Detroit history

The 20th century was an exciting time in Detroit and these vintage photos of factories prove it. From automobiles to jets, the Motor City was home to great titans of industry and the hard-working people who got things built. Take a look back at these 13 nostalgic images that prove Detroit definitely hustles harder.

The Detroit riot of 1967 put the Motor City on the fast track to economic devastation, racial isolation and civic disaster.

A Detroit-born photographer documented his city in the early 1970s; he returns to the same sites 40 years later.

Detroiters are just built different. They’ll complain about the city, but once an outsider does, they’ll defend it to the death — and rep a T-shirt to show it. Then again, if you claim to be from Detroit when you’re from, say, Grosse Pointe, you’ll never be forgiven. And something like a square Detroit-style pizza, Vernors, or the humble coney dog is probably completely baffling to anyone not from here. File these under “It’s a Detroit thing, you wouldn’t understand.”

Henry Ford turned the Rotunda, built for the 1934 Century of Progress Exposition, into a visitor center and starting point for the company’s popular Rouge Plant tours. But it is fondly remembered for the Ford Rotunda Christmas Fantasy. Learn more on our blog.

A preservation group will lead young people on interactive tour of Jefferson-Chalmers' historic assets.

Pontchartrain Hotel | Postcards | Historic Detroit

The 20th century was an exciting time in Detroit and these vintage photos of factories prove it. From automobiles to jets, the Motor City was home to great titans of industry and the hard-working people who got things built. Take a look back at these 13 nostalgic images that prove Detroit definitely hustles harder.

Photographs of Metro Mercury I & II