Town and City Scenes--Detroit

Color postcard from approximately 1958 depicting the Campus Martius looking southwest in downtown Detroit, Michigan. The buildings shown in this image are, from far left to far right: First National Building (Albert Kahn, 1922), Guardian Building (Wirt C. Rowland, for Smith, Hinchman Grylls, 1929), Buhl Building (the tan building, Wirt C. Rowland for Smith, Hinchman Grylls, 1925), Ford Building (smaller white building, Daniel Burnham, 1909), Greater Penobscot Building (Wirt C. Rowland, for Smith, Hinchman Grylls, 1926), Dime Building (Daniel Burnham, 1912), Hammond Building (1890 - red building in front of Ford Building), Detroit City Hall (1871, demolished 1961), Majestic Building (Daniel Burnham, 1896, demolished 1962). The monument on the left is the Michigan Soldiers' and Sailors' Monument, erected in 1872 to commemorate the Michigan soldiers and sailors who died in the American Civil War.

Black and white photograph from circa 1950-1960 of Capitol Park on Griswold Street in Detroit, Michigan.

Black and white photograph from approximately 1926 taken from the Bob-Lo docks along the Detroit River, looking north up Woodward Avenue in Detroit, Michigan. The First National Building is in the background, built in 1922 by Albert Kahn.

Black and white photograph from circa 1930-1940 of the Fisher Building on West Grand Boulevard in Detroit, Michigan. Built in 1928, the Fisher Building was designed by Albert Kahn for the Fisher brothers, founders of the prominent automobile body manufacturer Fisher Body.

Color postcard from circa 1927-1929 showing the old Chrysler Jefferson Plant on Jefferson Avenue on the east side of Detroit, Michigan. The facility was built in 1907 and was originally the headquarters of Chalmers Motor Car Company. It was torn down in 1991 after being replaced by a much larger facility next door. This postcard is from the souvenir fold-out pack "Detroit's Largest Industries and Hotels."

Black and white photograph of 4305 Military Street, showing the Zion Evangelical-Lutheran Church in Detroit, Michigan. The church was dedicated in 1933, a replacement of the older church building built in 1882. Part of the J. William Gorski Collection.

Black and white photograph from 1917 of men posing in front of the William C. Maybury Monument on the east side of Woodward Avenue in Grand Circus Park, Detroit, Michigan. The statue was built in 1912 by Adolph Alexander Weinman.

Black and white photograph from approximately 1930 of the Detroit, Michigan skyline and Detroit River, taken from the newly completed Ambassador Bridge international crossing.

Color postcard from circa 1907-1916 showing the view up Woodward Avenue, looking north from Congress Street, in Detroit, Michigan. The Majestic Building (1896 - Daniel Burnham) stands in the center of the frame, on the north side of Campus Martius.

Black and white copy print of a circa 1870-1880 photograph of a street scene in Detroit. The tracks in the road belong to horse-drawn railcars, first introduced in Detroit in 1863 and replaced by electric streetcars thirty years later.

Color postcard from circa 1926-1929 showing the Packard Motor Car Company plant in Detroit, Michigan. This postcard is from the souvenir fold-out pack "Detroit's Largest Industries and Hotels."

Color postcard from circa 1910-1915 showing the view from the Dime Building looking west over City Hall in Detroit, Michigan. The building on the right at the corner of Woodward Avenue and Cadillac Square is the Pontchartrain Hotel, building in 1907 and demolished in 1920. In the background behind it can be seen the Wayne County Courthouse (renamed the Wayne County Building).

Color postcard from circa 1916-1918 showing the view south from the Majestic Building, next to the Detroit City Hall in Detroit, Michigan. The top of the city hall (1871) is in the foreground. The red building on the left is the Hammond Building (1890), Detroit's first skyscraper. To the right of it is the Ford Building (1909) and the 1916 addition to the Penobscot Building. The tallest building in the image is the Dime Building, built in 1912. The Ford and Dime Buildings were designed by Daniel Burnham. The clock tower in the background on the right belongs to the old Federal Building and U.S. Post Office. Built in 1897, this building housed the post office, custom house, and U.S. courthouse. In 1931, the courts moved to the Theodore J. Levin building and the old Federal Building was demolished (save for the opulent courtroom, which was moved, piece by piece, to the new building).

