Delray, Detroit
Encyclopedia
Delray is a neighborhood and former incorporated village
, located on the south side of Detroit, Michigan
. It is isolated from other areas of Detroit by industrial warehouses and Interstate 75
. As a neighborhood, Delray has no legally defined boundaries, but its area usually extends south to the River Rouge
, east to the Detroit River
, west to Fort Street
and Interstate 75, and north to Dragoon Street at Fort Wayne
or sometimes further north to Clark Street.
In 1930, Delray had approximately 23,000 residents. As of the 2010 Census
, the two tracts that cover the area had a population of 2,783, a 33% decrease in population from the 2000 Census. Residents have relocated over the years due to the increased industrialization of the neighborhood. Much of Delray consists of riverfront industries, interspersed with residential properties, mostly single-family and duplex
houses. Due to this high level of disrepair, in 2007, the Detroit Metro Times
described Delray as "the closest thing to a ghost town
within a city."
occupy the southernmost strip of Detroit along Outer Drive
and Fort Street
extending down to the city of Lincoln Park
. With no official boundaries, Delray is considered mostly conterminous with two Census Bureau tracts that cover 2.938 square miles (7.609 km2). Major thoroughfares through Delray, which typically represent the neighborhood's boundaries, include Fort Street, Interstate 75
(Fisher Freeway), and West Jefferson Avenue
. Delray is relatively isolated from the rest of the city.
The southern border of Delray is the River Rouge
, with the city of River Rouge
on the southern side of the river. The two are connected by the West Jefferson Avenue-Rouge River Bridge
. Due to a bend at the mouth of the River Rouge, Delray is also bordered on the southeast by the river as well. Across the river at that point lies Zug Island
, which is under the jurisdiction of the city of River Rouge. North of Zug Island, Delray borders the Detroit River
on the east. No residents of Delray live along either body of water due to the congestion of riverfront industries and the historic Fort Wayne
.
, built 1843 to guard Detroit from British attack from Windsor's Fort Malden
, is located at the northeastern end of the neighborhood.
The area known as Delray was first plat
ted as "Belgrade" in 1836. It was replatted as "Delray" in 1851. Augustus D. Burdeno, after returning from the Mexican-American War convinced other residents to rename the town after a Mexican village, probably associated with the Battle of Molino del Rey
. Most of the village sat in what was Springwells Township, with the rest sitting across the River Rouge in Ecorse Township
. It incorporated as a village in 1897. Around 1889 many Slovaks
, Hungarians, and Poles settled in Delray. Dense housing arrangements appeared to accommodate the immigrants going to Delray. In 1894 Solvay Process Company opened a chemical plant. The company provided a fire service and paved streets to Delray. In 1901 Detroit Iron Works built two iron-making blast furnaces on Zug Island, near Delray. In 1905 Detroit annexed Delray. Chemical plants and factories opened in Delray. As years passed, residents who were able to move did so. Delray had around 23,000 residents in 1930.
A wastewater plant opened in the area in 1939, leading to the destruction of houses in Delray. When Interstate 75
was built in the 1950s and 1960s, many houses in Delray were destroyed. The wastewater plant received an expansion in 1957, leading to more loss of houses.
In the 2000s many of Delray's businesses closed during the late 2000s economic recession. In addition, around that time U.S. Steel
had taken over Zug Island
. Many workers had been laid off during the recession.
In the 1990s the neighborhood dealt with large gang membership. Numerous gangs targeted in policing efforts to control crime and recruitment were the Cobras, Cash Flow Posse, Inner City Posse, Gangster Disciples
, Latin Counts, Latin Kings, and the Delray Mafia. According to the 2000 census, 3,100 lived in Delray. John Carlisle (DetroitBloggerJohn) said in a 2009 article in the Detroit Metro Times that "a foul stench" was present in Delray due to the wastewater plant and the factories still operating.
