All About Kalamazoo History

Award-winning Local History Articles

People & places that helped shape Kalamazoo

Learn about the history of your library, discover groundbreaking local businesses, dive deep into Kalamazoo’s rich musical and sports history, visit historic neighborhoods, explore commercial buildings and stately homes, and meet the people who helped make Kalamazoo what it is today.

Researched and written by Kalamazoo Public Library staff.

Recent Additions

• Asa H. Stoddard: Cooper Township’s ‘Farmer Poet’
• Michigan Modern: Houses and buildings recognized for their modernist design
• Dr. Henry Lewis Batts Jr.: Teacher, activist and environmentalist
• Oliver v. Kalamazoo Board of Education: The struggle to desegregate Kalamazoo schools
• Black Arts Festival: In 1985, the planning for the inaugural Black Arts Festival began
• Michigan Automobile Company: The story of Kalamazoo’s first automobile company
• Alphadelphia Association: The rise and fall of Comstock Township’s utopian society
• Michigan Historical Markers: Kalamazoo County
• Volney Hascall: Owner and editor of The Kalamazoo Gazette
• Red Arrow Golf Course: Built as part of a WPA infrastructure project in 1937
• Gilbert H. Bradley Jr.: Kalamazoo’s first African American mayor
• In-Depth Kalamazoo: Our City: Artist and photographer Colleen Woolpert’s 2019 exhibit
• Chauncey Z. Bennett: Founder of Kalamazoo’s United Kennel Club
• Raymond W. Fox Law Library: In 1998, the county law library moved to the Central library
• African American Churches: List includes both active and inactive congregations
• Caroline Ham: Kalamazoo’s first woman mayor
• Guy H. Lockwood: Kalamazoo’s most famous socialist
• How FDR Segregated Kalamazoo: A video presentation about the redlining of Kalamazoo
• Germans in Kalamazoo: The German influence on Kalamazoo business and culture
• Mary Mace Spradling: KPL’s first African American librarian
• William A. Doyle Building: Constructed by two Irish brothers along E. Main Street
• Luna “Lou” Henshaw: Kalamazoo’s first woman city commissioner
• Dr. C. Allen Alexander: Kalamazoo’s first African American surgeon
• Roosevelt School: Built in 1909 atop a hill on East Main Street…
• North West Street School: Before it was known as Westnedge Avenue, it was West Street
• Lake Street School/Edison: Built in 1880, the Edison Neighborhood school…
• Desenberg Building: The last known Louis Sullivan-designed buildings is in Kalamazoo
• Frank Street School: Located at Frank Street and Burdick…
• Burdick Street School/McKinley Elementary: Built in 1886…
• Vine-Locust Corner Buildings: The building that houses O’Duffy’s Pub and Cosmo’s Cucina
• Cigars in Kalamazoo: While not as significant an industry as celery production or paper making
• USTA Boys Tennis Tournament: August 2022 will mark the 80th year that Kalamazoo plays host
• Henderson Park: A ‘Naturalistic’ Subdivision
• The Justus Burdick House: Kalamazoo’s oldest house
• “Books for Soldiers” Campaign: “BOOKS WANTED FOR SOLDIERS” was…
• Cathedral of Christ the King: Where modernism meets religious symbolism
• American National Bank Building: Kalamazoo’s tallest commercial building
• Council Hawes Jr. and The Pacific Club: The city’s first “bottle club”
• Pauline Byrd Johnson: Kalamazoo Public School’s first African American teacher
• Sister Cities: Kalamazoo has three sister cities
• Temple B’nai Israel: The oldest synagogue in Michigan
• Kirkpatrick House: Nestled away on a forested cul-de-sac
• Hillcrest Neighborhood:  The neighborhood not on a map
• Lovell Street School: First a school, then an administration building
• Master List of Kalamazoo Public Schools, as of 2021
• Norman F. Carver Jr. Houses: One of Kalamazoo’s most important artistic residents
• Van Avery Drug Store Protest: By 1963, the post-World War II fervor for civil rights
• Allen Chapel A.M.E. Church: The oldest African American church in Kalamazoo
• Douglas Auto Theater: While the theater grounds and large screen no longer exist
• Names on the Land: Dictionary of Kalamazoo County place names
• Rural Schools of Kalamazoo County: Many of the pages in this extensive study have been recently updated.

Awards

Kalamazoo Public Library received an Award of Merit from the Kalamazoo Historic Preservation Commission for the “All About Kalamazoo History” section of its website, as well as a prestigious State History Award for “outstanding contributions to the appreciation and understanding of Michigan history.