawing tens of thousands of visitors annually and hosting the era's premier entertainers, such as The Four Tops, Della Reese, Brook Benton, and George Kirby. With the civil rights movement and the resulting expansion of recreation options available to African Americans, Idlewild suffered a sharp social and economic decline, and by the early 1980s the town had become a struggling retirement community in the midst of financial and political crises. Meticulously researched and unearthing never-before-seen historical material, Ronald J. Stephens's book examines the rapid rise and decline of this pivotal landmark in African American and leisure history, in the process exploring intersections among race, class, tourism, entertainment, and historic preservation in the United States. Featuring a wealth of fieldwork on contemporary Idlewild, the book also takes a candid look at recent revitalization efforts and analyzes the possibilities for a future resurgence of this national treasure"--
Contents: Introduction : Idlewild in historical context and contemporary times -- The Idlewild Resort Company and developments in the new Negro movement at a unique, utopian Negro resort town -- Racial uplift and economic progress during the Depression and World War II -- Phil Giles Enterprises : promoting and sustaining tourism and economic development in the resort capital of America -- Arthur "Daddy" Braggs and the Arthur Braggs Idlewild Revue : making entertainment and civil rights history during the Cold war -- Blazing flames, the big comeback, and the Revue's exit from the Idlewild scene : tantalizing Mexican dance tales and the tracks -- Turning the entertainment economic engine off : socioeconomic decline and unintended consequences during the post-civil rights era -- Idlewild : the good, the bad and the ugly : music festivals, infrastructural changes, a historic preservation ceremony, and a centennial celebration -- Epilogue : myths, realities, and possibilities of revitalizing Michigan's "Black Eden".