Detroit, 1901

[Ray1936]

http://www.shorpy.com/node/22319?size=_original#caption

Another gem. Enjoy!

[Richard]

Those are cool to look at.

Look at the width of the streets before even the introduction of the automobile,and the moonlight tower that tapers down to a single pole in the ground.

[Jimaz]

I still can't get over all the hats.

What would they think of someone who refused to wear a hat? I know that removing one's hat was a sign of respect. I suppose if you had no hat to remove, it would seem that you had no intention of respecting anyone. Maybe hats were just a sign of humility.

And what about bustles? Do I spy bustles? Imagine bustles coming back into fashion.

[Honky Tonk]

Imagine bustles coming back into fashion.

And if The Hustle also came back, then you'd have a City with...

[Ray1936]

I still can't get over all the hats.

And not a one on backwards!!!!

[Lowell]

They had a Qline back then?

I can find only three things in that picture that still exist, Central Methodist - steeple in hazy distance -- and the Bagley Memorial Fountain and the Michigan Soldiers' and Sailors' Monument. What did I miss?

[archfan]

I still can't get over all the hats.

What would they think of someone who refused to wear a hat? I know that removing one's hat was a sign of respect. I suppose if you had no hat to remove, it would seem that you had no intention of respecting anyone. Maybe hats were just a sign of humility.

And what about bustles? Do I spy bustles? Imagine bustles coming back into fashion.

They would probably think that someone who didn't wear a hat was pretty stupid. You needed a hat for warmth or protection from the sun and rain.
Especially if you spend as much time outdoors as they did. Even today, if someone works outside, they will probably wear a hat.

[1953]

If I ever get stupid rich, I'm having the Majestic Building reconstructed right where it stood.

[Gistok]

They had a Qline back then?

I can find only three things in that picture that still exist, Central Methodist - steeple in hazy distance -- and the Bagley Memorial Fountain and the Michigan Soldiers' and Sailors' Monument. What did I miss?

Somewhere in that muddle behind the light tower in the distance along Woodward would be the [[then 10 years old) Schwankovsky Temple of Music Building... but it's not really visible.

[p69rrh51]

As usual Shorpy FUCKING it up! I absolutely despise this sight, not only do they get their history wrong they charge outrageous prices for photos that are free to anyone with a computer, and make one think they are doing you a favor. Shorpy is banned from the Facebook groups I admin.
While its nice there are no automobiles in the image, as of 1901 it had been 5 years since Charles Brady King and Henry Ford had driven their automobiles on the streets of Detroit. In fact in 1901 there were already 3 manufacturers of automobiles, one of them was Oldsmobile, producing cars in the city. There were also 11 automobile dealers in the city.