Law · 1857–1938Clarence Darrowdefense attorneyFamed Chicago defense lawyer who came to Detroit in 1925 to defend Dr. Ossian Sweet and ten others, winning a landmark civil rights case.DETROIT / A living lexicon / ¼
Famous Detroiters
People who were born here, moved here or built their careers in Detroit: musicians, carmakers, athletes, writers, inventors, civil-rights leaders and a few notorious names. With their dates, their Detroit story and the places where they lived, worked and played, closed ones included.
- 1,940 famous people
- 270 Detroit places
- 21 fields
Hungarian ties 22 Detroiters with Hungarian ties →
Field
Connection
Born in
A–Z (family name)
24 people
Clear filtersLaw · 1857–1938Clarence Darrowdefense attorneyFamed Chicago defense lawyer who came to Detroit in 1925 to defend Dr. Ossian Sweet and ten others, winning a landmark civil rights case.
Politics · 1890–1949Frank Murphymayor of Detroit, governor, U.S. Supreme Court justiceRecorder's Court judge and Depression-era mayor of Detroit (1930–1933) who went on to govern Michigan and sit on the U.S. Supreme Court.
Politics · 1870–1929Edwin Denbylawyer, congressman, secretary of the NavyDetroit lawyer, congressman and Marine volunteer who became Harding's secretary of the Navy and resigned over the Teapot Dome scandal; Denby High School on the east side bears his name.
Politics · 1805–1871Jacob M. Howardlawyer, U.S. senatorDetroit lawyer and Republican Party co-founder who as U.S. senator helped shape the Thirteenth and Fourteenth Amendments, including the citizenship clause.
Politics · 1807–1880Robert McClellandlawyer, governor of Michigan, U.S. secretary of the interiorMonroe lawyer and Democratic governor (1852–1853) who served as President Pierce's interior secretary and spent his last 23 years practicing law in Detroit; he is buried at Elmwood.
Law · 1846–1917Donald M. Dickinsonlawyer, U.S. postmaster generalLeading Detroit trial lawyer and Democratic organizer who served as Grover Cleveland's postmaster general (1888–1889); Dickinson County in the Upper Peninsula is named for him.
Law · 1889–1982Homer S. Fergusonjudge, U.S. senator, diplomatDetroit lawyer and Wayne County circuit judge whose one-man grand jury exposed city corruption (1939–1941), launching him into the U.S. Senate (1943–1955).
Law · 1836–1913Henry Billings Brownlawyer, federal judge, U.S. Supreme Court justiceDetroit admiralty lawyer and federal judge who rose to the U.S. Supreme Court (1891–1906) and wrote the notorious Plessy v. Ferguson 'separate but equal' opinion; he is buried at Elmwood.
Politics · 1869–1927George P. Coddlawyer, mayor of Detroit, judge, congressmanDetroit-born lawyer and former Michigan baseball captain who was mayor in 1905–1906, then a Wayne County circuit judge and congressman.
Politics · 1865–1947Frank E. Doremusnewspaper editor, lawyer, congressman, mayor of DetroitSmall-town Michigan editor turned Detroit lawyer who served five terms in Congress and was mayor in 1923–1924 until ill health forced him to resign.
Politics · 1895–1971Harry Kellylawyer, governor of Michigan, state Supreme Court justiceOne-legged World War I hero and Detroit lawyer who governed Michigan during the 'Arsenal of Democracy' years (1943–1947) and later sat on the state Supreme Court.
Military · 1823–1907Orlando B. WillcoxUnion general, lawyer, authorDetroit-born West Pointer and Detroit lawyer who led the 1st Michigan Infantry to Bull Run, won the Medal of Honor and served as a Union general.
Politics · 1873–1953Alexander J. Groesbecklawyer, attorney general, governor of MichiganMacomb County-born Detroit lawyer who as governor (1921–1927) paved Michigan's roads with concrete; Groesbeck Highway is named after him and he is buried at Woodlawn.
Politics · 1848–1909William C. Mayburylawyer, congressman, mayor of DetroitDetroit-born lawyer and congressman who was mayor from 1897 to 1904, sealed the Detroit Century Box time capsule and invested in Henry Ford's first car company; his statue stands in Grand Circus Park.
Politics · 1884–1957Charles Bowleslawyer, judge, mayor of DetroitKlan-backed candidate who nearly won the 1924 mayoral race as a write-in, later became mayor in 1930 and was recalled within six months amid charges of tolerating crime.
City history · 1853–1932Clarence M. Burtonlawyer, businessman, historian and collectorDetroit title lawyer and historian whose private archive became the Burton Historical Collection, the backbone of Detroit history research.
Politics · 1899–1970Thaddeus M. Machrowiczlawyer, judge, congressmanPolish-born lawyer who rose from Hamtramck city attorney and judge to represent the Detroit area in Congress for a decade, then served as a federal judge in Detroit.
Politics · 1897–1987Louis Mirianilawyer, city council president, mayor of DetroitLegal aid lawyer and council president who succeeded Albert Cobo in 1957, completed Cobo Hall and the Civic Center, and remains Detroit's most recent Republican mayor.
Law · 1897–1970Theodore Levinimmigration lawyer, federal judgeDetroit immigration lawyer and Jewish community leader who served as a federal judge (1946–1970) and whose name is on Detroit's federal courthouse; uncle of Carl and Sander Levin.
Law · 1858–1933Horace Rackhamlawyer, original Ford Motor Company shareholder, philanthropistDetroit lawyer who drew up Ford Motor Company's incorporation papers, bought 50 shares against his banker's advice, and gave his fortune to the zoo, a golf course and education.
Politics · 1842–1904William G. Thompsonlawyer, Union officer, mayor of Detroit, baseball club founderCivil War veteran and lawyer who was mayor of Detroit from 1880 to 1883 and founded the Detroit Wolverines, the city's first major-league baseball team, in 1881.
Politics · 1810–1873Asher B. Bateslawyer, mayor of Detroit, Hawaiian royal officialDetroit lawyer who finished Augustus Porter's mayoral term in 1839 and later became a privy councillor and legal adviser to King Kamehameha III of Hawaii.
Law · 1842–1908D. Augustus Strakerlawyer, jurist, civil rights advocateBarbados-born lawyer who became the first Black attorney to argue before the Michigan Supreme Court and won a landmark 1890 case against restaurant segregation.
Politics · 1813–1855James A. Van Dykelawyer, fire chief, mayor of DetroitEloquent Whig lawyer and fire-department president who was Detroit's 21st mayor (1847) and later the Michigan Central Railroad's attorney.The lexicon keeps growing. Every entry lists its sources at the bottom. Dates were checked against Wikidata and Wikipedia. The texts are our own. Famous people's places among the sights ↗