Detroit, MI
In “When Detroit Played the Numbers,” Felicia B. George looks at illegal gambling's heyday
For Black History Month, Michigan Public’s Morning Edition is featuring conversations with Michigan authors who have written new books about African-American history.
In her book, When Detroit Played the Numbers: Gambling’s History and Cultural Impact on the Motor City, Felicia B. George looks at the rise and fall of illegal gambling operations in the city.
The Library of Michigan has selected it for its 2025 Michigan Notable Books list.
George is an anthropologist and teaches at Wayne State University. She spoke with Stateside’s April Baer in 2024.
April Baer: I have to say, before I picked up your book, I was totally unaware of historically how very long lotteries have been with us. Maybe for younger folks who who’ve grown up with the legal lottery systems that exist today, can you explain where lotteries came from?
Felicia B. George: So it’s something that we adopted from England when we came over here in the United States to build the states. It was a fast and easy way to generate revenue without raising taxes. So the United States was literally built on a lot of different lotteries. It paid for roads. It paid for churches, hospitals, universities. You name it, and it was used to pay for it. It even helped pay for the American Revolution.
AB: The bulk of the book addresses this period starting in the early 20th century. Could you lay out for us what you consider to be the dawn of lotteries in the numbers in Detroit?
FBG: Eventually, like with everything, fraud kind of creeped its way into the lotteries. And so a lot of the states make them illegal. And so, after the Civil War, they were illegal. You’re not supposed to play the lotteries by the 1890s. They were done. For a while, Detroit had some illegal lottery going on and they declared that it was dead. And so it was dead just — probably for a few years — in the early 1900s.
But in 1920, something really interesting occurred. John Roxborough was a Black man that came from a elite family. He had his own business where he was a bail bondsman, and one day he went to bail out a numbers operator. And this numbers operator said to him, “Hey, you guys don’t have a policy game.” And that was another name for the numbers game. He said, “I can teach you this and you will make a ton of money.” And sure enough, he learned how to run this establishment from this numbers operator. And he promoted it to Detroit and it just blew up from there.
AB: You give us all kinds of evidence throughout the book that the numbers and lottery games were something that, very much like today with legal lotteries, everyone played. Rich people, poor people, all races. Another thing that you bring up pretty early in the book is pushing back and questioning the concept of gaming as predatory in Black communities. And you point out many different examples of how the games kept money in the community.
FBG: It was really important for Black people to have a financial institution. We’re talking about a period of time when redlining was going on, when Blacks were denied employment, when they were denied loans for businesses, where there was not money to be used to go to colleges and universities. And so these numbers men here in Detroit really considered themselves race men. Even though they became very rich and they made a lot of profit from it, they put it back into the community.
“The United States was literally built on a lot of different lotteries… It even helped pay for the American Revolution.”
Author Felicia B. George
A lot of these men would donate money to the Urban League, to the NAACP. And they would make sure that these organizations had money so that they could keep running. They provided scholarship funds for students. They gave loans for businesses, nightclubs, restaurants. When the Depression hit, these same men made sure that they were feeding the homeless and the people that didn’t have food. And so they really, really gave back economically and socially to the communities that they served.
AB: Felicia, the book also gives us a lot of detail on the very complicated relationship between “policy,” and “the numbers,” and law enforcement. Thank you also for explaining the policy was how people talked about the games where lottery numbers were selected, I guess in the way that we think about it now. And the numbers were a bit more of something that involved published results from from different kinds of things. I never really understood that distinction before.
Can you explain law enforcement’s relationship with illegal gambling in Detroit?
FBG: In order for the numbers game to be played, they had to have protection, and they had to have a way to ensure that they wouldn’t be raided and lose their money. And so they had a number of people, including the mayor of the city of Detroit, the sheriff for Wayne County, the prosecutor for Wayne County, and a number of police officers for Detroit Police Department were on their payroll.
AB: There’s a whole chapter devoted to a period in which John Roxborough … was indicted. And all of a sudden a lot of things that had been going on below the surface were very much more public. Can you explain what played out at the trial and the impact that it had on the numbers in the city?
FBG: There was a woman who worked for one of the Irish number houses, and she was a divorcee and was having an affair with the manager of one of these numbers houses. And he pretty much gave her a Dear John letter and, told her, “Hey, you know, I’m no good. I’m breaking up with you. You can do better than me.”
