During the week of July 14th 2014, I visited four cemeteries in my home region Detroit. On Monday the 14th, I cruised over to one of the Detroit area’s Jewish burial grounds, Hebrew Memorial Park. On Monday the 14th & Tuesday the 15th I visited Resurrection Catholic Cemetery.

Rounding out the week, on Friday the 18th. I met up with my graver friend Dorothy, and her daughters Tiffany, & Taryn, and Dorothy’s son Timothy. They were in the midst of a five-day road trip which kicked-off in Pittsburg, PA and concluded in Detroit, where they met up with me at Woodlawn Cemetery in Detroit. I then took them to visit the graveside of auto industrialist Henry Ford who’s buried on the grounds of St. Martha’s Episcopal Church on the westside of Detroit.

Hebrew Memorial Park: The History

Hebrew Memorial Park, which is located on Gratiot Ave, just north of 14 Mile, in the Detroit suburb Clinton Township was founded in 1918. Originally named the Jewish Free Burial Society, a.k.a. Chesed Shel Emes. The memorial park encompasses 13 acres, and was expanded to 40 acres in 1936.

Hebrew Memorial Park: The Tour

Upon my arrival I set the gameplan in motion. Keep in mind before the visit I did my research, and homework on who’s graves I planned to track down during this visit. The first grave I found was that of noted Detroit Jewish hoodlum, Sol Shindel.

Sol Shindel

b. May 5th, 1919 – d. December 6th, 1971

Section: 19 Lot: K

To make a long story short. Sol Shindel, was one of the most powerful Jewish mafioso’s in Detroit during the 1950s, through 1971 when he was murdered. Shindel, operated one of the most lucrative illegal bookmaking operations in Detroit during this time. This bookmaking enterprise was based out of the Anchor Bar, in downtown Detroit.

On December 6th, 1971 Shindel was murdered in his home. The murder was most likely due in part because of a recent federal indictment handed down against Shindel, and several members of Detroit’s organized crime family. Who were also indicted for their role in the illicit gambling operation which was taking place at the Anchor Bar.

After photographing the grave, and paying my respects to Sol Shindel, I then headed over to Section: 27, where noted Detroit Jewish Purple Gang member Willie Laks is buried.

Willie Laks

                             b. Russia (Date Unknown) – d. September 5th 1945

Sec: 27 Grave: 0557

The details of Willie Laks, life and criminal career, are scarce. What is known is that he was born in Russia, and spent most of his early years (before immigrating to the United States), in various Russian prisons. Upon arriving to the United States, and settling in Detroit. He became associated with the Oakland Sugar House Gang, and eventually the infamous Purple Gang. Laks was involved in the Purple Gang’s various schemes, and crimes. He passed away in September 1945. I’m not certain if it was due to murder, or natural causes.

After photographing the grave, and paying my respects to Purple Gang member, Willie Laks at Hebrew Memorial Park. I then cruised over to Resurrection Catholic Cemetery, which is also located in Clinton Township, Michigan.

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Resurrection Catholic Cemetery: The History

Resurrection Catholic Cemetery is located at 18201 Clinton River Rd. Clinton Township, Michigan 48038. The cemetery is a member of the Mt. Elliott Cemetery Association. Resurrection encompasses roughly 300 acres of prime burial real estate.

Some of the key highlights at Resurrection, include bronze statuary exhibits which are situated throughout the cemetery. The centerpiece of the bronze statuary collection at Resurrection is The Stations of The Cross exhibit in section 21. Along with in ground burial options, Resurrection also offers six indoor/outdoor community style mausoleums, private family mausoleums, and several cremation gardens.

Resurrection Catholic Cemetery: The Tour

Upon my arrival at Resurrection. I B-lined it for The Mausoleum of The Angels community mausoleum, which is adjacent to sections 28, and 29 in the northeast area of the cemetery. Located in The Mausoleum of The Angels, are several noted Detroit organized crime figures. Two of the “reputed” Detroit mafioso’s that I tracked down, on this trek who are interred inside The Mausoleum of The Angels were Anthony “The Bull” Corrado, & Raffaele Quasarano.

 Anthony “The Bull” Corrado

b. March 27, 1935 d. October 31st 2002

Anthony “The Bull” Corrado, was the youngest son of Pietro Corrado, who was one of the original founding members of the Detroit Mafia. Anthony “The Bull” Corrado was a fearsome capo in the Detroit Mafia. He would go on to lead his older brother Dominic’s crew after Dominic nicknamed “Fats” passed away from a heart attack. In 2002 Corrado passed away from I believe natural causes.

