April 16, 1919 – April 19, 1995
Cleveland, Ohio native Ralph Anthony O’Reilly served as a Navy lieutenant in the Pacific during World War II and later landed in Detroit where he was employed as an engineer with General Motors and met his life partner of 43 years Ralph Stallings. The couple moved to Davisburg in the early 1960s and operated a Japanese bonsai nursery until they retired to southern California.
Times-Advocate, April 25, 1995
November 20, 1919 – April 6, 2008
Fort Wayne, Indiana native Richard Dingley served as a Warrant Officer in World War II. He worked for many years with International Harvester in Traverse City before retiring to Cincinnati, Ohio. Dingley enjoyed baseball, railroads, and opera. He was a longtime subscriber to the early homophile magazine the Mattachine Review in the 1950s.
May 10, 1919 – December 25, 1995
A native of Philadelphia, William Angel Karagas served as a warrant officer during World War II. Beginning in 1954, he was the heterosexual owner of Detroit’s Woodward Lounge, which he operated for more than forty years with his brothers Sam and Andy.
Detroit Free Press, January 2, 1996
Michigan LGBTQ Remember 