(DPS). From 1894–1999, James McMillan School was located on Southwest End Street in central Delray. Originally opened as an elementary school, it was absorbed into DPS in 1907. It was converted into a high school but back into an elementary school for the district in 1916. McMillan Elementary School operated until the end of the 1999 school year, when DPS shut down the school. After it was closed, it remained unused with no intentions of being reopened. It subsequently became heavily vandalized and polluted until the building itself was torn down in 2009.
Today, students at the elementary level (grades preK–5) attend Roberto Clemente Elementary or Phoenix Elementary. Students in grades 6–8 attend Mark Twain Elementary School or Earhart Middle School. High school students attend Southwestern High School
or Western International High School
. At 6921 West Fort Street
, Southwestern High School can be considered part of the Delray neighborhood, although most properties along this stretch of Fort Street are not normally included as part of the Delray neighborhood.
system opened as the Delray Branch on West End Avenue. In January 1922, the branch was replaced with the James Valentine Campbell Branch on West Fort Street
. The branch operated until its closure in December 1996. In July 1999, the Campbell Annex Branch opened at the Holy Redeemer Cultural Center and closed in August 2004, only to reopen as the Campbell Branch at Lawndale Station. The neighborhood currently contains no libraries but is closest served by the Campbell Branch Library. It is located outside of the neighborbood at 8733 West Vernor in the Springwells neighborhood.
Village (United States)
In the United States, the meaning of "village" varies by geographic area and legal jurisdiction. In many areas, "village" is a term, sometimes informal, for a type of administrative division at the local government level...
, located on the south side of Detroit, Michigan
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
. It is isolated from other areas of Detroit by industrial warehouses and Interstate 75
Interstate 75 in Michigan
Interstate 75 is a part of the Interstate Highway System and runs from Miami, Florida to Sault Ste. Marie in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. I-75 enters the state from Ohio in the south, just to the north of Toledo. It runs generally north through Detroit, Pontiac and Bay City, crossing the...
. As a neighborhood, Delray has no legally defined boundaries, but its area usually extends south to the River Rouge
River Rouge (Michigan)
The River Rouge, also known as the Rouge River, is a river in the Metro Detroit area of southeastern Michigan. It flows into the Detroit River at Zug Island, which is the boundary between the cities of River Rouge and Detroit....
, east to the Detroit River
Detroit River
The Detroit River is a strait in the Great Lakes system. The name comes from the French Rivière du Détroit, which translates literally as "River of the Strait". The Detroit River has served an important role in the history of Detroit and is one of the busiest waterways in the world. The river...
, west to Fort Street
M-85 (Michigan highway)
M-85, also known as Fort Street or Fort Road for its entire length, is a state highway route in the U.S. state of Michigan.In Detroit proper, M-85 consists of West Fort street and South Fort street...
and Interstate 75, and north to Dragoon Street at Fort Wayne
Fort Wayne (Detroit)
Fort Wayne is located in the city of Detroit, Michigan, at the foot of Livernois Avenue in the Delray neighborhood. The fort is situated on the Detroit River at a point where it is about a mile to the Canadian shore. The original 1848 limestone barracks still stands, as does the 1845 star...
or sometimes further north to Clark Street.
In 1930, Delray had approximately 23,000 residents. As of the 2010 Census
United States Census, 2010
The Twenty-third United States Census, known as Census 2010 or the 2010 Census, is the current national census of the United States. National Census Day was April 1, 2010 and is the reference date used in enumerating individuals...
, the two tracts that cover the area had a population of 2,783, a 33% decrease in population from the 2000 Census. Residents have relocated over the years due to the increased industrialization of the neighborhood. Much of Delray consists of riverfront industries, interspersed with residential properties, mostly single-family and duplex
Duplex (building)
The term duplex can be used to describe several different dwelling unit configurations:A duplex house is defined as a dwelling having apartments with separate entrances for two families. This includes two-story houses having a complete apartment on each floor and also side-by-side apartments on a...
houses. Due to this high level of disrepair, in 2007, the Detroit Metro Times
Metro Times
The Metro Times is the largest circulating weekly newspaper in the metro Detroit area. Supported entirely by advertising, it is distributed free of charge every Wednesday in newsstands in businesses and libraries around the city and suburbs...
described Delray as "the closest thing to a ghost town
Ghost town
A ghost town is an abandoned town or city. A town often becomes a ghost town because the economic activity that supported it has failed, or due to natural or human-caused disasters such as floods, government actions, uncontrolled lawlessness, war, or nuclear disasters...
within a city."
