[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 17 (Tuesday, February 11, 1997)]
[Senate]
[Page S1242]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             THE 75TH ANNIVERSARY OF THE CITY OF HAMTRAMCK

 Mr. LEVIN. Mr. President, I am honored today to pay tribute to 
the city of Hamtramck, MI, which is celebrating its 75th anniversary 
this year. The people of Hamtramck call their city a ``Touch of Europe 
in America,'' and indeed it is truly a unique community. Hamtramck is a 
city within a city, whose boundaries on all sides are with the city of 
Detroit. Yet Hamtramck maintains its own identity, an identity rooted 
in its diversity.
  The history of Hamtramck predates its incorporation as a city by more 
than 100 years. It is named for Col. John Francis Hamtramck, who served 
as the first American commander of Fort Detroit after it was 
surrendered by Great Britain in 1796. Originally a township larger in 
size than the present-day city of Detroit, Hamtramck was organized as a 
village in 1901.
  The village of Hamtramck began with 500 people but changed 
dramatically with the birth of the automobile industry. A Dodge Bros. 
auto plant was established in 1914, attracting skilled and unskilled 
workers from around the Nation and the world. Between 1910 and 1920, 
Hamtramck boasted the greatest population growth of any community in 
the United States, going from 3,589 to 46,615 residents in a single 
decade.
  While Hamtramck was originally settled by the same French colonists 
who had settled Detroit, and later farmed by German immigrants, the 
automobile industry attracted huge numbers of Polish workers. Since 
1910, Hamtramck's Polish population has grown so rapidly that today, 80 
percent of its residents stem from first, second, or third generation 
Polish origin.
  Many of the remainder of Hamtramck's residents are from Central and 
Eastern Europe. Having received the warm and generous hospitality of 
Michiganite themselves, in 1946 the Polish-American residents of 
Hamtramck began welcoming displaced people from Central Europe and the 
Balkans. More recently, Hamtramck has seen a substantial number of 
Ukrainians join the community. All of these groups have maintained 
their cultural heritage and identity, while embracing the ideals and 
Government of their new country.
  On any street or in any restaurant in Hamtramck, one can hear any of 
25 different languages being spoken, which is especially impressive in 
a city of slightly more than 2 square miles. Hamtramck is renowned for 
the best Polish food outside Poland, and the hospitality to match, as 
President Clinton discovered on a trip to Michigan in 1996 where he 
thoroughly enjoyed lunch at Polish Village Cafe.
  Mr. President, Hamtramck's blend of cultures has produced a city 
which truly feels like a ``Touch of Europe in America.'' Under the 
steady leadership of Mayor Robert Kozaren, Hamtramck is prepared to 
enter the 21st century with a confidence rooted in the varied 
traditions and fervent unifying patriotism of its citizens. I commend 
the residents and leaders of Hamtramck for the community they have 
built, and am proud to represent them in the U.S. Senate. I hope my 
colleagues will join me in congratulating the people of Hamtramck on 
the occasion of the city's 75th anniversary. 

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