DID YOU KNOW?
Anyway, many people do not realize that Wyandotte has had a few famous residents who lived there such as “Lee Majors” who starred in “The Big Valley” back in the 1960s, and “The Six Million Dollar Man” in the 1970s, and “The Fall Guy” in the 1980s, who was born there on April 23, 1939, in Wyandotte, and was married to actress, “Farah Fawcett” at one time in 1973. The real name that he was born with was “Harvey Lee Yeary” till he changed it to Lee Majors.
Now, Lucille Ball from the “I Love Lucy Show” lived in Wyandotte many decades ago which she and her family called Wyandotte home. Lucy was a 1-year-old when her family moved to Wyandotte. It is believed they relocated there from New York so her father, an electrician, could take a job with the Bell Company as a telephone lineman. The phone company was in a hiring boom for that position and paid $5 a day.
Anyway, the family lived at 126 Biddle. In 1928, however, the U.S. Postal Service changed the addresses on Biddle. The property address is now 3738 Biddle. It is across from the golf course on the west side of the street, which is now a vacant lot. The family rented a back apartment at the house for $10 a month and lived there until Lucy’s father, Henry, died at the house in 1915 at the age of 27. His death certificate, which is on file along
1902-1922: Ford City now Wyandotte
(Milk delivery)
1879 to 1928: Thomas Drug Store
at 2948 Biddle
Anyway, there have been many former businesses that I can remember as a kid that are on Biddle Avenue or nearby, like the 2,300 seats, 1936: Wyandotte Theater, with 2 screens, which I have been to many times, also 1975: Watkins Hamburgers, 1952: S.S. Kresge, 1975: Lynch & Sullivan Furniture, 1975: Heidi Restaurant, (now called Major Biddle), 1963: Cahalan Drug Store, 1940: Wyandotte Savings Bank, 1936: Sears, Roebuck & Co., 1922: Fogel Furniture, 1958: Cunningham Drugs, 1907: Arlington Hotel, and many more I left out. Just walk downtown Wyandotte to view all the plaques on the buildings letting you know what was there before the current business.
Also found in the city are many art studios, galleries, and boutiques. There have been many local visual and performing arts groups in Wyandotte since its inception. Currently, the Acanthus Art Society is the oldest, having been established in 1932. The city also has a cultural campus which includes the Wyandotte Museum. The Museum consists of three homes restored to a period-appropriate look.