Black and white photograph from approximately 1949 of Campus Martius, looking down Cadillac Sqaure towards the Wayne County Building. On the left stand Cadillac Tower (1927) and the Cadillac Square Building (1918 - Louis Kamper), and on the right is the corner of the First National Building (1930 - Albert Kahn).

Black and white photograph from 1926 of the view north up Woodward Avenue from the First National Building in Detroit, Michigan. Both Hudson's and Kern's department stores are on the right.

Black and white postcard from circa 1900-1906 of Monroe Avenue, looking northeast from Woodward Avenue in Detroit, Mich. On the left, partially obscured, is the old Detroit Opera House, built in 1869.

Black and white photograph of an advertisement on the side of a building in Detroit, Michigan

Color postcard from circa 1926-1929 showing the Detroit-Michigan Stove Company (named so after a 1926 merger of the Detroit Stove Works and the Michigan Stove Company) in Detroit, Michigan. This postcard is from the souvenir fold-out pack "Detroit's Largest Industries and Hotels."

Color postcard from 1916 showing the Grinnell Brothers Music House on Woodward Avenue in Detroit, Michigan. Designed by Albert Kahn, and built in 1908, the building housed the Grinnell Brothers large music store, where they sold pianos, victrolas, organs and more. The store closed in 1981.

Black and white photograph from approximately 1926 showing the view east over the Wayne County Building (old Wayne County Courthouse) from the First National Building in Detroit, Michigan.

Color postcard from 1916 showing downtown Detroit, Michigan looking west from Campus Marius. The Detroit City Hall is prominent in the foreground. Designed by James Anderson, construction was completed in 1871. The city hall sat on what is now One Kennedy Square, bordered by Woodward Avenue on the east, Michigan Avenue to the north and Fort Street on the south. It was demolished in 1961. The tall skyscraper behind it is the Dime Building, built in 1912 by Daniel Burnham. To the right is the Majestic Building, built in 1896 and also designed by Daniel Burnham. The Majestic Building was demolished in 1962.

Color postcard from circa 1907-1910 showing women and children wading in the Detroit River along the shores of Belle Isle in Detroit, Michigan.

Color large letter postcard from 1936 of Detroit, Michigan. Inside the letters can be seen the Guardian Building (built in 1929), the Anna Scripps Whitcomb Conservatory (also known as the Belle Isle Conservatory), the Book Building (built in 1926), the Ambassador Bridge, which connects Michigan to Ontario, and the Penobscot Tower (built 1926).

Black and white postcard from circa 1920-1930 of the Crystal Ballroom in the Book-Cadillace Hotel in Detroit, Michigan.

Black and white photograph from 1981 of Chene Street looking toward Piquette Avenue, in the former Poletown neighborhood of Detroit, Michigan. In 1981, a large portion of this predominantly Polish neighborhood was razed amid much controversy to make way for the General Motors Cadillac Assembly Plant.

Color postcard from circa 1915-1920 showing the view of skyscrapers surrounding Grand Circus Park in Detroit, Michigan. From left to right in the image: Kales Building (1914 - Albert Kahn), David Whitney Building (1915 - Daniel Burnham), Hotel Statler (1915 - George Post), and Hotel Tuller (1906).

Color postcard from circa 1927-1929 of the Dodge plant in Hamtramk, Michigan, near Detroit. The Dodge Brothers Company was founded in 1900 and began as a supplier of parts and assembly for other automobile manufacturers. In 1914, they started manufacturing their own automobiles, and were purchased by the Chrysler Corporation in 1928. This postcard is from the souvenir fold-out pack "Detroit's Largest Industries and Hotels."

Black and white photograph from circa 1929-1935 of Crowley's Department Store Kern's Department Store on Woodward Avenue in Detroit, Michigan. Crowley's is directly on the left, with Kerns on the next block. Kern's expanded several times, and this image shows the 1929 expansion and rebuild into a ten-story building spanning the block from Gratiot Avenue to Campus Martius. In the background can be seen the Michigan Soldiers' and Sailors' Monument and the First National Building (1922 - Albert Kahn).

