By Rod Arroyo
Located at 700 E. Forest Avenue (at the intersection of E. Forest and Hastings), The Forest Club stood just north of Detroit’s renowned Paradise Valley neighborhood, several blocks north of Joe Von Battle’s celebrated Joe’s Records. The building was originally a cigar factory, and the 1921 Sanborn Company Insurance map indicates that it was vacant at that time. This building was expanded further to create the Forest Club.
Sunnie Wilson’s Vision and Leadership
From 1941 to 1951, owner Sunnie Wilson operated what he claimed to be the largest Black-owned nightclub in Michigan. Wilson brought extensive entertainment industry experience to the venture. During the mid-1930s, he served as master of ceremonies at the Harlem Cave (located at Canfield and Brush), owned by “Little Sam” Brandt and Morris Wasserman. This position provided crucial connections within Paradise Valley and Sugar Hill’s entertainment circuit, enabling him to book prominent performers and organize chorus-girl lines and other talent at venues including Mac Ivey’s Cozy Corner on Hastings Street and the Chocolate Bar on Livingston. In 1937, Wilson expanded his business interests by becoming co-owner of the Brown Bomber Chicken Shack alongside boxer and entrepreneur Joe Louis.
Wilson’s decision to acquire The Forest Club represented his most ambitious undertaking. The venue occupied most of a city block and featured Michigan’s longest bar at 107 feet. The complex housed multiple entertainment spaces: a bowling alley, roller rink that doubled as a concert venue, ballroom, and private meeting rooms on the upper floor.
Entertainment Programming, Community Engagement, and Jazz
The Forest Club attracted premier jazz and popular music performers of the era, including Charlie Parker, Lionel Hampton, Louis Jordan, Woody Herman, T-Bone Walker, the Nat King Cole Trio, Jay McShann, and Dizzy Gillespie. Beyond entertainment, Wilson demonstrated community commitment by offering etiquette courses and reading tutoring for young people, hosting Christmas parties for underserved children, and providing space for union meetings.
Lionel Hampton became a regular performer at the venue, notably performing on Christmas Eve 1947 in festivities that extended from 11:00 p.m. until 4:00 a.m.
Charlie Parker’s October 6-8, 1950 engagement at The Forest Club occurred during his Charlie Parker with Strings tour, which launched in Hartford, Connecticut on September 15, 1950, followed by a Carnegie Hall performance the following evening. The ensemble included Tommy Mace (oboe), Ted Bloom, Sam Kaplan, and Stan Karpenia (violin), Dave Uchitel (viola), Bill Bandy (cello), Wallace McManus (harp), Al Haig (piano), Tommy Potter (bass), and Roy Haynes (drums). After performances in Newark (September 16), Washington, D.C. (September 17), and Chicago (September 22), the tour reached Detroit for a three-night run October 6-8. During his Forest Club engagement, Parker wrote an IOU note to an “officer” early in the morning of October 9th to settle outstanding debts. The Charlie Parker with Strings album was released in November 1950. Parker returned to Detroit March 2-8, 1951, as part of the same tour to perform at the Paradise Theatre.
“Sunnie Wilson’s, the longest bar in town…That’s the only bar you have to walk in when you get ready to buy a bottle of beer, you have to walk a mile after you get into the joint to get it.”
Bob “The Detroit Count” White, Hastings Street Opera.
Historical Significance: The 1943 Detroit Race Riot
The Forest Club played a significant role in the events of June 1943 during Detroit’s three-day race riot. Following sporadic fighting between Black and White youth on Belle Isle on a hot Sunday afternoon, an individual took the stage at The Forest Club and spread a false rumor that a White group had thrown a Black mother and her baby into the Detroit River. This incendiary claim was followed by looting and violence on Woodward Avenue, Hastings Street, and throughout Paradise Valley. President Franklin D. Roosevelt deployed over 6,000 federal troops to restore order. The riot concluded after three days, but resulted in 34 deaths, including 25 African Americans, 17 of whom were killed by police. More information can be found here: https://www.detroithistorical.org/learn/online-research/encyclopedia-of-detroit/race-riot-1943
Connections to Sunnie’s Empire
In addition to the places noted above, Sunnie Wilson also purchased the Mark Twain Hotel in 1943. The Mark Twain was a three-story, sixty-two room hotel on Garfield, just east of Woodward. This became a place where musicians would stay, particularly those who could not afford the Gotham Hotel.
The top floor of the Mark Twain had a private meeting room that Duke Ellington nicknamed the “Top of the Mark.” Betty Carter once threw a party there for Ray Charles. This was the room where musicians could relax.
Guests of the Mark Twain included Lionel Hampton, Chico Hamilton, Count Basie, and more. All the musicians wanted Suite 50 at the hotel. It was considered the lucky suite. Billy Eckstine and Sarah Vaughan both reported receiving lucrative engagements when they stayed in Suite 50.
Sunnie was also elected the unofficial Mayor of Paradise Valley. The mayor was voted through a newspaper contest, and the winner would represent business interests within Paradise Valley. They attended ribbon-cutting ceremonies, resolved disputes, and served as the neighborhood’s voice, standing up for Black-owned businesses in Detroit.
Conclusion
Most of Hastings Street, including the Forest Club, was demolished as part of the construction of the Chrysler Freeway (I-75) in the late 1950s. This section E. Forest no longer exists, and the land that was Hastings Street is now the southbound service drive for I-75.
To learn more about Sunnie Wilson and the Forest Club, visit this link to read Toast of the Town: The Life and Times of Sunnie Wilson, by Sunnie Wilson and John Cohassey, Wayne State University Press
