1944 in Michigan

Events from the year 1944 in Michigan.

Top stories

The Associated Press polled editors of its member newspapers in Michigan and ranked the state's top news stories of 1944 as follows:[1]

  1. Judge Leland Carr's grand jury investigation into graft in the Michigan Legislature (213 points)
  2. Dewey loses Michigan to Roosevelt
  3. Gov. Kelly defeats Frank McKay as Republican national committeeman
  4. Strike hamper war production
  5. Detroit Tigers finish in second place in the American League, one game out of first
  6. Principals of Detroit spy ring sentenced to long terms
  7. Fisher Brothers leave General Motors to found their own company
  8. The acquittal of David Filgas in the torch death of Patricia Winters
  9. Mistakes snarl vote-counting in November election

Office holders

State office holders

Mayors of major cities

Federal office holders

Population

In the 1940 United States census, Michigan was recorded as having a population of 5,256,106, ranking as the seventh most populous state in the country. By 1950, Michigan's population had increased by 21.2% to 6,371,766.

Cities

The following is a list of cities in Michigan with a population of at least 20,000 based on 1940 U.S. Census data. Historic census data from 1930 and 1950 is included to reflect trends in population increases or decreases. Cities that are part of the Detroit metropolitan area are shaded in tan.

1940
Rank
City County 1940 Pop. 1946 Est. 1950 Pop. Change 1940-50
1DetroitWayne1,623,4521,815,000[2]1,849,56813.9%
2Grand RapidsKent164,292176,5157.4%
3FlintGenesee151,543163,1437.7%
4SaginawSaginaw82,79492,91812.2%
5LansingIngham78,75390,000[3]92,12917.0%
6PontiacOakland66,62673,68110.6%
7DearbornWayne63,58994,99449.4%
8KalamazooKalamazoo54,09757,7046.7%
9Highland ParkWayne50,81046,393−8.7%
10HamtramckWayne49,83948,938[4]43,555−12.6%
11JacksonJackson49,65651,0882.9%
12Bay CityBay47,95652,5239.5%
13MuskegonMuskegon47,69748,4291.5%
14Battle CreekCalhoun43,45348,66612.0%
15Port HuronSt. Clair32,75935,7259.1%
16WyandotteWayne30,61836,84620.3%
17Ann ArborWashtenaw29,81548,25161.8%
18Royal OakOakland25,08746,89886.9%
19FerndaleOakland22,52329,67531.8%

Counties

The following is a list of counties in Michigan with populations of at least 75,000 based on 1940 U.S. Census data. Historic census data from 1930 and 1950 are included to reflect trends in population increases or decreases.

1940
Rank
County Largest city 1930 Pop. 1940 Pop. 1950 Pop. Change 1940-50
1WayneDetroit1,888,9462,015,6232,435,23520.8%
2OaklandPontiac211,251254,068396,00155.9%
3KentGrand Rapids240,511246,338288,29217.0%
4GeneseeFlint211,641227,944270,96318.9%
5InghamLansing116,587130,616172,94132.4%
6SaginawSaginaw120,717130,468153,51517.7%
7MacombWarren77,146107,638184,96171.8%
8KalamazooKalamazoo91,368100,085126,70726.6%
9JacksonJackson92,30493,108108,16816.2%
10MuskegonMuskegon84,63094,501121,54528.6%
11CalhounBattle Creek87,04394,206120,81328.2%

Companies

The following is a list of major companies based in Michigan in 1944.

