To Life

South Haven Memories

Temple Israel hosts museum display of "Catskills of the West."

Suzanne Chessler
Special to the Jewish News

I

Sherman's Dairy to recall a
favorite stop for ice cream."
Samson remembers friend-
ships and romances that
developed as part of the
resort experience. People from
Chicago and Milwaukee fre-
quented the area as regularly
as Detroiters.
"This exhibit was suggested
by a member of the Historical
Association of South Haven:'
says Sue Hale, vice president
of the board of directors of
the association. "We wanted
to show the microcosm of the
Jewish community within the
larger community."
Owners of the family resorts
originally moved to South
Haven to become farmers.
After hosting personal guests,
they got the idea for tourism
ventures. Gradually, with the
advent of air conditioning

t has been many summers since
large numbers of Detroit's Jewish
population packed up their cars
and drove to South Haven. Families
looked forward to lounging in the
sun, swimming in Lake
—
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Michigan, watching name
Zeirpte
wedres
entertainers
and feasting
North
e Ora
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on
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The resort community was
Bk:ER nfe
known as the "Catskills of the
WirArE SAND
4fusic 6
EINe.4%ti nd n4INC'e
Midwest" because of its simi-
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NIC"1"1.1-
larities to the Jewish resort
area in the state of New York.
Teri Goodman (the Goodman Family funds the Temple Israel
This year, elements of the
museum), Susan Loss, Stephanie and Neil Michaels, Ellen Cole
South Haven of the past, from
(president, Jewish Historical Society of Michigan) and Norm
Samson's Cabaret
the 1920s to 1980s, have been
Samson, whose family owned Samson's Resort
(advertisement from
packed up for a visit to Metro Detroit.
South Haven Daily Tribune
A photo and memorabilia exhibit,
July, 2, 1935)
Catskills of the Midwest — The
Jewish Resort Era in South Haven, is com- musical event. He traveled to South Haven to
and access to
ing to Temple Israel in West Bloomfield in
see the exhibit last year and participated in
increasing travel
a condensed version co-sponsored
special activities that surrounded the launch- opportuni-
by the Jewish Historical Society of
ing of the display.
ties, Detroiters
Michigan. The complete exhibit was
"We're showing pictures from each resort
decided to try
shown in 2005 at the South Haven
and items from the times to trigger memo-
other vacation
Center for the Arts.
ries and give a sense of the community for
destinations,
The artifacts and a narrative film
those too young to have gone there says
and the land
will
be
on
view
through
the
Samson,
holding
the
GET READY
Labor Day weekend, but
who worked
resorts gener-
FOR A GRAND VACATION!
memories of those times
summers in
ally became
will be the talk of the temple
South Haven
sites of homes
at 1:30 p.m.Thursday, May
and recalls
and condos.
18, during a free program
Calypso
Part of the
that features cantorial solo-
entertain-
Fidelman
ists Neil and Stephanie
ers among
holdings
GLASSMAN'S
Michaels and singer Sheila
his favorite
was turned
RESORT
Fidelman, who was one
experiences.
into Camp
of the resort owners and
"We're
Agudah, an
`Sheila
an entertainer. The three
having a
Orthodox
Fidelman circa late
performers, with piano
diverse
complex, and
1960s
Glassman's Resort
accompaniment, will recall
showing
Fideland, an
(advertisement from the
pop songs from the 1940s, 1950s
— from a
amusement park
South Haven Daily Tribune
and 1960s, when the resorts
• pail of sand
operated by Barry Fidelman, who will be at
June, 6, 1942)
were in their heyday.
and a shovel the concert with his mom.
Norman Samson, a Temple
to remind
"I presented a narrative when the exhibit
Israel member whose grand-
people of
was in South Haven, and I plan to give a talk
parents opened Samson's
the beach
at Temple Israel," says Fidelman, who lives
Resort, was instrumental in
Photo of David and Eva Mendelson circa
to a milk • on the grounds that held the resort. "What
arranging for the display and
1930s
bottle from
was always most dramatic to me was that

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