Gary’s Forgotten Racism
In 1911, Tolleston was the epitome of growth.
In 1910, the small townlet was officially annexed into the borders of Gary. Its street names were changed, and its identity merged with “the Magic City of Steel”. Over the next year, Tolleston would experience many major changes.
However, one change is of particular interest.
Oh, the past.
“Tolleston Wants Not The Negro” the article exclaimed in bold print. In fact, outside of the advertisements, the font is the largest on the page.
“Tolleston residents are determined that the shadow of the darky shall not cross their fair dominions,” it said, “Although the colored people live by the hundreds in Gary proper.”
The population density of African Americans inside the city at this time is not widely known or discussed.
Blacks have been a part of Gary since its inception. The Great Migration is not the first time they moved from the South to our Northern bastions. Working-class immigrants came from all over the world to build Gary from the sand up. Their stories are romanticized. However, Blacks were a part of this as well.
Teams of Black laborers toiled in the hottest sun and the coldest winds, sweating in the humid heat and freezing in the harsh winters. Blacks did the majority of the heavy lifting. They were the ones who cleared forests, moved dunes, and carried heavy loads. This is not to say other ethnicities did not do the same.
Black workers and other low-class groups were mostly delegated to “the Patch”, a section of unwanted bog land south of 9th Avenue. However, when there was no Patch, Blacks camped and lived amongst everyone else.
I wrote in The Times about Gary’s first convicted murderer. His name was Thomas J. Hannon. His crime occurred in 1906 when Tolleston was a little village. Those who could not afford to live elsewhere stayed in labor settlements. One of these settlements was laid out in Tolleston. It was the closest settlement to the Gary Works construction site.
“Imagine if you will; a world-weary man arrives at Tolleston looking for employment. Apathetically, he gets directed to the outskirts of town toward a dusty, swampy colony of hired workers. The settlement is full of burly, dirty grunts conscripted to construct both U.S. Steel Gary Works and the city of Gary from the ground up. They speak different languages but all understand one thing: they are not doing anything for free. It is the end of June yet piles of sandy snow still exist. The men amongst the icy, muddy dunes come from all walks of life. Some are drunk. Others smoke cheap cigars and drink strong coffee. The man walks along troughs that act as streets. Along these lanes sit dozens of scattered encampments. Men sit boiling stew in front of tents, barely held together with burlap and rawhide leather straps. Others stand idly outside of tarpaper shacks and crudely assembled log cabins. Aggressive conversations echo throughout the camp from places unseen. A few dozen criminals on the run from the law pose as workmen. They blend in, but with everyone looking for work, one can have a problem separating the honest from the deceitful.” — Korry Shepard, The Times
Blacks were definitely living in Tolleston, though their presence at the time was tolerated because they were laborers. They worked hard, drank, and partied with their peers and other immigrant classes just as everyone else. They slept at Tolleston, saw doctors at Tolleston, and had access to a lot of comforts not afforded to them down South.
A lot of African Americans were employed at Krug Brothers Sand and Gravel. Krug mined the dunes between Gary and Michigan City. The Blacks employed with Krug moved sand onto rail cars by hand and helped lift downtown Chicago with sand from our shores. Krug also helped clear the dunes at the Gary Works construction site.
There weren’t many places for Blacks to bunk down after a hard day at work. The Tolleston camp was one place where they were welcomed. However, once Gary started standing on its own two legs, the status quo of racial division was quickly reimplemented.
One of the problems researching Black history from this period is the lack of resources. There aren’t many accounts detailing the point of view of Black people, damn near zero. What little is available comes from historians and researchers no one has heard of. A lot of them do not know many Blacks from the Region. So when the account of Blacks is told, rare it may be, the tales are incidental.
So when we run across an article that details the want to rid Tolleston of Black people, better believe the point of view is from the victors' side.
In 1911, the Gary & Interurban streetcar system was in the final stages of construction. I bet you didn’t know that G&I’s labor force was mostly Black. When looking at old photographs, you’d be hard-pressed to find anyone with a tint upon the skin.
In 1911, the Interurban’s Black labor force mostly lived either in The Patch or at Tolleston.
“Steps toward riding the Sixth ward of 100 negros employed by the Gary & Interurban railway double-tracking department were taken last night at the meeting of the Sixth Ward Improvement Association,” the article explained.
One of the proprietors of the purge was Frank Borman, a historic figure in the annals of Northwest Indiana history. Borman was the president of the Association. His brother, Otto, was also detailed as being amongst those to “stop the dusky invasion.”
Borman was involved in Tolleston’s real estate business. And yes, recently deceased astronaut Frank Borman is related.
Some racists existed back in the early 1900s. This comes to the surprise of no one. The point is that their roles in creating the systemic racial segregation of early Gary are largely forgotten. Were the Bormans rampant racists or did they bend to the will of the public for business purposes?
“In all its fifty years of existence, Tolleston has never permitted a person of the dark hue to dwell within its limits and public sentiment, is against the violation of the rule,” the article continued.
Obviously, that sentence is not true. However, if one says a lie out loud for long enough, even they may begin to believe it.
G&I had no intention of moving their labor force out of Tolleston. The committee was prepared to go all the way to the Statehouse to make sure the removals got done.
The Times joked about the matter saying, “Tolleston declines the negro with thanks.”
But it seems karma is a cruel mistress. The month after Blacks were forcefully removed from Tolleston, the neighborhood had a severe smallpox outbreak that killed several people.
Guess who didn’t get sick?