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1940 in Michigan

Events from the year 1940 in Michigan.

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1940
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Top stories

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The Associated Press polled editors of its member newspapers in Michigan and ranked the state's top news stories of 1940 as follows:[1]

  1. The Armistice Day storm that killed 67 persons and destroyed five vessels on Lake Michigan[2][3]
  2. The indictment of Frank McKay, Michigan's Republican national committeeman on federal mail fraud charges
  3. Michigan's contribution to the national defense effort, including conversion of automobile manufacturing facilities to the production of airplanes, tanks, and machine guns; draft registration of 672,000 men; national guardsmen called to a year's training; and Henry Ford expressing his view on the new war
  4. The November 5 election, including the defeat of 81-year-old Governor Luren Dickinson by Democrat Murray Van Wagoner; widespread ballot-splitting; and a victory for advocates of a statewide civil service system
  5. The indictment of numerous Detroit and Wayne County officials on graft charges, including Wayne County Prosecutor Duncan C. McRea, Detroit Mayor Richard Reading, Wayne County Sheriff Thomas C. Wilcox, and Detroit Police Superintendent Fred Frahm
  6. 1940 Detroit Tigers season, including the declaration of young players to be free agents, the American League pennant, Bobo Newsom's performance, and defeat in the 1940 World Series
  7. Wendell Willkie's visit to Michigan, where he was targeted with tomatoes, eggs and other objects, and his narrow victory over Franklin Roosevelt in the November 5 vote count in Michigan
  8. Tom Harmon's All-American performance for the 1940 Michigan Wolverines football team
  9. The service of Matilda Dodge Wilson as the first woman to serve as Michigan's Lieutenant Governor, a position she held from January 1, 1940, to January 1, 1941
  10. The defeat of Michigan Attorney General Thomas Read in his campaign for renomination by a bloc seeking to end "boss rule" of the state's Republican Party

Other stories receiving votes included a political fight over the extent of state aid for the care and treatment of crippled children; a murder-suicide of Wayne County Judge Robert Sage and two of his associates; the 1940 Census results entitling Michigan to an additional congressman and showed a population shift away from urban districts; Congressional approval for construction of the Mackinac Bridge; and the appointment of former Governor Frank Murphy to the U.S. Supreme Court.[1]

Office holders

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State office holders

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Mayors of major cities

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Federal office holders

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Population

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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

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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
1 Detroit Wayne 1,623,452 1,815,000[4] 1,849,568 13.9%
2 Grand Rapids Kent 164,292 176,515 7.4%
3 Flint Genesee 151,543 163,143 7.7%
4 Saginaw Saginaw 82,794 92,918 12.2%
5 Lansing Ingham 78,753 90,000[5] 92,129 17.0%
6 Pontiac Oakland 66,626 73,681 10.6%
7 Dearborn Wayne 63,589 94,994 49.4%
8 Kalamazoo Kalamazoo 54,097 57,704 6.7%
9 Highland Park Wayne 50,810 46,393 −8.7%
10 Hamtramck Wayne 49,839 48,938[6] 43,555 −12.6%
11 Jackson Jackson 49,656 51,088 2.9%
12 Bay City Bay 47,956 52,523 9.5%
13 Muskegon Muskegon 47,697 48,429 1.5%
14 Battle Creek Calhoun 43,453 48,666 12.0%
15 Port Huron St. Clair 32,759 35,725 9.1%
16 Wyandotte Wayne 30,618 36,846 20.3%
17 Ann Arbor Washtenaw 29,815 48,251 61.8%
18 Royal Oak Oakland 25,087 46,898 86.9%
19 Ferndale Oakland 22,523 29,675 31.8%

Counties

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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
1 Wayne Detroit 1,888,946 2,015,623 2,435,235 20.8%
2 Oakland Pontiac 211,251 254,068 396,001 55.9%
3 Kent Grand Rapids 240,511 246,338 288,292 17.0%
4 Genesee Flint 211,641 227,944 270,963 18.9%
5 Ingham Lansing 116,587 130,616 172,941 32.4%
6 Saginaw Saginaw 120,717 130,468 153,515 17.7%
7 Macomb Warren 77,146 107,638 184,961 71.8%
8 Kalamazoo Kalamazoo 91,368 100,085 126,707 26.6%
9 Jackson Jackson 92,304 93,108 108,168 16.2%
10 Muskegon Muskegon 84,630 94,501 121,545 28.6%
11 Calhoun Battle Creek 87,043 94,206 120,813 28.2%

Companies

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The following is a list of major companies based in Michigan in 1940.

Company 1940 sales (millions) 1940 net earnings (millions) Headquarters Core business
General Motors Detroit Automobiles
Ford Motor Company na na[7] Automobiles
Chrysler Automobiles
Studebaker Corp. Automobiles
Briggs Mfg. Co. Detroit Automobile parts supplier
S. S. Kresge Retail
Hudson Motor Car Co. Detroit Automobiles
Detroit Edison Electric utility
Michigan Bell Telephone utility
Kellogg's Battle Creek Breakfast cereal
Parke-Davis Detroit Pharmaceutical
REO Motor Car Co. Lansing Automobiles
Burroughs Adding Machine Business machines

Sports

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Baseball

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American football

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Basketball

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Ice hockey

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Boat racing

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  • APBA Gold Cup – Sidney Allen won the Gold Cup in the Hotsy Totsy III.
  • Port Huron to Mackinac Boat Race – The yawl Manitou, skippered by James Rowland Lowe, won the annual yacht race on July 14, setting a new record time of 32 hours, 45 minutes.

