By Allison Biss
WKTV Editorial Assistant
Growing up in the Michigan community of White Cloud, Rose Hammond remembers visiting her grandmother and hearing about the “good old days” that took place in the African-American communities of Idlewild and Woodland Park.
Woodland Park and Idlewild were lively areas, booming with entertainers in the likes of Louis Armstrong, Satchel Paige, and Aretha Franklin, amongst others.
“You hear about all these great, great people who helped to bring some of the first utilities up there, who started their own businesses, who lived in what was considered doghouses for those who did not have or couldn’t afford a regular home up there,” Hammond said.
These “great” people not only created history for the people of Idlewild and Woodland Park, but also inspired Hammond to make a documentary, “In Between the Trees,” about the importance of these communities.
During the Jim Crow era in America (1877-1964), African-Americans experienced systematic bigotry and racial prejudice. Seeking places to call their own, they purchased plats of land in two communities of Northern Michigan: Idlewild and Woodland Park.
“Idlewild was formed first, and then in 1912, platted some land, and then in 1921, Woodland Park came after that using Idlewild as a template,” Hammond said.
These communities were considered unusual during this era, as the residents were extremely comfortable around one another, often doing as they please, which was unheard of for other African-Americans at this time. “We would see them, and they’d lay out on the beach, you’d not seen that before with any African Americans or ‘colored,’ as they were called back then.” Hammond said. The uniqueness of these people and their fellowship contributed to the special nature of Idlewild and Woodland Park that many enjoyed.
However, after the passing of the Civil Rights Act in 1964, numerous residents abandoned their property in Idlewild and Woodland Park in search of new opportunities they had been previously denied.
“They could go to the Holiday Inn. They could stay at all these other luxurious [resorts], [and in] Las Vegas,” Hammond said. “They didn’t have to just be confined to Idlewild up in the woods. They were able to do a lot of different things. Consequently, they forgot about Idlewild…”
The ability to share the special story of Idlewild and Woodland Park, and the revival of these communities is what makes the documentary important to Hammond.
“I think it’s just so important for the young people to understand history,” she said. “And to hear the history from those who helped to bring history to be.”
Hammond hopes to release the documentary in June. For more information about the project, visit runwith-it.net or stay tune to WKTV Journal as we follow the story.