Geography
Delray is located at the southern edge of the city limit of Detroit, although it is not the city's southernmost territory. The neighborhoods of Boynton and Oakwood HeightsBoynton–Oakwood Heights (Detroit)
Boynton and Oakwood Heights are the two southernmost neighborhoods of the city of Detroit, Michigan. According to the United States Census Bureau, the two neighborhoods occupy a total of 2.80 square miles . Boynton and Oakwood Heights had a combined population of 8,832 at the 2010 census, which...
occupy the southernmost strip of Detroit along Outer Drive
Outer Drive
Outer Drive is a bypass road which encircles both the eastern and western portions of the Metro Detroit area. It resembles a jagged horseshoe and was not originally intended to move traffic as much as to provide a pleasurable drive around Detroit. This drive would include travel through beautiful...
and Fort Street
M-85 (Michigan highway)
M-85, also known as Fort Street or Fort Road for its entire length, is a state highway route in the U.S. state of Michigan.In Detroit proper, M-85 consists of West Fort street and South Fort street...
extending down to the city of Lincoln Park
Lincoln Park, Michigan
Lincoln Park is a city in Wayne County in the U.S. state of Michigan. It lies in an area of cities and communities known as Downriver. The population was 38,144 at the 2010 census . The settlement was organized as a village in 1921, and reorganized as a city in 1925. The area was originally home to...
. With no official boundaries, Delray is considered mostly conterminous with two Census Bureau tracts that cover 2.938 square miles (7.609 km2). Major thoroughfares through Delray, which typically represent the neighborhood's boundaries, include Fort Street, Interstate 75
Interstate 75 in Michigan
Interstate 75 is a part of the Interstate Highway System and runs from Miami, Florida to Sault Ste. Marie in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. I-75 enters the state from Ohio in the south, just to the north of Toledo. It runs generally north through Detroit, Pontiac and Bay City, crossing the...
(Fisher Freeway), and West Jefferson Avenue
Jefferson Avenue (Detroit)
Jefferson Avenue is a scenic road along the eastern part of the Detroit metropolitan area in the U.S. state of Michigan. It travels alongside Lake Erie, the Detroit River, and Lake Saint Clair. This road also provides access to many recreational facilities in the area...
. Delray is relatively isolated from the rest of the city.
The southern border of Delray is the River Rouge
River Rouge (Michigan)
The River Rouge, also known as the Rouge River, is a river in the Metro Detroit area of southeastern Michigan. It flows into the Detroit River at Zug Island, which is the boundary between the cities of River Rouge and Detroit....
, with the city of River Rouge
River Rouge, Michigan
As of the census of 2000, there were 9,917 people, 3,640 households, and 2,504 families residing in the city. The population density was 3,713.9 per square mile . There were 4,080 housing units at an average density of 1,528.0 per square mile...
on the southern side of the river. The two are connected by the West Jefferson Avenue-Rouge River Bridge
West Jefferson Avenue-Rouge River Bridge
The West Jefferson Avenue – Rouge River Bridge is a bridge located where Jefferson Avenue crosses the Rouge River at the border of Detroit and River Rouge, Michigan. It is the only surviving pony truss bascule bridge in the state of Michigan...
. Due to a bend at the mouth of the River Rouge, Delray is also bordered on the southeast by the river as well. Across the river at that point lies Zug Island
Zug Island
Zug Island is a heavily industrialized island in the city of River Rouge near the southern city limits of Detroit in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is located where the mouth of the River Rouge spills into the Detroit River...
