Michigan

Michigan Avenue

The 500 block of Michigan Avenue resembles a movie lot on a summer afternoon, but the houses are the real deal, some dating back to the 1850's.

Swannie

Swannie House

The building itself dates back to 1882, and legend has it, served as a tavern around 1892.
Whiskey, waterfront and seamen, what could go wrong? The tavern is alive and well today, returned from near death starting in 1983. Stop by Michigan and Ohio, and see if the walls will talk.

All that Jazz at the Colored Musician's Club

George Scott- President of the Colored Musician's Club

" She said;
'I do not understand
The words'. 

I said;
'There are
No words'.  "  - Langston Hughes

Words or no words, the Colored Musician's Jazz Festival bespeaks Buffalo' s rich jazz and musical legacy celebrating its 99th year. A staggering number of jazz musicians will grace the CMC inside and out on the street. On Broadway and the historic Michigan Avenue, people from all over will converge to listen to some brilliant musicians. As the president of The Colored Musician's Club George Scott will tell you,  it's (CMC) not just a museum but a thriving jazz center, keeping alive the tradition of open jam sessions on Sunday nights. Old timers and fresh students of the art doing what jazz does:  honoring the standards that teach and evolving in the improvisational synthesis of what one jazz lover referred to as "cerebral gymnastics". Celebrate one of America's great gifts to the world, our classical music. (Other jazz outings this weekend include the Pappy Martin- Masten Jazz Fest. and Jazz at the Albright Knox on Sunday.)

 A weekend like this gives people a chance to look at the often overlooked area referred to as the Michigan Avenue Corridor. Like so many areas of the city,  the history is profound. Michigan Avenue and Broadway are home to the site of the historic Michigan St. Baptist Church along with other buildings used in the Underground Railroad, as well as some of the oldest structures in Buffalo. This street should be a showcase street in the city all the way from Rosewell Park to the Michigan Avenue Bridge. Like our rich musical legacy, this once grand and ethnically diverse thoroughfare should be given its due and respect (Hello city leaders!). Let some of that Buffalo Billion flow right down the street from the medical corridor.

http://www.coloredmusiciansclub.org/
 http://www.michiganstreetbuffalo.org/#!historical-themes/c21kz