Green Book Sites in Michigan

African American Recreational Tourism and Negro Motorist Green Book Sites in Michigan

Travel for African American families throughout the early and mid twentieth century was challenging even in northern states like Michigan. In 1936, Victor H. Green, a New Jersey postal worker and civic leader, published his first Negro Motorist Green Book to assist travelers in finding safe places to visit and get fuel, food, other services. While initially limited to New York City, the books soon expanded to other states including Michigan. During the thirty years the Green Book was published, approximately 230 Michigan businesses were listed.

Telling Michigan's Full Story

Historic preservation is a way of understanding history through the very places where events happened, and people stood. How can historic preservation benefit underrepresented communities, who have often been marginalized in National Register nominations and the larger story of our shared history?

The Michigan SHPO is committed to recognizing the history of the state’s underrepresented communities, growing the number of diverse nominations submitted to the National Register, and connecting individuals, non-profits, and local groups with preservation incentives and resources. This bulletin explores some of the opportunities available to help tell a fuller story of Michigan's history.

Diversity and Inclusion in Historic Preservation

Read the Bulletin

The goal of the Green Book Sites Project is to identify and document those properties listed in the Green Book which still survive today. In the years following the Great Depression, Michigan saw an influx of Black southern families arriving in cities like Detroit, Muskegon, Grand Rapids, and Benton Harbor, but also more rural locations like such as Cass County. At the same time, travel by automobile was becoming more popular which created a need for safe places for African American travelers to stay, fill up, eat, and shop. Michigan's first listings appear in the 1938 edition with locations in Detroit for a number of hotels, a single night club and a single service station. Quickly, the Michigan listings expanded to other communities across the state including Idlewild, suggesting the book's utility for planning recreational travel.

About the African American Recreational Tourism and Negro Motorist Green Book Sites in Michigan Project

In 2024, the Michigan State Historic Preservation Office was awarded a National Park Service African American Civil Rights program grant to identify and survey extant properties listed in the Negro Motorist Green Book.

The project and research will create several documents:

Historic resource survey of remaining Green Book sites
Extensive historic context on African American Recreation Tourism in Michigan including the role of these Green Book sites for African American families and travelers in the state
Multiple Property Documentation Form (MPDF) for the National Register of Historic Places to set registration requirements for related property listing
Preparation and submission of one nomination to the National Register of Historic Places selected of a surveyed property

For more information on Negro Motorist Green Book History, visit:

For more information on the Green Book Sites in Michigan Project, contact:

Katie Kolokithas, Survey Program Coordinator
State Historic Preservation Office
[email protected] or 517-285-9248