June 6, 2026, 10:02 a.m. ET
A longstanding Detroit civic organization that champions Black women’s leadership and service is in danger of losing its historic clubhouse.
The clubhouse for the Detroit Association of Women’s Clubs (DAWC), established in defiance of racially discriminatory rules more than eight decades ago, was recently included in the National Trust for Historic Preservation’s annual list of America’s 11 Most Endangered Historic Places.
In February 2024, water pipes in the DAWC clubhouse burst, causing extensive damage that required the building to be closed to association members and the public. DAWC estimates the building needs about a half million dollars in improvements, including at least $100,000 to hand-repair and sand the original wood windows.
The national designation comes with a $25,000 grant that DAWC hopes to use as a springboard to raise the hundreds of thousands of dollars required to get its aging clubhouse, which has been closed to the public for two years, back up to par.
“We know that Black history is Detroit history and Detroit history is American history,” said Candace Calloway, DAWC president. “We want to be able to safely open back up to the public to let folks learn about this historic place.”
DAWC’s place in Detroit history
The organization was created in 1921 when eight separate clubs formed an association that aimed to “promote charitable, educational, religious, social activities, and community uplift, and to aid in the solution of racial problems,” according to DAWC.
In 1941, the association moved into the large brick building at the corner of East Ferry Avenue and Brush Street.
At the time, it was illegal for Black people to own property or live on certain streets in the city, including the block of Ferry Street where the building sits.
Then-club president Rosa Slade-Gragg, a Black, nationally recognized civil rights leader, found a creative solution: close off the building’s entrance facing Ferry Street and have its address changed to Brush Street, which did not have the same racial restriction in place.
Her actions gave DAWC, a historically Black women’s organization with roots in African American civic activism, a home base for the following eight decades.
Since then, the clubhouse has also hosted weddings, receptions, recitals and cotillions over the years. Until recently, it was a host site for outreach projects such as Meals on Wheels holiday food distribution and several scholarship events.
Last year, the structure was added to the federal government’s National Register of Historic Places.
Closed for repairs
Engineers have confirmed that the clubhouse is structurally sound, but the organization needs significant financial support to repair the water damage and make other necessary improvements to the interior and exterior to improve aesthetics and address accessibility and energy-efficiency concerns. Due in part to constraints related to its status as a historic site, some of the repairs are highly specialized and costly.
DAWC, in collaboration with the city of Detroit, is using a $25,000 grant from the National Park Service, which compiles the annual endangered sites list, to develop a Historic Structure Report. Officials said this report will serve as a roadmap for restoration, but partnerships and financial support are needed to ensure the work happens.
“We are preserving a core piece of history so we can continue to tell a rich story, including Detroit’s history of racial covenants, redlining … and the impact of Dr. Slade-Gragg,” who served as an advisor to three U.S. presidents.
For this year’s list of endangered historic places, the nonprofit National Park Service chose sites that connect to the American principle that “all people are created equal,” in commemoration of the nation’s 250th anniversary.
“That is absolutely what the DAWC has stood for since its inception,” Calloway said.
mreinhart@detroitnews.com
