Prior to the Great Migration, Detroit’s Black community was relatively small, but vibrant. The mass migration of Southern Blacks to Northern cities remade Detroit. New arrivals from all walks of life arrived in Detroit and together with the city’s Black residents built neighborhoods, businesses, and community. To help us understand how dramatically Detroit changed we’re joined by historian Jamon Jordan, owner of Black Scroll Network History and Tours and official historian for the City of Detroit; historian and journalist Ken Coleman, and Akosua Barthwell Evans, CEO of the Barthwell Group.

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Featured in this Episode: 

Jamon Jordan

Jamon Jordan is a historian and educator. He is the owner and operator of Black Scroll Network History and Tours as well as the official historian of the City of Detroit.

Ken Coleman

Ken Coleman is a historian and journalist. A prolific chronicler of Black life in Detroit, he was a senior editor at the Michigan Advance and served as a segment host for American Black Journal on Detroit Public Television. For information on tour availability, please contact colemandetroit@gmail.com

Akosua Barthwell Evans

Akosua Barthwell Evans is the CEO of the Barthwell Group, a strategic management consulting firm. Barthwell Evans is the daughter of Sidney Barthwell, Sr, the owner of Barthwell Drugs, Inc.