Black and white reproduction of an 1872 image of the Detroit River and Detroit, Michigan in the background. This image was reproduced in a 1947 calendar published for the Detroit Trust Company.

Black and white copy print of an aerial photograph of downtown Detroit, Michigan.

Black and white copy print of original watercolor painting by General Alexander Macomb (1782-1841) of Detroit, Michigan and the Detroit River from the Canadian shore in about 1826.

Color postcard from approximately 1907 showing a winter scene on Washington Boulevard in Detroit, Michigan. The twin bell towers of St. Aloysius can be seen on the right, behind the frozen fountain. This was the original church building, built in 1861. The iconic buildings of Washington Boulevard - including the Book Building, Book-Cadillac Hotel, Industrial Building and Statler Hotel - would fill this view in the 1920s.

Black and white postcard from circa 1905-1906 showing the newly completed Penobscot Building (1905 - Donaldson and Meier) and the Peoples State Bank (renamed Savoyard Center, built in 1900) on Fort Street in Detroit, Michigan.

Black and white photograph from 1987 of the 3300 block of Junction Street in Detroit, Michigan. Part of the J. William Gorski Collection

Black and white copy print of a circa 1880-1889 photograph of the Detroit Farmer's Market on what became Cadillac Square in Detroit, Michigan. The market was in this location from its inception until 1891, when it was moved to Eastern Market. The building in the center of the frame is the Central Market Building, built in 1880 and demolished in 1889. The Detroit City Hall (1871, demolished 1961) can be seen in the background on the left.

Color postcard from circa 1907-1909 of the Detroit, Michigan riverfront from across the Detroit River in Ontario, Canada. The ferries that shuttled people to Windsor and various vacation islands can be seen along the riverfront, and the clock tower of the Wayne County Building can be seen on the right.

Color postcard from circa 1926-1929 depicting the Cadillac Motor Car Company factory in Detroit, Michigan. This postcard is from the souvenir fold-out pack "Detroit's Largest Industries and Hotels."

Color postcard from circa 1924-1930 showing the view from Campus Martius west in Detroit, Michigan. The Michigan Soldiers' and Sailors' Monument, erected in 1872, is in the foreground. The skyscraper in the middle of the frame is the Majestic Building, built in 1896 by Daniel Burnham. In the background is the Book-Cadillac Hotel, built in 1924 by Louis Kamper. On the left is the corner of the old Detroit City Hall, built in 1871 and demolished in 1961. On the right is the Old Detroit Opera House, with the Merrill Fountain in front of it. The Old Detroit Opera House was built in 1869 and was demolished in 1963. Opera was performed at a number of different opera houses in Detroit. The Merrill Fountain was designed by the same New York architects who designed the New York Public Library. It first opened in 1901, and was moved to Palmer Park in the 1950s.

Color postcard from circa 1910-1920 showing the Hotel Wolverine and YMCA building on Witherell Street in Detroit, Michigan. The YMCA building (on the right) was built in 1907 and designed by Donaldson and Meier. It was located on the corner of Witherell and Adams Streets, where Comerica Park now sits.

Color postcard from circa 1928-1934 of the Fisher Building in Detroit, Michigan. The building was built in 1928 for the Fisher brothers (of the Fisher Body Company) by Albert Kahn.

Black and white photograph from approximately 1975 of the Webber Memorial Building, part of Harper-Grace Hospital in Detroit, Michigan. The building was designed by Smith, Hinchman and Grylls in 1974.

Black and white copy print of a photograph from 1914 showing a stretch of shops on Woodward Avenue in Detroit, Michigan, including Kern's Department Store.

Color postcard from approximately 1911 showing Woodward Avenue, looking north from just north of Jefferson Avenue in Detroit, Michigan. The tall building in the background on the west side of Woodward is the Majestic Building, built in 1896 by Daniel H. Burnham (demolished 1962). On the east side the taller building is the Pontchartrain Hotel. Built in 1907, the hotel quickly became a hub for financial dealings in the automotive industry and lavish galas. With only half the rooms having baths, the Ponchartrain Hotel quickly became obsolete, though, and was torn down in 1920, with the First National Building being built in its place.

Black and white print showing an aerial view of Detroit from circa 1915-1920.