And she met with him one final time to give him an opportunity to come back to her, and he wouldn’t. And so she picked up her child and she committed suicide and killed her child. But before she did this, she sent letters all over the city. She sent it to the Detroit News, the Detroit Times, the Detroit Free Press, the Michigan State Police, to the FBI. And in these letters, she said, Hey, there’s a lot of bias that’s going on in the City of Detroit. The police department is a part of it. They’re being paid off. These are the players. This is what’s going on.
When this hit the newspapers, the public was enraged and then a lot of the numbers men were exposed. John Roxborough, who was [famed boxer] Joe Louis’s manager, and a whole bunch of other numbers operators. And so they were indicted and eventually convicted. At that point, you start seeing some of the power that the Black numbers operators had, they really, really started to diminish.
“Even though they became very rich and they made a lot of profit from it, they put it back into the community.”
Author Felicia B. George on how Black numbers men in Detroit supported their communities in the early 20th century.
AB: One of the things that was so poignant about the book was seeing how the story of numbers games and policy were really entwined with the story of America and the larger story of Black Detroit. What was the confluence of how the lottery was changing in the years when Detroit’s neighborhoods, Black neighborhoods, were changing as well?
FBG: Before urban renewal, you have these clusters where Blacks were forced to live, and so you have these communities and numbers were a huge part of those communities. They were a way for people to socialize, to bond together, not just the economic part or the entertainment part. And so you would have these numbers writers, they would go door to door. They were the ones that, you know, would kind of pass on whatever news was going on in the community. And so they were important men and women in the community.
And when urban renewal comes, now these communities are being broken up. And so these number writers — who have been a part of the community for years that everybody knows who they are, plays the numbers with them — they’re now gone. The telephone had a part in it. You know, now people are calling in their numbers. And so with urban renewal, you’ve lost the sense of community for a number of reasons. And you can just kind of see how it gradually impacted not just those communities, but the relationships in the game overall.
Editor’s note: Quotes in this article have been edited for length and clarity. This transcript and the audio version of the interview near the top of this page are excerpted from a longer conversation that originally appeared on Stateside. You can find that interview here.
5 facts about Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan
Discover key facts about Mike Duggan, Detroit’s mayor.
Mayor Mike Duggan enchanted an energetic crowd at his final State of the City address inside the new Hudson’s Detroit skyscraper, highlighting his administration’s successes of confronting Detroit’s dire issues over the last decade while reassuring Detroiters a promising future.
Duggan distributed praises among residents, business leaders, Detroit’s clergy community and politicians for helping the city emerge out of his hardships, particularly after the city filed for municipal bankruptcy before his taking office. In his 12 years as mayor, Detroiters have witnessed ample development and building restorations, crime reduction, eliminated abandoned housing and blight and restored recreation centers. But looming neighborhood issues remain, which Duggan cited as the city’s “biggest battle” in the last 12 years.
“I thought we could bring every neighborhood back. It was started by demolishing it at rates faster than anybody in the country,” Duggan said, adding that since taking office, the city had 47,000 abandoned houses. Through a partnership with the Detroit Land Bank Authority, which sold 15,000 houses and expects to have 1,000 by the end of the year, neighborhoods are expected to improve.
Here are some takeaways from his speech:
Increased employment
Many predicted a bleak future for Detroit when the city’s unemployment rate reached nearly 20%, but Duggan attempted to maximize opportunities on the city’s vacant land. Through his tenure, several manufacturers stepped in to develop facilities on those sites, which would open up hundreds or even thousands of jobs.
These included several automotive companies and major businesses, such as Amazon, to anchor a business center at the old State Fairgrounds. Last June, Ford Motor Company restored and reopened the abandoned Michigan Central Station, a long-awaited development showcasing elaborate attention to details in its restoration.
Crime reduction
In 2014, Detroit was considered the “most violent city” as residents and police officers left. The city consistently boosted public safety by hiring more officers, providing them $10,000 in raises and advocated for Community Violence Intervention initiatives that have had a big affect on reducing neighborhood crime. Duggan said 99% of the police department’s positions are filled to date.
Duggan hailed a major drop in homicides in 2024, marking the lowest since 1969, and commended Community Violence Intervention initiatives like ShotStoppers for reducing gun violence in the city.
Growing revenues
Since taking office, Duggan was tasked with balancing the city’s budget and growing revenues. In his latest budget address, he proposed several financial boosts across multiple departments, thanks to increased revenues from more income tax collections as people have moved back to the city — reversing a decades-long decline in population — and new business have opened.