Boxing

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  • Heavyweight champion Joe Louis defended his heavyweight title in four matches against Arturo Godoy (February 9, split decision), Johnny Paychek (March 29, TKO), Arturo Godoy (June 20, TKO), and Al McCoy (December 16, corner retirement).

Golfing

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Chronology of events

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January

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February

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  • February 19 - Republican Bartel J. Jonkman was elected in a special election to fill the vacancy left by Republican U.S. Congressman Carl E. Mapes's death in office on December 12, 1939.[18]

March

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April

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May

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June

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July

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August

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September

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October

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November

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December

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Births

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  • January 31 - George Mans, American football player and coach, in Detroit
  • February 15 - Leon Ware, songwriter and producer for Marvin Gaye and Michael Jackson, in Detroit
  • February 19 - Smokey Robinson, singer, songwriter, and record producer, and the founder and front man of the Motown vocal group The Miracles, in Detroit
  • May 10 - Stephen M. Ross, real estate developer and sports team owner, in Detroit
  • May 10 - Wayne Dyer, self-help author and a motivational speaker, in Detroit
  • May 12 - Norman Whitfield, songwriter and producer ("I Heard It Through the Grapevine", "Just My Imagination (Running Away with Me)" ) credited with creating the Motown sound, in Harlem, New York City
  • July 6 - Rex Cawley, gold medalist 400 meter hurdles at 1964 Summer Olympics, in Highland Park, MI
  • August 22 - Bill McCartney, American football coach and the founder of the Promise Keepers men's ministry, in Riverview, MI
  • August 29 - Bennie Maupin, jazz multireedist, in Detroit
  • October 16 - Dave DeBusschere, Basketball Hall of Fame, in Detroit
  • November 2 - Ed Budde, American football guard 5× AFL All-Star, in Highland Park, MI
  • November 11 - Dennis Coffey, guitarist known for his 1971 Top 10 hit single "Scorpio", in Detroit

Deaths

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  • August 18 - Walter Chrysler, founder of Chrysler Corporation, at age 65 in Kings Point, NY

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b Ted Peck (January 1, 1941). "Storm Highlights Michigan News". The Battle Creek Enquirer and News. p. IV-4 – via Newspapers.com.
  2. ^ "City of Flint Aground in Gale; Freighter Is Wrecked in Lake". The Ludington Daily News. November 12, 1940. p. 1 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. ^ "Rescue 17 Men From Freighter; Toll Is Three Ships and 68 Men". The Ludington Daily News. November 13, 1940. p. 1 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ "L.A. Gives the Count to Detroit". Detroit Free Press. July 28, 1946. p. 1 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ "City Needs 7,000 Homes". Lansing State Journal. March 10, 1946. p. 23 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ "Unusual Statistics Of State Revealed". Lansing State Journal. January 25, 1946. p. 18 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ^ Ford was a privately held company until 1956. Accordingly, its financial results for 1940 were not made public.
  8. ^ a b "1940 Detroit Tigers Statistics". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC.
  9. ^ "1940 MLB Batting Leaders". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved October 19, 2019.
  10. ^ "2012 University of Michigan Baseball Record Book" (PDF). University of Michigan. 2012. pp. 22, 70. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 4, 2016. Retrieved August 9, 2017.
  11. ^ 2012 Record Book, p. 13.
  12. ^ "1940 Detroit Lions Statistics & Players". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved July 9, 2017.
  13. ^ "1940 Football Team". Bentley Historical Library, University of Michigan. Retrieved July 10, 2017.
  14. ^ "1940 Michigan State Spartans Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved June 16, 2017.
  15. ^ "1940 Detroit Mercy Titans Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved November 23, 2015.
  16. ^ John N. Sabo (March 12, 1940). "Record Performance by Calihan Highlights Detroit's Cage Season". Detroit Free Press. p. 17 – via Newspapers.com.
  17. ^ "1939-40 Detroit Red Wings Roster and Statistics". Hockey Reference.com. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved October 19, 2019.
  18. ^ "Our Campaigns - MI District 05 - Special Election". Our Campaigns. Retrieved May 14, 2020.
  19. ^ "Our Campaigns - MI Governor - D Primary Race - Sept 10, 1940". Our Campaigns. Retrieved May 14, 2020.
  20. ^ "Our Campaigns - MI Governor - R Primary Race - Sept 10, 1940". Our Campaigns. Retrieved May 14, 2020.
  21. ^ "1940 Presidential General Election Results - Michigan". Retrieved May 14, 2020.
  22. ^ "Statistics of the Congressional Election of November 4, 1924" (PDF). Clerk.house.gov. Retrieved May 14, 2020.
  23. ^ "Our Campaigns - MI Governor - Nov 05, 1940". Our Campaigns. Retrieved May 14, 2020.
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