6,000 Inmates in My Backyard

My parents and my three older brothers lived in homes provided for the wardens and their families by the state of Michigan. All of the homes were located on the grounds of the institutions. Dad selected priority inmates with recommendations from the prison staff as cooks, gardeners, housekeepers and chauffeurs for our home. They came from all cultures, creeds, and colors. They were felons serving sentences for robbery, manslaughter, murder, and a variety of other crimes. We didn’t look at their rap sheets, we just considered them part of the family.

This book is a true story with some embellishments to add to the flavor of the incident(s). My research comes from my memories, my father’s diaries, newspaper clippings, letters from dignitaries, convicts and friends and my brother’s recollections. My hope is to entertain and inform the reader of an era that no longer exists. A time when penal institutions were in the process of reform, the 1960s revolution begins, civil rights obtained and families led simpler lives.