If your July 4 holiday travel plans find you in Michigan, be sure to visit an exhibit of the Jewish Historical Society of Michigan on view at the Detroit Historical Museum.

"In the Neighborhood: Everyday Life on Hastings Street" takes visitors on a walk back in history to Hastings Street’s time from 1880-1930 as an enclave for Detroit’s Jewish immigrants, where everyday life was full of the choices, adversities, innovations, triumphs, tensions, and synergies that defined this incomparable place.

Prior to 1930, Hastings Street, which later became a center for Black culture and commerce, was home to many immigrants, including working-class Jews who fled Eastern Europe driven by the terror and violence of antisemitism. This new exhibit, presented by Jewish Historical Society of Michigan, follows Jewish immigrants’ experiences from Europe to Detroit to Hastings Street. A fascinating blend of artifacts and storytelling gives visitors a rare peek into Jewish life of the period.

The Detroit Jewish News offers this writeup on the exhibit while Detroit Public Radio provides background on the Black Bottom section of the city where Jewish immigrants lived.

On a personal note, a family member contributed a samovar to the exhibit and our relative is featured in a video preview Behind the Hastings Street Exhibit.

Thank you for your interest in this important exhibit highlighting the history of the Detroit Jewish community.

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