Raffaele “Jimmy Q” Quasarano

b. December 20, 1910 d. October 22, 2001

Raffaele “Jimmy Q” Quasarano was a high ranking member of the Detroit Mafia. A native of Mauch, Chunk, Pennsylvania. Over the years, Quasarano’s arrest record would come to demonstrate his criminal versatility. Over the next 50 years Quasarano would ring up arrests for disorderly conduct, armed robbery, multiple shootings, wiretapping, gambling, violation of federal narcotics laws and racketeering, the final entry coming during the latter stages of his long and illustrious career.

A suspected conspirator in the heroin operation of noted mafiosos Frank Coppola, John Priziola and Angelo Meli, Quasarano was in frequent contact with Lucchese crime family drug baron John Ormento as well as Joseph Barbara in upstate New York. Quasaranos‘ marriage to the daughter of Sicilian mafia boss Vito Vitale provided him with a direct source of heroin, a contact that paid enormous dividends as the Detroit Partners expanded their involvement in the burgeoning heroin market during the late 1940s and early 50s. Quasarano like other members of the Detroit outfit reinvested the proceeds of his nefarious activities in a string of legitimate enterprises which included the following: Motor City Barber and Beauty Supply, County Growers Inc., and Concrete Paving Corp., while joining relatives “Papa” John Priziola and his son-in-law Michael Polizzi in acquiring several acres of undeveloped land south of Mt.Clemons Michigan.

Following the death of Giovanni “Papa John” Priziola in 1979. Quasarano would rise up to the respectable organized crime family rank of consigliere. This role was more or less an advisory role to the boss of a crime family. In October 2001, Quasarano would pass away from natural causes. If you’re interested in reading a general overview of Quasarano’s interesting criminal career I invite you to visit his Mafia Wikia page.

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On Friday July 18th, I met up with my online graver friend Dorothy, and her daughters Tiffany, & Taryn, and Timothy, Dorothy’s son. As mentioned they were concluding a 5-day road trip which kicked-off in Pittsburg, PA and ended in Detroit. Where it was previously arranged that I be their tour guide, and show them some of the auto industry pioneers who happen to be buried in Woodlawn Cemetery. I also took them to visit, auto industrialist Henry Ford who’s buried on the westside of Detroit at St. Martha’s Episcopal Church on Joy Rd.

Woodlawn Cemetery – Detroit: The History

According to the official Woodlawn Cemetery – Detroit website:

Centrally located in Detroit, Woodlawn Cemetery is among the most prestigious cemeteries in the country. The cemetery was founded in 1895 and features over 150 private estates. The cemetery is known for having one of the largest collections of private mausoleums in the country.

Woodlawn has always been the preferred choice of the local elite. Here you’ll find those who helped build Detroit’s legacy, including members of the Ford, Dodge, Chapin, Hudson, and Van Dusen families. Civil rights activist Rosa Parks is interred in Woodlawn’s beautiful mausoleum.

Woodlawn is also the final resting place of Motown greats, including the Temptations ‘David Ruffin and the Four Tops’ Levi Stubbs and Renaldo “Obie” Benson, and Edward Patten, member of Gladys Knight and the Pips. C.J. Whitney, who owned the Detroit Opera House and other theatres, is interred in a domed private mausoleum. Living legends Stevie Wonder and Diana Ross both have sites reserved at Woodlawn. Many more notable owners can be found on a walk through of this beautiful cemetery.

Woodlawn Cemetery – Detroit: The Tour

Upon my arrival at Woodlawn. I had a few minutes to blow before Dorothy and her motley crew would arrive. Upon their arrival we greeted each other with open arms. I then asked what graves they wanted to see first. They told me I’m the tour guide. At which point I suggested that we visit the chapel, where Civil Rights pioneer, & activist Rosa Parks is interred.

Before we made our ascent into the chapel. I commented to Dorothy, that the chapel would probably be locked. So I casually strolled into the cemetery office, to inquire about Rosa Parks, at which point someone in the office gave me a business card with the passcode for the chapel door.

Rosa Louise McCauley Parks

b. February 4th 1913 d. October 24th 2005

Rosa Louise McCauley Parks was an African-American civil rights activist, whom the United States Congress called “the first lady of civil rights” and “the mother of the freedom movement”. Her birthday, February 4, and the day she was arrested, December 1, have both become Rosa Parks Day, commemorated in the U.S. states of California and Ohio.

