Part one of a two-part episode, on this edition of Lanstories, host David Siwik explores the namesake of Meridian Township - the land survey of Michigan conducted during the territorial and early statehood period, centered around the Meridian survey line, and the establishment of the boustrophedonical section number system. Topics covered include an overview of the establishment of the Northwest Territory, the Ordinance of 1784, Land Ordinance of 1785, and how these early laws laid the foundation for virtually all land surveys and sales in Michigan, with the principal survey meridian located where Meridian Township lies now.

Related Podcasts: Lanstories - Indigenous Mid-Michigan Lands, Part 1, Part 2, Part 3

Tags/Keywords: Michigan History, United States History, Northwest Territory, Ordinance of 1784, Land Ordinance of 1785, Northwest Ordinance of 1787, Township, Township Section, Boustrophedonical Section Number System, Michigan Territory, Statehood, Survey Point State Park

In this third part of a three-part episode, Lanstories host David Siwik concludes his look at Lansing during the childhood of Malcolm X in the 1920s and 1930s. Topics discussed include housing discrimination, foster care, the death of Malcolm X's father and the threats the Little family faced from the state authorities and local white supremacist terrorist groups such as the Ku Klux Klan and the Black Legion.

Topics/Tags/Keywords

• Malcolm X
• Malcolm Little
• Earl Little
• Louis Little
• Ella Little
• Lansing
• Michigan
• Michigan History
• United States History
• 1920s
• 1930s
• Housing Discrimination
• Grand River Avenue
• Pleasant Grove Elementary School
• Pleasant Grove Avenue
• Home Owners Loan Corporation (HOLC)
• Mason
• Kalamazoo Regional Psychiatric Hospital
• Ku Klux Klan
• Black Legion

In part two of a three part episode, host David Siwik continues the exploration of Lansing, Michigan in the 1920s and 1930s, with a consideration of Malcolm X’s childhood and the broader socioeconomic dynamics of a black family living in a northern city during these years. Specific episode topics include historical housing discrimination, the growth of Lansing neighborhoods and the establishment of several organizations that would play a major role in creating Lansing’s neighborhoods and the impact changes in Federal housing policy had on Lansing.

Keywords/Tags:

• Malcolm X
• Earl Little
• Louise Little
• Lansing
• Michigan
• United States
• Michigan History
• 1920s
• Great Migration
• Harlem Renaissance
• American history 1920s-1940s
• Autobiography of Malcolm X as Told to Alex Haley, by Alex Haley
• Malcolm X: A Life of Reinvention, by Manning Marable
• Federal Housing Administration
• Home Owner’s Loan Corporation
• New Deal
• National Housing Act, 1934