, which is under the jurisdiction of the city of River Rouge. North of Zug Island, Delray borders the Detroit River
Detroit River
The Detroit River is a strait in the Great Lakes system. The name comes from the French Rivière du Détroit, which translates literally as "River of the Strait". The Detroit River has served an important role in the history of Detroit and is one of the busiest waterways in the world. The river...
on the east. No residents of Delray live along either body of water due to the congestion of riverfront industries and the historic Fort Wayne
Fort Wayne (Detroit)
Fort Wayne is located in the city of Detroit, Michigan, at the foot of Livernois Avenue in the Delray neighborhood. The fort is situated on the Detroit River at a point where it is about a mile to the Canadian shore. The original 1848 limestone barracks still stands, as does the 1845 star...
.
History
Historic Fort WayneFort Wayne (Detroit)
Fort Wayne is located in the city of Detroit, Michigan, at the foot of Livernois Avenue in the Delray neighborhood. The fort is situated on the Detroit River at a point where it is about a mile to the Canadian shore. The original 1848 limestone barracks still stands, as does the 1845 star...
, built 1843 to guard Detroit from British attack from Windsor's Fort Malden
Fort Malden
Fort Malden is a fort that stands on the remains of Fort Amherstburg in Amherstburg, Ontario. The original fort was abandoned by the British/Canadians in 1813 when Southwest Ontario fell into American hands. The Americans began building a smaller replacement fort on the same site, but this was...
, is located at the northeastern end of the neighborhood.
The area known as Delray was first plat
Plat
A plat in the U.S. is a map, drawn to scale, showing the divisions of a piece of land. Other English-speaking countries generally call such documents a cadastral map or plan....
ted as "Belgrade" in 1836. It was replatted as "Delray" in 1851. Augustus D. Burdeno, after returning from the Mexican-American War convinced other residents to rename the town after a Mexican village, probably associated with the Battle of Molino del Rey
Battle of Molino del Rey
The Battle of Molino del Rey was one of the bloodiest engagements of the Mexican-American War. It was fought in September 1847 between Mexican forces under General Antonio Léon against an American force under General Winfield Scott at a hill called El Molino del Rey near Mexico City.-Background:On...
. Most of the village sat in what was Springwells Township, with the rest sitting across the River Rouge in Ecorse Township
Ecorse Township, Michigan
Ecorse Township is a defunct civil township in Wayne County in the U.S. state of Michigan.-Description:The township consisted of 54 mi² , which included two small islands in the Detroit River. It was bordered to the north by Springwells Township with the boundary being the River Rouge...
. It incorporated as a village in 1897. Around 1889 many Slovaks
Slovaks
The Slovaks, Slovak people, or Slovakians are a West Slavic people that primarily inhabit Slovakia and speak the Slovak language, which is closely related to the Czech language.Most Slovaks today live within the borders of the independent Slovakia...
, Hungarians, and Poles settled in Delray. Dense housing arrangements appeared to accommodate the immigrants going to Delray. In 1894 Solvay Process Company opened a chemical plant. The company provided a fire service and paved streets to Delray. In 1901 Detroit Iron Works built two iron-making blast furnaces on Zug Island, near Delray. In 1905 Detroit annexed Delray. Chemical plants and factories opened in Delray. As years passed, residents who were able to move did so. Delray had around 23,000 residents in 1930.
A wastewater plant opened in the area in 1939, leading to the destruction of houses in Delray. When Interstate 75
Interstate 75
Interstate 75 is a major north–south Interstate Highway in the Great Lakes and Southeastern regions of the United States. It travels from State Road 826 and State Road 924 in Hialeah, Florida to Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan, at the Ontario, Canada, border...
was built in the 1950s and 1960s, many houses in Delray were destroyed. The wastewater plant received an expansion in 1957, leading to more loss of houses.
