Modern Southfield History

In the 1950's, a group of Southfield Township residents, including Emanuel Christensen, Clarence Durbin, Hugh Dohany, Eugene Swem and Fred Leonhard, formed the 'Save Our Southfield Committee' and lent their own cash to the group's treasury. This group promoted the incorporation of Southfield as a city and provided $500 (which was later reimbursed) to finance filing for incorporation.

On December 14, 1950, two petitions were filed at the Oakland County Courthouse in Pontiac. Mr. Kelly, of Lathrup Village, filed to incorporate his community and, minutes later, Emanuel Christensen filed to incorporate the entire township. By a margin of 85 votes, Lathrup Village voted to incorporate on May 12, 1953 and adopted a charter in December of 1953.

In September of that same year, Oak Park attempted to annex an area containing Northland. Southfield voters, however, defeated that proposal. Beverly Hills voted to become a village in 1957.

That year, Emanuel Christensen had petitions ready for circulation as soon as the most recent map could be attached. The incorporation vote came in August of 1957 and local voters approved a City Charter on April 21, 1958. At the time of incorporation, Southfield had approximately 29,000 residents.

On April 28, 1958, Southfield became a City and Reid was elected as the first municipal judge. He held that position until January of 1969, when the Municipal Court was replaced by the District Court.

Municipal judges were elected for four-year terms. The Court also had an associate municipal judge. John O'Brien was the first associate judge elected in 1958. Alex Perinoff was associate judge from 1960 to 1961 and Thomas M. Costello was associate municipal judge from 1961 to 1968.

The Municipal Court started with one employee and by 1968 had nine full-time employees. Revenue for 1968 was approximately $150,000 annually and expenses were approximately $50,000 annually.

At the beginning, the Municipal Court was located on Southfield Road near Ten Mile Road and then moved into City Hall in 1965. District Court moved into its new location in at the municipal Complex in 1980.

The 46th District Court started in January 1969 and had two full-time judges elected to six-year and four-year terms, respectively. Clarence A. Reid, Jr. was elected to a six-year term and S. James Clarkson to a four-year term.

Former Southfield Mayor Norman Feder was elected in 1972 and Jessica Cooper, the District Court's first female judge, took office in 1979. The Court also has a full-time magistrate, Michael Sobel, at that time. Today the court has 3 judges and two magistrates.

In 1971, the District Court hired Margaret Clixby as its first administrator. The second administrator was Jack Kellser, who served from 1973 to 1975. The third was Jack Hawthorne (1975-1979) and the forth, Jeffrey Amram (1980-1982).

Southfield: Today and Tomorrow

Today, Southfield has grown to be the premier business and residential address in Michigan - a modern city of beautiful homes and golden skyscrapers, with a residential population of more than 80,000. Southfield's more than 26 million square feet of office space also make it home to a daytime population of more than 175,000. In the past 50 years, Southfield has grown from a rural farming community to one of the leading business centers in Michigan and the Midwest. Few other metropolitan areas can boast such a beautiful skyline, replete with golden skyscrapers and high rises located just minutes away from quaint, tree-lined neighborhoods. As we celebrate Southfield's historic 50th Anniversary, we look fondly back on where we have come as we look optimistically forward to where we are going.