Coleman Alexander Young (1918 - 1997)

Born 24 May 1918 in Tuscaloosa, Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States

Ancestors

Husband of Marion (McClellan) Young — married 18 Jan 1947 in Detroit, Wayne, Michigan, United States

Died 29 Nov 1997 at age 79 in Detroit, Wayne, Michigan, United States

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Preceded by Charles S. Blondy

Michigan State Senator 1965 - 1973

Succeeded by David S. Holmes, Jr.

Biography

Coleman Young is Notable.

2nd Lieutenant Coleman Young served in the United States Army in World War II
Service started:
Unit(s): Tuskegee Airmen
Service ended:

Coleman Young was awarded the Spingarn Medal for outstanding achievement by an African American.

Coleman Alexander Young was the second African-American to serve as a Michigan state senator and the first African-American to serve as Mayor of Detroit. He was also a Tuskegee Airman.

Coleman Alexander Young was born 24 May 1918 in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States. He was the son of William Young and Ida Jones. He moved with his family to Detroit, Michigan during the Great African-American Migration from the South.^[1]

He graduated second in his class at Eastern High School in Detroit and was offered a scholarship to University of Michigan but was not offered room and board because he was Black. He declined to attend.

He later joined an apprentice school for electricians through Ford Motor Company but was passed over for an electrician's opening for a less experienced white apprentice. He was assigned to the assembly line instead and eventually became involved in labor organizing. He was eventually fired for run-ins with management and was blacklisted from the industry. The FBI also opened a case file on him.

Young was drafted for WWII and became a second lieutenant. He served as a bombardier and navigator in the Tuskegee Airmen.^[2]

After the war, Young became a union activist for the Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO). During the 1950s he and other activities were continually called before the Un-American Activities Committee.

He ran unsuccessfully for the Michigan House of Representatives in 1962, losing by only a few votes. He late ran for the Michigan Senate, winning by a 2-1 margin to become Michigan's second Black state senator. In 1966 he was elected the Democratic minority floor leader. He spent 10 years in Lansing before declaring his candidacy for mayor of the City of Detroit in 1973. He won the election and was re-elected four times over a period of 20 years.

Young was a very successful leader amongst the Black people of Detroit, but had many critics in the white suburbs of Detroit who claimed he was "a crude and often profane power broker who used racial divisiveness to solidify his power base".^[3]

In 1981, the NAACP awarded him the Spingarn Medal.^[4]

He married Marion McClellan on 18 January 1947 in Detroit, Wayne, Michigan, United States. They later divorced.^[5] In 1950 Coleman and Marion were living on Crane Avenue in Detroit. Coleman's employment was listed as director of a political party.^[6]

He later married a different woman and they also divorced.

He had a son named Coleman Young II with a third woman.^[7]

Coleman died (age 79) on 29 November 1997 in Detroit, Wayne, Michigan and is buried in Elmwood Cemetery, Detroit, Michigan.^{[8] [9]}

Research Notes

Some information about Coleman Young's family comes from The Detroit Historical Society's profile on him.^[3]

Sources

1. ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Great Migration (African American)," Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Great_Migration_(African_American)&oldid=1115391654 (accessed October 15, 2022).
2. ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "List of Tuskegee Airmen," Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=List_of_Tuskegee_Airmen&oldid=1114751908 (accessed October 15, 2022).
3. ↑ ^{3.0 3.1} "Young, Coleman A. | Detroit Historical Society." 2016. Detroit Historical Society. 2016. https://detroithistorical.org/learn/encyclopedia-of-detroit/young-coleman.
4. ↑ Wikipedia: Coleman Young
5. ↑ Marriage: "Michigan, U.S., Marriage Records, 1867-1952"
   Michigan Department of Community Health, Division of Vital Records and Health Statistics; Lansing, MI, USA; Michigan, Marriage Records, 1867-1952; Film: 345; Film Title: 82 Wayne 374200-377489; Film Description: Wayne (Dates TBD)
   Ancestry Record 9093 #1471112 (accessed 15 October 2022)
   Coleman Alexander Young (28) marriage to Marion Mc Clellan on 18 Jan 1947 in Detroit, Wayne, Michigan, USA.
6. ↑ 1950 Census: "1950 United States Federal Census"
   United States of America, Bureau of the Census; Washington, D.C.; Seventeenth Census of the United States, 1950; Record Group: Records of the Bureau of the Census, 1790-2007; Record Group Number: 29; Residence Date: 1950; Home in 1950: Detroit, Wayne, Michigan; Roll: 5635; Sheet Number: 74; Enumeration District: 85-1909
   Ancestry Sharing Link - Ancestry ca Record 62308 #180128254 (accessed 29 December 2022)
   Coleman A Young (31), married, State Director, head of household in Detroit, Wayne, Michigan, USA.
7. ↑ Wikipedia contributors, "Coleman Young II," Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Coleman_Young_II&oldid=1075706505 (accessed October 15, 2022).
8. ↑ Death: "United States Social Security Death Index"
   citing U.S. Social Security Administration, Death Master File, database (Alexandria, Virginia: National Technical Information Service, ongoing).
   FamilySearch Record: JLM2-7PG (accessed 15 October 2022)
   Coleman A Young death 29 Nov 1997 (born 24 May 1918) residing in Detroit, Wayne, Michigan.
9. ↑ Find A Grave: Memorial #2255