Company 1944 sales (millions) 1944 net income (millions) Headquarters Core business
General Motors$4,262.2$171.0[5]DetroitAutomobiles
Ford Motor Companynana[6]Automobiles
ChryslerAutomobiles
Briggs Mfg. Co.DetroitAutomobile parts supplier
S. S. KresgeRetail
Hudson Motor Car Co.DetroitAutomobiles
Detroit EdisonElectric utility
Michigan Bell$9.3[7]Telephone utility
Kellogg'sBattle CreekBreakfast cereal
Parke-DavisDetroitPharmaceutical
REO Motor Car Co.LansingAutomobiles
Graham-Paige$1.8[8]Automobiles
Burroughs Adding MachineBusiness machines

Sports

Baseball

American football

Basketball

Ice hockey

Other

  • Joe Louis - On November 14, in his first fight since 1942, Detroit's Joe Louis defeated Johnny Davis by a knockout after 53 seconds of the first round before 7,107 spectators at Memorial Auditorium in Buffalo, New York. Louis fought while on a 21-day furlough from his Army service.[22]
  • Michigan Open - Sam Byrd won the tournament at Orchard Lake on August 6.[23]
  • Port Huron to Mackinac Boat Race – On July 15, the Manitour, a 64-foot yawl skippered by James H. Grove, crossed the finish line first with an elapsed time of 43:08.18. The sloop Vitesse II won the racing-cruiser division.[24]

Chronology of events

Births

Deaths

See also

References

  1. "Grand Jury Best '44 News Event". Detroit Free Press. December 31, 1944. p. 6 via Newspapers.com.
  2. "L.A. Gives the Count to Detroit". Detroit Free Press. July 28, 1946. p. 1 via Newspapers.com.
  3. "City Needs 7,000 Homes". Lansing State Journal. March 10, 1946. p. 23 via Newspapers.com.
  4. "Unusual Statistics Of State Revealed". Lansing State Journal. January 25, 1946. p. 18 via Newspapers.com.
  5. "1944 Net Income of GM Climbs to $170,995,865". Detroit Free Press. March 30, 1945. p. 19.
  6. Ford was a privately held company until 1956. Accordingly, its financial results for 1944 were not made public.
  7. "Michigan Bell Reports Slump in Net Income". Detroit Free Press. March 2, 1945. p. 19 via Newspapers.com.
  8. "'44 Earnings of G-P Rise 51 Per Cent". Detroit Free Press. April 10, 1945. p. 8 via Newspapers.com.
  9. "1944 Detroit Tigers Statistics". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved July 10, 2017.
  10. "2012 University of Michigan Baseball Record Book" (PDF). University of Michigan. 2012. pp. 22, 71. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 4, 2016. Retrieved August 9, 2017.
  11. 2012 Record Book, p. 13.
  12. "1944 Detroit Lions Statistics & Players". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved July 9, 2017.
  13. "1944 Football Team". Bentley Historical Library, University of Michigan. Retrieved July 10, 2017.
  14. "1944 Michigan State Spartans Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 16, 2017.
  15. "Football Records: Year-By-Year Results - 1940 - 49". Western Michigan University. Retrieved July 5, 2016.
  16. "Central Michigan 2015 Football Media Guide" (PDF). Central Michigan University. 2015. pp. 100, 109. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 26, 2016. Retrieved July 22, 2016.
  17. "Western Michigan Broncos School History". SR College Basketball. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved July 11, 2017.
  18. "University of Michigan Basketball Record Book" (PDF). University of Michigan. p. 28. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2018-10-26. Retrieved 2017-07-13.
  19. "Detroit Mercy Titans School History". SR College Basketball. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved July 11, 2017.
  20. "1943-44 Detroit Red Wings Roster and Statistics". Hockey-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved July 11, 2017.
  21. "Michigan Team History". College Hockey News. Retrieved June 11, 2017.
  22. "Joe Louis Kayos Johnny Davis in First Round". The Odessa American. November 15, 1944. p. 6 via Newspapers.com.
  23. "Royal Robes Fit Byrd Well as He Tops State Open by Six Strokes". Detroit Free Press. August 7, 1944. p. 12 via Newspapers.com.
  24. "Vitesse Wins Mackinac Sailing Race". The Port Huron Times-Herald. July 17, 1944. p. 5 via Newspapers.com.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.