Aviva Directory » Local & Global » North America » United States » States » Michigan » Cities & Towns » Ferndale

Ferndale, Michigan is an inner suburb within the Detroit Metro Region. It borders Detroit to the south, Oak Park to the west, Hazel Park to the east, Pleasant Ridge to the north, Royal Oak Township to the southwest, and Royal Oak to the north.

Ferndale is bordered to the south by Eight Mile Road, to the north by Oakridge Street and Ten Mile Road, to the west by Republic Street and Highland Street, and the east by West End, Pilgrim Street, and Lennox Street.

The main route through Ferndale, now known as Woodward Avenue, was built in 1818 as the road from Detroit to Pontiac. Originally, it was known as Saginaw Road, then Saginaw Turnpike.

Preceding the town by several years, one of the first buildings and land that was later to become Ferndale was known as White's Place. Situated at the current site of Ferndale high school, White's Place was built in 1820 and served travelers along the Saginaw Trail. In 1834, the Detroit & Milwaukee Railroad extended a line from Royal Oak to Detroit, establishing a station in Ferndale. The railroad later became the Grand Trunk Western Railroad, an American subsidiary of the Canadian National Railway. In 1898, the Detroit United Railroad also ran through Ferndale.

In 1869, Adolphus Granger opened a sawmill on land that was later to become Ferndale. This was the first manufacturing business known to be in the area, although no town was yet identified.

It wasn't until 1910 that the first plat was laid out. At that time, the intersection of Woodward and Nine Mile Road was considered the center of the townsite. At that time, the Hubbard Marsh extended from Eight Mile Road to Eleven Mile Road, and a beaver dam was just south of Ten Mile Road. In 1912, a second plat was centered at the area of the intersection of Woodward Avenue and Nine Mile Road. In 1913, the third and fourth platted areas of the intersection of Woodward Avenue and Nine Mile Road is the northeast and northwest Nine Mile areas north of Woodward Avenue. Known as the Woodward Heights subdivision, it is one of the largest in the city.

The founding of Ferndale, as a village and a city, is set in 1917. Lovell G. Turnbull named the village for the abundance of ferns in the area. That same year, Saint Paul's Methodist Church and the Baptist Chapel Church were established in Ferndale. Ridgewood school opened at Eight Mile Road and Stratford. A village charter commission was formed in 1917, and Ferndale was incorporated as a village in 1918. In 1924, a branch of the Detroit post office was established in Ferndale with John W. Allison as superintendent. Ferndale became a city in 1927.

For the most part, Ferndale was a bedroom community for Detroit workers. Most of its growth from 1920 to 1951 was residential. Up until the early 1950s, an interurban railroad was set in the median strip of Woodward Avenue from downtown Detroit to Pontiac. People from the northern suburbs of Detroit could take the trolley to shop or to work in the city. In the 1970s, Ferndale was a place for families to raise children in the suburbs, offering good schools, a city park, a downtown shopping area, active churches, and civic organizations.

However, 1970 was Ferndale's peak population year. With a population of 30,850, the city has declined each decade since. In 2010, its population was 19,900, which is less than it was in 1930.

Beginning in the 1980s, Ferndale has become known for its large LGBT population. The Motor City Pride Festival moved from Royal Oak to Ferndale in 2001. In 2006, the city passed an anti-discrimination ordinance that protected its LGBT population from discrimination in matters of public accommodations, housing, and business. A 17,000 square-foot LGBT community center opened in downtown Ferndale in 2007, the same year that the city elected the first openly gay mayor in Michigan. Although Motor City Pride moved back to Detroit in 2011, Ferndale Pride began that year.

The focus of this guy does on the city of Ferndale, Michigan. Topics appropriate for this category include online resources representing the city itself, or any individuals, businesses, industries, schools, places of worship, attraction, and events.

Categories

Faith & Spirituality

 

 

Recommended Resources


Search for Ferndale on Google or Bing