On December 1, 1955, in Montgomery, Alabama, Parks refused to obey bus driver James F. Blake’s order that she give up her seat in the colored section to a white passenger, after the white section was filled. Parks was not the first person to resist bus segregation. Others had taken similar steps, including Irene Morgan in 1946, Sarah Louise Keys in 1955, and the members of the Browder v. Gayle lawsuit (Claudette Colvin, Aurelia Browder, Susie McDonald, and Mary Louise Smith) who were arrested in Montgomery months before Parks. NAACP organizers believed that Parks was the best candidate for seeing through a court challenge after her arrest for civil disobedience in violating Alabama segregation laws, although eventually her case became bogged down in the state courts while the Browder v. Gayle case succeeded.^[2][3]

Parks’ act of defiance and the Montgomery Bus Boycott became important symbols of the modern Civil Rights Movement. She became an international icon of resistance to racial segregation. She organized and collaborated with civil rights leaders, including Edgar Nixon, president of the local chapter of the NAACP; and Martin Luther King, Jr., a new minister in town who gained national prominence in the civil rights movement.

At the time, Parks was secretary of the Montgomery chapter of the NAACP. She had recently attended the Highlander Folk School, a Tennessee center for training activists for workers’ rights and racial equality. She acted as a private citizen “tired of giving in”. Although widely honored in later years, she also suffered for her act; she was fired from her job as a seamstress in a local department store.

Eventually, she moved to Detroit, where she briefly found similar work. From 1965 to 1988 she served as secretary and receptionist to John Conyers, an African-American U.S. Representative. After retirement, Parks wrote her autobiography and lived a largely private life in Detroit. In her final years, she suffered from dementia.

Parks received national recognition, including the NAACP’s 1979 Spingarn Medal, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the Congressional Gold Medal, and a posthumous statue in the United States Capitol’s National Statuary Hall. Upon her death in 2005, she was the first woman and second non-U.S. government official to lie in honor at the Capitol Rotunda.

In October 2005, at the age of 92. Rosa Parks passed away from natural causes, while residing in Detroit. If your interested in reading a detailed overview of her life. Feel free to visit her Wikipedia biography.

The Dodge Brothers

John Francis Dodge & Horace Elgin Dodge, Sr.

The Dodge Brothers, Horace, & John grew up in Niles, Michigan. The sibling duo were inseparable as children and as adults. In 1886, the Dodge brothers moved to Detroit, Michigan, where they took jobs at a boilermaker plant. In 1894 they went to work as machinists at the Canadian Typograph Company across the Detroit River in Windsor, Ontario.

In 1896, Horace Dodge married Anna Thompson, a Scottish immigrant born in Dundee. The couple had a son, Horace Jr., and a daughter, Delphine. Thompson married actor Hugh Dillman after the death of Dodge.

While brother John Dodge was the sales oriented managerial type, Horace was a gifted mechanic and inveterate tinkerer. he invented the first dirt-proof ball bearing and patented, in 1897 John arranged a deal for them to join with a third party investor to manufacture bicycles. Within a few years, they sold the business and in 1901 used the proceeds of the sale to set up their own machine shop in Detroit. During their first year in business the Dodge brothers’ company began making parts for the automobile industry.

In 1902, they won a contract to build transmissions for the Olds Motor Vehicle Company upon which they built a solid reputation for quality and service. However, the following year they turned down a second contract from Olds (Oldsmobile) to retool their plant to build engines for Henry Ford in a deal that included a share position in the new Ford Motor Company. By 1910, Horace Dodge and his brother were so successful they built a new plant in Hamtramck, Michigan.

For ten years, the Dodge brothers’ company was a supplier to Ford, and John Dodge worked as vice president of the Ford company. In 1913 the Dodge brothers terminated their Ford contract and devoted their energies toward producing a Dodge automobile. They began building motor trucks, ambulances and other vehicles for the United States military during the arms buildup for World War I and in October 1917 they produced their first commercial car. At war’s end, their company manufactured and marketed both cars and trucks.

In January 1920, John and Horace contracted Spanish flu and pneumonia while in New York City. John died on January 14, 1920 at the Ritz-Carlton, aged 55. He was interred in the Egyptian-style family mausoleum in Detroit’s Woodlawn Cemetery guarded by two Sphinx statues. Horace died the following December, and in 1925 their widows sold the Dodge Brothers automobile business to Dillon Read investment bankers for $146 million.

The Dodge Brothers, are interred in section 10 of Woodlawn Cemetery, inside a private Egyptian style mausoleum which is guarded by two Sphinx statues.

