Dr. Ossian Sweet's First House

Ossian Sweet was born in 1895 in Orlando, Florida, living with his parents, whose occupations were tenant farmers. Sweet earned his medical degree from Howard University in 1921 and later moved to Detroit, Michigan, in the same year, living with his wife’s parents. In 1925, he bought a home in Black Bottom, a predominantly Black neighborhood in Detroit. This move led to Sweet’s house being crowded and subsidized. Sweet and his wife met a white couple who were willing to sell them their house. Although Sweet and his wife knew all the risks, they took the deal. On September 8^th, 1925, Sweet, his wife, and his daughter moved into the predominantly white neighborhood. Ossian Sweet is most known for the incident when he moved into the home when a mob gathered and someone inside the home shot into the crowd. Sweet and his friends were charged for this incident. The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) defended Sweet, bringing Clarence Darrow as chief counsel. The first trial led to the jury declaring a mistrial, and the second trial ended in an acquittal. After the trial, no further attempts were made to prosecute Sweet or his family, allowing Sweet to move back into the house in 1928. He lived there till when he sold the house in 1958.

Ossian Sweet's first home in Michigan was in Black Bottom. Black Bottom is a significantly important piece of Detroit's history that most overlook and easily forget. Black Bottom was a neighborhood that was overcrowded by African Americans. Many historical influential people have lived in Black Bottom, including Aretha Franklin's father, Reverend C. L. Franklin, and Ossian Sweet. The area was introduced in 1827 and played a role in the early 1960s. In the end, Black Bottom was a crucial player in Detroit's economic, social, and overall history.

Black Bottom was considered to run from East Vernor Highway and Gratiot Avenue to the North; Chene or Grand Trunk Railroad to the east; Lafayette or Congress to the south; and Brush Street to the west. The Black Population within Detroit during the 1910s was around 6,000 individuals. Within 30 years, the population changed to over 100,000 people. Despite the vast change in the populace, one thing stayed true: most of the population lived within Black Bottom. Even though every person of color faced discrimination, segregation, and many other forms of humanitarian injustices during this time, Black Bottom was finding its own way to thrive. Black Bottom was primarily known for its business with music, bars, hair salons, barber shops, and hotels. The only thing that Black Bottom was lacking was doctors. This role is where Ossian Sweet comes into play.¹

In 1921, Ossian Sweet moved to Black Bottom in Detroit after obtaining his medical degree from Howard University. Ossian realized that no one in Black Bottom had medical help or attention. During this time, no one wanted to help this community because of the standards of this time period. Ossian quickly started helping people in the Black Bottom community. After some time, he had enough money to open up his own practice.³

Shortly after he arrived in Black Bottom, Ossian met and married Gladys Mitchel in 1922. They had a daughter in 1923 and moved in with Glady parents' house in 1923. In 1925, Ossian Sweet and his family moved from Glady parent's house to a white neighborhood. The white community did not appreciate their moving into "their" neighborhood, so a huge crowd formed in front of their house. After the group began to throw rocks and other debris, someone from within Ossian's house shot off a gun into the crowd, killing one and injuring another. Since the time period was full of racial segregation and discrimination, the Sweet family would not get off the hook easily, or at least, that is what they thought. The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) aided in finding him representation, and after two trials, the Sweet family was free of charges. However, this didn't mean they were free from the publicity and press of the event. The publicity never died down, which led to Ossian killing himself 30+ years later. ²

In conclusion, Ossian Sweet was a crucial pillar in starting the desegregation movement in neighborhoods. Ossian was not only a historical player in the desegregation of America, but he also treated his community and made sure their health was finally a priority to someone. In the end, Ossian took care of his family, community, and started a movement toward taking care of the overarching problem of segregation in this country.

¹ Coleman, Ken. n.d. “The People and Places of Black Bottom, Detroit.” The National Endowment For The Humanities. Accessed August 16, 2023. https://www.neh.gov/article/people-and-places-black-bottom-detroit.

² Detroit Government. n.d. “pg. 1 OSSIAN SWEET: HISTORICAL ACCOUNT Dr. Ossian Sweet was an African American physician who was born in Bartow, Florida in 189.” City of Detroit. Accessed August 16, 2023. https://detroitmi.gov/sites/detroitmi.localhost/files/2022-12/Historical%20Account_Ossian%20Sweet_0.pdf.

³ Detroit Historical Society. n.d. “Black Bottom Neighborhood.” Detroit Historical Society. Accessed August 16, 2023. https://detroithistorical.org/learn/encyclopedia-of-detroit/black-bottom-neighborhood.

References

¹ Coleman, Ken. n.d. “The People and Places of Black Bottom, Detroit.” The National Endowment For The Humanities. Accessed August 16, 2023. https://www.neh.gov/article/people-and-places-black-bottom-detroit.

² Detroit Government. n.d. “pg. 1 OSSIAN SWEET: HISTORICAL ACCOUNT Dr. Ossian Sweet was an African American physician who was born in Bartow, Florida in 189.” City of Detroit. Accessed August 16, 2023. https://detroitmi.gov/sites/detroitmi.localhost/files/2022-12/Historical%20Account_Ossian%20Sweet_0.pdf.

³ Detroit Historical Society. n.d. “Black Bottom Neighborhood.” Detroit Historical Society. Accessed August 16, 2023. https://detroithistorical.org/learn/encyclopedia-of-detroit/black-bottom-neighborhood.

Detroit Historical Society. n.d. “Sweet, Ossian.” Detroit Historical Society. Accessed August 16, 2023. https://detroithistorical.org/learn/encyclopedia-of-detroit/sweet-ossian.