The Stafford House Story
The historical home located at 531 Belmont Street in Detroit, Michigan in the North End, now known as STAFFORD HOUSE, was purchased by Moses and Etta Stafford in 1942. The Stafford’s were pioneers of their time, moving into a neighborhood typically restricted from ownership by Black families. The home was occupied by the family of Moses and Etta Stafford until 2006, some 64 years. Mr. Stafford was by trade a metallurgist who worked in the factories of Detroit and earned a good living for his wife and four children. He made it a personal mission to return to the South from which he migrated, and to lead other families to Detroit to obtain good paying jobs in the automobile industry.
Throughout the years during the 1940’s and 1950’s Mr. Stafford rented rooms in his home to scores of families totaling more than 200 persons. The idea was to provide young people migrating to the North without resources an opportunity to live in a safe, caring home while they sought work in the auto factories. Families would stay in the Stafford House until they were able to obtain work and transition out on their own.
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Patricia Dockery
Executive Director, Mentor
“Our mission is to enrich the lives of underprivileged youth through safe-affordable housing, education, and job training. We sponsor programs that empower young people to make their community better and improve the quality of their lives.”