Funding homelessness initiatives to increase shelters and beds, hiring more Detroit Department of Transportation drivers and mechanics, buying new buses, and boosting public safety were among the investment priorities in his $3-billion budget proposal to Detroit City Council.
Riverfront transformation
Several investments include new parks and proposed projects, like bringing a multi-sports complex and an entertainment district to the riverfront.
The mayor highlighted transforming what would have been a condominium complex on the East Riverfront into Gabriel Richard Park, paving the path to further developments along one of Detroit’s most visited attractions. That includes Riverside Park on the west side of the riverfront, which was previously abandoned and closed, and rebuilding AB Ford Park on the east side, and Ralph C. Wilson, Jr. Centennial Park at West Jefferson Avenue and Rosa Parks Boulevard.
RenCen potential
Plans to partially demolish two towers surrounding the Renaissance Center, Michigan’s tallest building and an icon of Detroit’s skyline, have been a subject across the city in a proposed effort to redevelop the riverfront. General Motors moved into the building in 2000 but recently announced it would move into Hudson’s Detroit.
Businessman Dan Gilbert’s Bedrock firm and GM are partnering on a proposal to remove two of the RenCen five towers — those facing the riverfront — while the center hotel tower would remain as a hotel, the two remaining towers would be reconceived: one as an office tower and the other as apartments, which would include affordable housing units. The plan also calls for a quarter-mile park for an entertainment destination similar to Chicago’s Navy Pier. Restoring the two towers proposed for demolition could be an option, but Duggan added it would be cheaper to build entirely new housing due to the building’s layers of steel and concrete, which would require extra work to run plumbing and utilities.
Despite mixed reviews about the RenCen proposal, Duggan promised better days ahead for Detroiters.
“You’re going to have more days like we had last April,” Duggan said, referencing the 2024 NFL draft, which drew about 775,000 visitors, followed by celebrating “an even bigger event … when the (NCAA) Final Four comes to Detroit,” landing a grand applause and cheers from the audience.
Dana Afana is the Detroit city hall reporter for the Free Press. Contact: dafana@freepress.com. Follow her: @DanaAfana
DETROIT (WXYZ) — Detroit business owners, residents and community leaders gathered for a roundtable discussion reacting to Mayor Mike Duggan’s final State of the City address at The Congregation coffee shop on the city’s west side Tuesday.
7 News Detroit hosted the community conversation with people of diverse backgrounds.
WXYZ
We asked the leaders what they were hoping the mayor would touch on in his final address and then watched his speech together.
Imani Foster is a member of 482 Forward and fights for education justice across the city. She was hoping the mayor would discuss the issues students face inside schools including low literacy levels and higher education opportunities.
Watch coverage of Mike Duggan’s speech below:
Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan delivers his final State of the City address
“I think every child at base level needs to be able to read and comprehend,” she said before the mayor took the stage.
Spencer Ellis is the lead pastor at Citadel of Praise in the Brightmoor neighborhood. He says he’s seen improvement in the neighborhood he lives and works in and hopes to see that progress continue.
“I’ve been in that area for almost 20 years and when we first got there, it was abandoned property after abandoned home after abandoned property,” Ellis said.
Watch Mike Duggan’s full speech below:
FULL SPEECH: Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan gives final State of the City
Imhotep Blue is the vice president Detroit 300, a grassroots organization that helps communities by policing targeted neighborhoods, providing support to those who have experienced violent and nonviolent crime. He says mitigating crime and focusing on the city’s youth is top of the priority list to him.
“You have to understand the different dynamics of the different people that come from different areas,” he said.
WXYZ
Delly is the sister of Rayshawn Bryant, who was an innocent bystander shot and killed at a Detroit Lions tailgate at Eastern Market last September. For her, community safety is most important and she hopes what happened to her brother doesn’t happen to anyone else.
WXYZ
“I want to feel comfortable in large environments like concerts and festivals within the city and know there’s not a potential that I’ll have to run or hide or that someone I love is gonna be taken away,” Delly said.
Motor City Match recipient and owner of the clothing store Coup D’etat, Angela Wisniewski-Cobbina, says she’s proud of the progress the city has made in the downtown area but hopes some of those successes can be transferred to surrounding neighborhoods.
WXYZ
“We need to spread some of that love right into the other pockets who aren’t seeing as much,” she said.
The members of our roundtable listened intently to the mayor’s address, taking notes and comparing what he said to what they’re seeing in their own backyards.
In the end, they say they feel hopeful for the city and its future.
“It is an exciting time in the city of Detroit. What I was especially impressed with was the crime rate,” Ellis said.
