Old Detroit was a community unafraid to resist their government when it did not promote their interests. This is evident when many residents petitioned the courts to award them more money for their property than the United States Army Corps of Engineers initially offered. Eventually, the United States District Court of Oregon determined that USACE paid residents a market-value price for their property.
Contending with the inevitable reality that the United States Army Corps of Engineers wanted to buy their land to construct a dam, many residents of Old Detroit fought to ensure they received fair compensation for their homes.[1] From 1949 to 1957, the United States initiated condemnation proceedings against community members to remove them from property now owned by the Federal Government.[2] However, inhabitants of Old Detroit claimed that their property was worth substantially more than what the government paid them.[3] This disagreement between the United States and Old Detroit’s citizens represented one of the community’s few acts of resistance against policies that ignored the price of human displacement and dispossession.[4]
Beginning in the late 1940s, the U.S. filed condemnation proceedings against Detroit property owners and argued that they should accept the Secretary of War’s appraisal of their land but faced opposition from Detroit residents.[5] In March 1951, the Federal Government sued nine individuals, married couples, political counties, and corporate entities for the possession of their property and asserted that $1800 should be considered “just compensation for the taking of Tract No. F-319” and “Tract No. F-340.”[6] However, the defendants rejected this estimate and argued that the United States should pay around $3,000 for these tracts of land.[7] Ultimately, a jury ruled that $1150 represented “just compensation” for Tract No. F-319 but did not determine an amount for the other property.[8]
The United States District Court of Oregon continued to primarily rule in favor of the Federal Government instead of awarding the community’s residents “fair compensation” for their land.[9] This court’s unwillingness to consider the financial burden of displacement demonstrated the Federal Government’s preference for fiscal responsibility above the economic welfare of Old Detroit’s citizens.[10] However, even though the Court continued to support the U.S. instead of the town’s inhabitants, these condemnation proceedings illustrated the willingness of this community to oppose a government that neglected them. It suggested that these residents valued their city and were not afraid to challenge federal authority if they did not receive “just compensation” for their property.[11]
Below are two images of two properties represented in the condemnation hearings.
[1] United States of America vs. John W. Outerson, et al., (1949), 1; United States of America vs. Carl J. Dahl, et al. (1951), 7.
[2] United States of America vs. John W. Outerson, et al., 1; United States of America vs. Carl J. Dahl, et al., 7.
[3] United States of America vs. Carl J. Dahl, et al., 7.
[4] United States of America vs. Carl J. Dahl, et al., 7.
[5] United States of America vs. C.V. Crispin, et al., (1951), 3.
[6] United States of America vs. C.V. Crispin, et al., 3.
[7] United States of America vs. C.V. Crispin, et al., 9.
[8] United States of America vs. C.V. Crispin, et al., 11-12.
[9] United States of America vs. D.A. Gessner, et al., (1950), 11-12.
[10] United States vs. Don Santesson, et al., (1951), 3-4.
[11] United States of America vs. C.V. Crispin, et al., 3.
Location
Further Reading
- Reinhardt, Bob H., “Drowned Towns in the Cold War West: Small Communities and Federal Water Projects,” Western Historical Quarterly 42, no.2 (Summer 2011): 149-172.
- United States of America vs. John W. Outerson, et al., (1949).
- United States of America vs. Carl J. Dahl, et al. (1951).
- United States of America vs. C.V. Crispin, et al., (1951).
- United States of America vs. D.A. Gessner, et al., (1950).
- United States vs. Don Santesson, et al., (1951).
Citation Info
Mills, Rebecca. “Condemnation Proceedings in Old Detroit.” The Atlas of Drowned Towns (blog). December 4, 2023.