The Flamingo Club Historical Marker

This historical marker commemorates the Flamingo Club of Idlewild, Michigan, a vacation destination that catered to the Black middle class and opened in 1915. Idlewild started as a small location around a lake but quickly gained popularity and after World War II, several entrepreneurs invested in Idlewild including Phil Gates, who opened the Flamingo Club in 1955. It featured performances by many local and well-known musicians during its time, providing a place for interracial mingling and entertainment. Idlewild’s popularity dwindled after the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The Flamingo Club closed in 1968 and a historical marker was dedicated in 2009. 

Throughout the 1900s, racism and segregation were prevalent throughout the country. Neighborhoods, vacation resorts, and other businesses often practiced segregation, catering exclusively to the black or white population. Idlewild provided the black middle class with a secure and welcoming vacation spot that people continue to enjoy to this day.¹ Within Idlewild is the Flamingo Club, which hosted local and renowned musicians in the past. This club served as a place of interracial mixing, allowing people of all ethnicities to enjoy the experience.² The Flamingo Club brought people together for years, eventually closing in 1968 due to Idlewild’s decline in popularity.  

During the early 1900s, many resorts and clubs refused to cater to the black middle class, instead focusing on their white counterparts. Idlewild differed from the other resorts and vacation areas since they catered to and concentrated on advertising to many black middle-class entrepreneurs. Idlewild became a haven where people could gather during the summer months, possess their own property, and escape the racism and oppression prevalent throughout the nation. Eventually, Idlewild earned the nickname “Black Eden.” While Idlewild started in 1915, it remained a popular destination till the 1960s. After World War II ended in 1945, the black middle class expanded, and many black entrepreneurs heavily invested in Idlewild’s tourism industry. Many motels, gas stations, and nightclubs opened, including the Flamingo Club.³

During the 1930s to the 1940s, entrepreneur Virgil Williams ran a hotel and a nightclub, eventually selling it to Phil Gates, who turned it into the Flamingo Club in 1955.⁴ The Flamingo Club was a local jazz club that featured local and regional musicians, Lavern Baker, and Alberta Adams. In addition to its African American audience, the Flamingo Club also served as an example of interracial mingling. An Idlewild resident once recalled, “There were more white people in there than blacks. It was not about race, it was about fun.”⁵

In 1964, the passing of the Civil Rights Act prohibited businesses from discriminating against people based on their race. This act opened new vacation resorts and clubs for African Americans that did not previously accommodate them during the early 1900s. Idlewild’s popularity began to decline, and many tourists stopped going to Idlewild, opting to travel to new locations across the country. With the decline of Idlewild’s popularity, the Flamingo Club eventually closed in 1968 and became a registered Michigan Historical site in 2009.⁶ 

During the 1900s, Idlewild and the Flamingo Club served as a secure and welcoming vacation spot for the black middle class. Furthermore, the Flamingo Club highlights how during a time of prevalent segregation and racism, people of multiple ethnicities came together and enjoyed the many benefits that Idlewild had to offer. 

¹ Idlewild: Michigan’s “Black Eden.” WTTW Chicago. (2019, March 11).  https://interactive.wttw.com/chicago-on-vacation/destinations/michigan/idlewild-michigan-black-eden 

² Stephens, R. J. (2023, March 26). Idlewild, Michigan (1912- ) •. Blackpast. https://www.blackpast.org/african-american-history/idlewild-michigan-1912/ 

³ Idlewild: Michigan’s “Black Eden.” WTTW Chicago. (2019, March 11).  https://interactive.wttw.com/chicago-on-vacation/destinations/michigan/idlewild-michigan-black-eden 

⁴ The Island / The Flamingo Club. Read the Plaque. (n.d.). https://read-the- plaque.appspot.com/plaque/the-island-the-flamingo-club 

⁴ Legal highlight: The civil rights act of 1964. DOL. (n.d.). https://www.dol.gov/agencies/oasam/civil-rights-center/statutes/civil-rights-act-of-1964#:~:text=In%201964%2C%20Congress%20passed%20Public,hiring%2C%20promoting%2C%20and%20firing 

⁵ Sonnenberg, M. (2022, February 15). The Flamingo Club. Lost In Michigan. https://lostinmichigan.net/the-flamingo-club/ 

⁶ Zwart, C. (2021, October 1). The island / The Flamingo Club Historical Marker. Historical Marker. https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=182805