As part of its celebration of Ann Arbor’s 200th Anniversary, the Ann Arbor District Library and 7 Cylinders Studio (7CS) have produced a documentary film about the 1965 closing of Ann Arbor’s majority-Black Jones School. Ann Arbor joined a nationwide trend of school desegregation during the Civil Rights Era. But for these young students, the loss of a neighborhood school foreshadowed changes to their close-knit community. Gentrification came to Ann Arbor on the heels of desegregation.
In the making of this film, 7CS filmmakers and AADL archivists interviewed over thirty former Jones students and Black community leaders. They shared memories of Jones School and “The Old Neighborhood”—the areas now known as Kerrytown and Water Hill. A filmed walking tour, studio interviews, and historical photos form the core of the film. Run time is approximately 40 minutes. The film can be viewed online at https://aadl.org/therewenttheneighborhood.
information shared by St. Clare’s Equity Education & Action Committee (EEAC)