Edsel Bryant Ford

b. November 6th 1893 d. May 26th 1943

As the only child of Clara and Henry Ford, he was named after Edsel Ruddiman, one of Henry Ford’s closest childhood friends. Edsel was groomed to take over the family automobile business and grew up tinkering on cars with his father. He became secretary of Ford in 1915 and married Eleanor Lowthian Clay (1896–1976), the niece of department store owner J. L. Hudson, on November 1, 1916. Together they had four children: Henry Ford II (1917–1987), Benson Ford (1919–1978), Josephine Clay Ford (1923–2005), and William Clay Ford (1925-2014). They made their home at 2171 Iroquois St, in the Indian Village neighborhood of Detroit.

Ford went to The Hotchkiss School, in Lakeville, Connecticut, and the Detroit University School. His family donated to both institutions. The school library at Hotchkiss is named the Edsel Ford Memorial Library.

The younger Ford showed more interest than his father in flashier styling for automobiles. He indulged this proclivity in part with the purchase of the Lincoln Motor Company in 1922. His affinity for sports cars was demonstrated in his personal vehicles: Edsel bought the first MG motorcar imported to the US. In 1932 he had an aluminum, boat-tailed speedster automobile custom designed by Ford’s first designer, E.T. (Bob) Gregorie. This car had several features not available on any other car. Most of the design features appeared in many Ford models throughout history. The car had Ford’s brand-new V8, the first low-cost eight-cylinder engine. Many car collectors around the world have tried to locate the 32′ and acquire it for their personal collection but have been unsuccessful thus far. The one of a kind was the first collective creation by designer E.T. “Bob” Gregorie and Edsel Ford. The car was the prototype that never went into production. The car is considered one of the most valuable and the world’s first “Hot Rod” by many car experts and historians. Two years later Edsel had another car designed, this one a low-riding aluminum-bodied speedster. The latter two cars he kept for the remainder of his life and along with the Lincoln Zephyr inspired the design of the Lincoln Continental.

After becoming the president of Ford, Edsel long advocated the introduction of a more modern automobile to replace the Model T but was repeatedly overruled by his father. Dwindling market share finally made introduction of a new model inevitable: the Model A.

During the design of the Model A in 1927, Henry Ford assured mechanical quality and reliability, allowing his son to develop the body, with the help of designer József Galamb. Edsel also prevailed upon his father to allow the inclusion of four-wheel mechanical brakes and a sliding-gear transmission on this model. The resulting Model A was a commercial success, selling over four million during four years of production.

As president, Edsel Ford often disagreed with his father on major decisions and was occasionally humiliated in public by the older man. The relationship between the father and son was always close but always fraught with unhealthy aspects. Edsel managed to introduce many lasting changes. He founded and named the Mercury division. He was responsible for the Lincoln Zephyr and Lincoln Continental. He significantly strengthened Ford Motors’ overseas production, and modernized the company’s cars, such as by introducing hydraulic brakes.

In the early 1940s Ford developed metastatic stomach cancer and undulant fever. Surgery for the cancer was unsuccessful due to the metastasis. Ford died in 1943 at Gaukler Point, his lakeside home in Grosse Pointe Shores, at the age of 49. His father resumed the presidency of the company. All of Edsel Ford’s nonvoting stock was donated through a codicil in his will to the Ford Foundation, which he had founded with his father seven years earlier. He was buried in section 10 of Woodlawn Cemetery. His graveside monument resembles a modern styled sarcophagus.

William Clay Ford, Sr.

b. March 14th 1925 d. March 9th 2014

William Clay Ford, Sr. was the youngest child of Edsel Ford and was the last surviving grandchild of Henry Ford. Ford served on the boards of Ford Motor Company and the Edison Institute.

Born on March 14, 1925, in Detroit, Michigan to Edsel Ford and Eleanor Lowthian Clay, Ford served in the U.S. Navy Air Corps during World War II. Following the war, Ford married Martha Parke Firestone, the granddaughter of Harvey Firestone and Idabelle Smith Firestone, on June 21, 1947. They had four children together: Martha Parke Morse (b. 1948); Sheila Firestone Hamp (b. 1951); William Clay Ford, Jr. (b. 1957); and Elizabeth Hudson Ford (b. 1961).

In 1948, a year after Henry Ford’s death, William Clay Ford was appointed to the board of directors of the Ford Motor Company. Ford received a Bachelor of Science in Economics from Yale University in 1949, and was a member of the Psi Upsilon fraternity.

After graduating, Ford worked for the Ford Motor Company and was briefly head of the Continental Division. Continental was short-lived and merged with the Lincoln Motor Company shortly before Ford’s public stock offering. Ford updated the Lincoln Continental that his father created and in 1955, the Continental Mark II was released. It is said there were only two pictures on his office wall, his father’s Continental and his updated Mark II.