• "United States Census, 1920," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MXD1-S44 : accessed 6 August 2020), Coleman A Young in household of William C Young, Tuscaloosa, Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States; citing ED 127, sheet 4A, line 19, family 76, NARA microfilm publication T625 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1992), roll 45; FHL microfilm 1,820,045.
• "United States Census, 1930," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:X79H-6P2 : accessed 6 August 2020), Coleman A Young in household of William C Young, Detroit (Districts 0001-0250), Wayne, Michigan, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) ED 233, sheet 2B, line 86, family 47, NARA microfilm publication T626 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 2002), roll 1040; FHL microfilm 2,340,775.
• 1950 Census: "1950 United States Federal Census"
  United States of America, Bureau of the Census; Washington, D.C.; Seventeenth Census of the United States, 1950; Record Group: Records of the Bureau of the Census, 1790-2007; Record Group Number: 29; Residence Date: 1950; Home in 1950: Detroit, Wayne, Michigan; Roll: 5635; Sheet Number: 74; Enumeration District: 85-1909
  Ancestry Sharing Link - Ancestry Record 62308 #180128254 (accessed 15 October 2022)
  Coleman A Young (31), married head of household in Detroit, Wayne, Michigan, USA. Born in Alabama.
• Military Enlistment Record: "United States World War II Army Enlistment Records, 1938-1946"
  citing "Electronic Army Serial Number Merged File, ca. 1938-1946," database, The National Archives: Access to Archival Databases (AAD) (http://aad.archives.gov : National Archives and Records Administration, 2002); NARA NAID 1263923, National Archives at College Park, Maryland.
  FamilySearch Record: KMKH-GLF (accessed 15 October 2022)
  Name: Coleman A Young; Marital Status: Single, without dependents; Race: Negro; Military Service Date: 03 Feb 1942; Military Service Place: Ft Custer, Michigan, United States; Birth Date: 1918; Birth Place: ALABAMA; Arc Identifier: 1263923; Branch Alpha Orig: BI; Branch Code: Branch Immaterial - Warrant Officers, USA; Branch Code Orig: 00; Civil Occupation: Post office clerks; Civil Occupation Orig: 127; Component: Selectees (Enlisted Men); Component Orig: 7; Education: 4 years of high school; Education Orig: 4; Enlistment Day: 03; Enlistment Month: Feb; Enlistment Month Orig: 02; Enlistment Place: FT CUSTER MICHIGAN; Enlistment Place Orig: 6220; Enlistment Term: Enlistment for the duration of the War or other emergency, plus six months, subject to the discretion of the President or otherwise according to law; Enlistment Term Orig: 5; Enlistment Year: 1942; Enlistment Year Orig: 42; Event Type: Military Service; Grade Alpha Orig: PVT; Grade Code: Private; Grade Code Orig: 8; Major Force Of Assign: 3; Military Occupation: 7116; Reel Box Card: 10415.103; Serial Number: 36169880; Source: Civil Life; Source Orig: 0.
• Military Death Record: "U.S., Department of Veterans Affairs BIRLS Death File, 1850-2010"
  Beneficiary Identification Records Locator Subsystem (BIRLS) Death File. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs; Page number: 1
  Ancestry Record 2441 #9889300 (accessed 15 October 2022)
  Name: Coleman Alexander Young; Birth Date: 24 May 1918; Death Date: 29 Nov 1997; Cause of Death: Natural.
• Social Security: "U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007"
  Social Security Applications and Claims, 1936-2007
  Ancestry Record 60901 #18632624 (accessed 15 October 2022)
  Name: Coleman Alexander Young [Coleman A Young]; Gender: Male; Race: Black; Birth Date: 24 May 1918; Birth Place: Tuscaloosa, Alabama; Death Date: 29 Nov 1997; Father: William C Young; Mother: Ida R Jones; Notes: Dec 1936: Name listed as COLEMAN ALEXANDER YOUNG; 04 Feb 1998: Name listed as COLEMAN A YOUNG.

See also:

• Wikidata: Item Q863703, en:Wikipedia
• "Coleman A. Young." 2022. Coleman A. Young Foundation. 2022. https://www.cayf.org/coleman-a-young.html.
• "Walter P. Reuther Library Coleman Young Papers." 2022. Wayne State University. 2022. https://reuther.wayne.edu/node/6493.