1922 Encyclopædia Britannica/Detroit

DETROIT (see ). Commencing with the recovery from the industrial depression of 1907-8, the city of Detroit entered upon a period of growth almost without precedent among large cities. The area of the city in 1907 was 35.65 sq. m., but by the end of 1918 had increased to 83.58 sq. m. With reference to a portion of this area a peculiar condition existed. The villages of Hamtramck and Highland Park were originally outside territory into which the population and business of Detroit overflowed. By annexations in 1916 and 1917 their outer boundaries were brought two miles within the city limits, but they still retained their separate municipal administrations. Together they covered 4.83 square miles. The pop. of the city as estimated from the Water Board enumeration of families was in 1907 about 390,000. In 1910 the U.S. census record was 465,766. The census of 1920 gave a total of 1,088,853 within the city limits, distributed as follows: under Detroit municipal administration 993,739; village of Hamtramck 48,615; City of Highland Park 46,499. A canvass made late in 1920 by the various city agencies for Americanization indicated that about 70% of the population was either of foreign birth or foreign parentage. Polanders, Germans and Russians represented the largest numbers, though there were large accessions from south-eastern Europe. In a single automobile plant there were 34 nationalities represented. A canvass of the public schools taken in Dec. 1920 showed 55% of the pupils of American-born parentage, 50.5% being white and 4.5% coloured. In 45% of children of foreign-born parents Polish ranked first and Russian next. In the three years ending with 1920 a large amount of work was done by the Board of Commerce, the Board of Education, and leading manufacturers in teaching the English language and the elements of citizenship through public night schools and factory schools.

(Author:William Stocking)