In the 2000s many of Delray's businesses closed during the late 2000s economic recession. In addition, around that time U.S. Steel
U.S. Steel
The United States Steel Corporation , more commonly known as U.S. Steel, is an integrated steel producer with major production operations in the United States, Canada, and Central Europe. The company is the world's tenth largest steel producer ranked by sales...
had taken over Zug Island
Zug Island
Zug Island is a heavily industrialized island in the city of River Rouge near the southern city limits of Detroit in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is located where the mouth of the River Rouge spills into the Detroit River...
. Many workers had been laid off during the recession.
In the 1990s the neighborhood dealt with large gang membership. Numerous gangs targeted in policing efforts to control crime and recruitment were the Cobras, Cash Flow Posse, Inner City Posse, Gangster Disciples
Gangster Disciples
The Black Gangster Disciple Nation is a gang which was formed on the South-side of Chicago in the late 1960s, by David Barksdale, leader of the Black Disciples, and Larry Hoover, leader of the Supreme Gangsters. The two groups united to form the Black Gangster Disciple Nation .The gang has made...
, Latin Counts, Latin Kings, and the Delray Mafia. According to the 2000 census, 3,100 lived in Delray. John Carlisle (DetroitBloggerJohn) said in a 2009 article in the Detroit Metro Times that "a foul stench" was present in Delray due to the wastewater plant and the factories still operating.
Public schools
Residents of Delray are zoned to Detroit Public SchoolsDetroit Public Schools
Detroit Public Schools is a school district that covers all of the city of Detroit, Michigan, United States. The student population of the Detroit Public Schools is about 65,971 , which is down about 9.7% from the previous school year. Detroit Public Charter Schools educate an additional 56,000...
(DPS). From 1894–1999, James McMillan School was located on Southwest End Street in central Delray. Originally opened as an elementary school, it was absorbed into DPS in 1907. It was converted into a high school but back into an elementary school for the district in 1916. McMillan Elementary School operated until the end of the 1999 school year, when DPS shut down the school. After it was closed, it remained unused with no intentions of being reopened. It subsequently became heavily vandalized and polluted until the building itself was torn down in 2009.
Today, students at the elementary level (grades preK–5) attend Roberto Clemente Elementary or Phoenix Elementary. Students in grades 6–8 attend Mark Twain Elementary School or Earhart Middle School. High school students attend Southwestern High School
Southwestern High School (Michigan)
Southwestern High School is a high school in southwest Detroit, Michigan, USA. It is part of the Detroit Public Schools district.Brewster Homes/Brewster-Douglass Housing Projects, Detroit public housing, is zoned to this school.-Notable alumni:...
or Western International High School
Western International High School
Western International High School is a secondary educational facility, located across from Clark Park, within southwest Detroit's Mexicantown. Western is operated by the Detroit Public Schools system....
. At 6921 West Fort Street
M-85 (Michigan highway)
M-85, also known as Fort Street or Fort Road for its entire length, is a state highway route in the U.S. state of Michigan.In Detroit proper, M-85 consists of West Fort street and South Fort street...
, Southwestern High School can be considered part of the Delray neighborhood, although most properties along this stretch of Fort Street are not normally included as part of the Delray neighborhood.
Public libraries
In September 1907, Branch 8 of the Detroit Public LibraryDetroit Public Library
The Detroit Public Library is the second largest library system in Michigan by volumes held , and is the 20th largest library system in the United States. It is composed of a Main Library on Woodward Avenue, which houses DPL administration offices, and twenty-three branch locations across the city...
system opened as the Delray Branch on West End Avenue. In January 1922, the branch was replaced with the James Valentine Campbell Branch on West Fort Street
M-85 (Michigan highway)
M-85, also known as Fort Street or Fort Road for its entire length, is a state highway route in the U.S. state of Michigan.In Detroit proper, M-85 consists of West Fort street and South Fort street...
. The branch operated until its closure in December 1996. In July 1999, the Campbell Annex Branch opened at the Holy Redeemer Cultural Center and closed in August 2004, only to reopen as the Campbell Branch at Lawndale Station. The neighborhood currently contains no libraries but is closest served by the Campbell Branch Library. It is located outside of the neighborbood at 8733 West Vernor in the Springwells neighborhood.