WXYZ
However, others were hoping to hear less about development strictly in the downtown area and more about the neighborhoods.
“I think that I did have a little bit of tension and frustration with how much of the focus was on so much of the development happening downtown and leaving the neighborhoods last in his speech,” Foster said. “A nice, pretty city… People stay because they can be rooted in a place.”
WXYZ
These residents and community leaders say they hope the next mayor can continue pushing the city along and make their city a place everyone can continue to be proud of.
“We want to stay in Detroit, we want to continue to live in Detroit, we just want to see the next mayor that comes after Mayor Duggan take the baton and run with it,” Ellis said.
The Detroit Tigers are set for the 2025 season, one in which they will be looking to build upon the momentum they generated from a surprising run last year.
The Tigers made the playoffs as a Wild Card team, upending the Houston Astros on the road before falling short in the ALDS against the Cleveland Guardians.
Detroit found its success last season primarily on the back of its dominant pitching staff, led by Tarik Skubal’s AL Cy Young-winning effort, a talented bullpen and manager A.J. Hinch’s innovative and aggressive approach.
The return of Jack Flaherty to the team’s starting rotation, a resurgent Casey Mize and the addition of top prospect Jackson Jobe have the Tigers looking like a force on the mound once again in 2025.
For the team to take the next step, the offense will have to do its fair share to move up the league rankings, and outfielder Riley Greene will need to continue to lead the way.
Writing for ESPN’s 2025 season preview, David Schoenfield predicted another fantastic season for Greene, calling for a pair of achievements that would put him in rarified air in recent Detroit history.
“Only nine Tigers outfielders have hit 30 home runs in a season — Justin Upton was the last to do it, in 2016, and Rocky Colavito is the only one to do it more than once,” Schoenfield wrote. “Riley Greene becomes the 10th and makes the All-Star team for the second consecutive season, the first Tigers outfielder to do that since Magglio Ordonez in 2006-07.”
Greene has made major progress as a power threat in each of his three years in MLB.
As a rookie in 2022, he hit just five home runs in 93 games. He upped that to 11 in 99 contests in 2023, and then he broke through in a big way last season when he clubbed 24 in 137 games.
If Greene stays healthy and plays close to the full 162-game slate, there is every reason to believe he will eclipse the 30-homer mark, despite playing in a home stadium that is pitcher-friendly like Comerica Park.
Greene made his first All-Star game last year, and he could very well be poised to repeat that feat as Schoenfield predicts.
According to Fangraphs, Greene was good for 14 defensive runs saved and a UZR of 6.0 as a left fielder in 2024.
As a plus defender and high-caliber hitter, there’s no reason to doubt his standing as an All-Star barring major regression.
Man who 'believed the devil was in the walls' charged for shooting, fire at Minneapolis home
Pacers suffer buzzer-beating loss to the Lakers
The Pittsburgh Steelers continue to show heavy interest in this first round running back
Augusta, USC-Aiken baseball go head-to-head
House committee approves bill mandating DC comply with federal immigration laws
Why Marjorie Taylor Greene was ‘kicked out’ of the Freedom Caucus according to Rep. Buck
Colorado Rockies game no. 116 thread: Zac Gallen vs José Ureña
See it: Tesla crashes into Columbus convention center at 70 mph
Fox News Politics: Georgia the whole day through
Death of missing Oregon girl found in stream ruled homicide
Trump Is Trying to Gain More Power Over Elections. Is His Effort Legal?
Transgender military ban will take effect during ongoing court battle
US Army says vehicle of four missing soldiers found in Lithuania
Federal judge who drew Trump's anger picks up new case against administration
Companies Pull Back From Pride Events as Trump Targets D.E.I.
-
News1 week agoVance to Lead G.O.P. Fund-Raising, an Apparent First for a Vice President
-
News1 week agoTrump Administration Ends Tracking of Kidnapped Ukrainian Children in Russia
-
Business1 week agoEgg Prices Have Dropped, Though You May Not Have Noticed
-
Technology1 week agoDude Perfect and Mark Rober may be the next YouTubers to get big streaming deals
-
World1 week agoCommission warns Alphabet and Apple they're breaking EU digital rules
-
News1 week agoTrump’s Ending of Hunter Biden’s Security Detail Raises Questions About Who Gets Protection
-
Technology1 week agoCFPB workers are reinstated after a court order, but many still can’t work
-
News1 week agoU.S. to Withdraw From Group Investigating Responsibility for Ukraine Invasion