Ford was chairman of the board of trustees of the Henry Ford Museum from 1951 to 1983 and its largest donor. He was also involved in other historic properties, serving on the boards of the Wayside Inn and Seaboard Properties which managed the Dearborn Inn and Botsford Inn.

On November 22, 1963, Ford purchased a controlling interest in the Detroit Lions of the National Football League from the previous owners, Edwin Anderson and Lyle Fife for $4.5 million. He was also chairman of the short-lived Detroit Cougars professional soccer team that played in the USA and NASL leagues.

Ford served as chairman of Ford Motor Company’s design committee for 32 years, from 1957 to 1989. He was a member of the board of directors for 57 years, retiring on May 12, 2005, including being chairman of the important Finance Committee for a time. His son, William Clay Ford, Jr., was Ford Motor Company’s CEO at the time.

According to the Forbes Magazine, Ford was the 371st richest person in the United States in 2013, with an approximate net worth of $1.4 billion. Ford reportedly owned 6.7 million shares of Class B stock and 26.3 million common shares; in other words, Ford was the largest single shareholder in the Ford Motor Company.

Ford died in his sleep from pneumonia at his home in Grosse Pointe Shores, Michigan, on March 9, 2014 less than a week before his 89th birthday.

William Clay Ford Sr. is interred alongside his father Edsel, and other Ford family members in section 10 of Woodlawn Cemetery. William Clay Ford Sr. has a modern styled sarcophagus graveside monument.

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The Ford Cemetery: The History

Henry Ford, and his wife Clara Bryant Font are buried in The Ford Family Cemetery which is located on the grounds of St. Martha’s Episcopal Church, on the westside of Detroit. Henry and Clara Ford are buried in the cemetery along with other Ford family members. The former St. Martha’s Episcopal Church building is also here, built by Clara Bryant Ford and named in memory of her mother.

The Ford Cemetery: The Tour

After we were done touring Woodlawn Cemetery in Detroit. Dorothy,motley crew, followed behind me as I drove to The Ford Cemetery, located on Joy Rd. in Detroit. Upon our arrival to the churchyard cemetery. We strolled a few hundred feet to the gated area where Henry Ford, his wife Clara, and other Ford ancestors are buried.

Henry Ford

b. July 30th 1863 d. April 7th 1947

was an American industrialist, the founder of the Ford Motor Company, and sponsor of the development of the assembly line technique of mass production. Although Ford did not invent the automobile or the assembly line, he developed and manufactured the first automobile that many middle class Americans could afford. In doing so, Ford converted the automobile from an expensive curiosity into a practical conveyance that would profoundly impact the landscape of the twentieth century. His introduction of the Model T automobile revolutionized transportation and American industry.

As, owner of the Ford Motor Company, he became one of the richest and best-known people in the world. He is credited with “Fordism”: mass production of inexpensive goods coupled with high wages for workers. Ford had a global vision, with consumerism as the key to peace. His intense commitment to systematically lowering costs resulted in many technical and business innovations, including a franchise system that put dealerships throughout most of North America and in major cities on six continents. Ford left most of his vast wealth to the Ford Foundation and arranged for his family to control the company permanently.

When Edsel, president of Ford Motor Company, died of cancer in May 1943, the elderly and ailing Henry Ford decided to assume the presidency. By this point in his life, he had several cardiovascular events (variously cited as heart attack or stroke) and was mentally inconsistent, suspicious, and generally no longer fit for such immense responsibilities.

Most of the directors did not want to see him as president. But for the previous 20 years, though he had long been without any official executive title, he had always had de facto control over the company; the board and the management had never seriously defied him, and this moment was not different. The directors elected him,^[87] and he served until the end of the war. During this period the company began to decline, losing more than $10 million a month ($136,290,000 a month today). The administration of President Franklin Roosevelt had been considering a government takeover of the company in order to ensure continued war production, but the idea never progressed.

In ill-health, Ford ceded the presidency to his grandson Henry Ford II in September 1945 and went into retirement. He died in 1947 of a cerebral hemorrhage at age 83 in Fair Lane, his Dearborn estate. A public viewing was held at Greenfield Village where up to 5,000 people per hour filed past the casket. Funeral services were held in Detroit’s Cathedral Church of St. Paul and he was buried in the Ford Cemetery in Detroit.

If you’re interested in learning about Henry Ford, his automobile empire, and his interesting life. You should visit his extensive Wikipedia biography.

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