Shorpy - City Hall again

**EastsideAl** · February-06-10, 02:54 PM

Another view of Detroit's old City Hall, looking up Michigan Ave. Compete with full "moonlight" lighting tower.

http://www.shorpy.com/node/7658
Click to enlarge to breathtakingly detailed large size.

**buildingsofdetroit** · February-06-10, 03:59 PM

Originally Posted by EastsideAl

Another view of Detroit's old City Hall, looking up Michigan Ave. Compete with full "moonlight" lighting tower.

http://www.shorpy.com/node/7658
Click to enlarge to breathtakingly detailed large size.

And look, no Lafayette Building, just like a few weeks from now.
That tower in the distance back left is the old Federal Building/Post Office, by the way: www.buildingsofdetroit.com/places/post

**Ray1936** · February-06-10, 04:06 PM

Magnificent photograph. A moment in time preserved forever.

**EastsideAl** · February-06-10, 04:19 PM

Originally Posted by buildingsofdetroit

And look, no Lafayette Building, just like a few weeks from now.
That tour in the distance back left is the old Federal Building/Post Office, by the way: www.buildingsofdetroit.com/places/post

And once it's finally gone, that view will look just more like 1905 all over again! So, it IS historical restoration after all. Oh, those sneaky folks at the DEGC...

**gregster** · February-06-10, 04:32 PM

Is the clock tower in the distance [[left of City Hall's clock tower) that of the old train station?

DC48080 · February-06-10, 04:34 PM

Originally Posted by gregster

Is the clock tower in the distance [[left of City Hall's clock tower) that of the old train station?

If I'm not mistaken [[and I may be) I believe that the clock tower is that of the old Federal Building.

**buildingsofdetroit** · February-06-10, 04:36 PM

Originally Posted by gregster

Is the clock tower in the distance [[left of City Hall's clock tower) that of the old train station?

Sigh. You people don't read! Two posts above it:

"That tower in the distance back left is the old Federal Building/Post Office, by the way: www.buildingsofdetroit.com/places/post "

DC48080 · February-06-10, 04:41 PM

Originally Posted by buildingsofdetroit

Sigh. You people don't read! Two posts above it:

"That tower in the distance back left is the old Federal Building/Post Office, by the way: www.buildingsofdetroit.com/places/post "

I read that in your initial post BoD. I was being sarcastic in response to the question about the clock tower.

**gregster** · February-06-10, 04:44 PM

Originally Posted by buildingsofdetroit

Sigh. You people don't read! Two posts above it:

"That tower in the distance back left is the old Federal Building/Post Office, by the way: www.buildingsofdetroit.com/places/post "

You're right. I was too quick with my question. When I read you mentioned the "tower", I did not make the connection that you were talking about the clock tower. My bad. Now I'll go sit in the corner while you guys discuss more of this remarkable photo.

**cman710** · February-06-10, 04:47 PM

Am I right to guess that the steel frame tower in front of City Hall is an early radio broadcast tower?

**Ray1936** · February-06-10, 05:30 PM

Originally Posted by cman710

Am I right to guess that the steel frame tower in front of City Hall is an early radio broadcast tower?

Channel 4, bringing you the latest of the Boer War. Film at 11.

**gnome** · February-06-10, 05:32 PM

...with Lowell Thomas

**EastsideAl** · February-06-10, 05:42 PM

Originally Posted by cman710

Am I right to guess that the steel frame tower in front of City Hall is an early radio broadcast tower?

Originally Posted by EastsideAl

Complete with full "moonlight" lighting tower.

OK, this is becoming a meta-thread now.

**EastsideAl** · February-06-10, 05:50 PM

So, what buildings are still standing that are in this picture? I believe that the building that housed the late, lamented Arcade Bar is the same one as seen here. Although I don't know what's under the facades of the 2 coneys, it could very well be the 2 buildings here. Certainly the height is right.

Anything else? Is that the steeple of Most Holy Trinity off in the distance? I can't think of any other church that's stood during my lifetime that would be visible in about that spot.

**buildingsofdetroit** · February-06-10, 05:55 PM

Originally Posted by gregster

You're right. I was too quick with my question. When I read you mentioned the "tower", I did not make the connection that you were talking about the clock tower. My bad. Now I'll go sit in the corner while you guys discuss more of this remarkable photo.

Oh, just giving you a hard time, gregster.

As for the building still there, the building where American coney is now is there - the owners of the United Shirt demo'd the top few floors to reduce the building's square footage. The city used to tax based on square footage, so by reducing the amount ...

**EastsideAl** · February-06-10, 06:09 PM

Originally Posted by buildingsofdetroit

As for the building still there, the building where American coney is now is there - the owners of the United Shirt demo'd the top few floors to reduce the building's square footage. The city used to tax based on square footage, so by reducing the amount ...

I remember United Shirt at that triangular corner for many years, but I didn't realize that it was an older building with the upper floors missing. American expanded into that space from the adjacent building a few years after United Shirt disappeared, so they actually occupy both buildings now.

**Hamtragedy** · February-06-10, 07:35 PM

"Time for a Wilson's Highball, that's all."

**Hornwrecker** · February-06-10, 07:38 PM

Attachment 5142
wsu/vmc

This is a photo of that building at Michigan and W Lafayette and Griswold, from 1900.

Attachment 5143
wsu/vmc

**cman710** · February-06-10, 11:32 PM

Thanks for posting the terrific pictures, hornwrecker! I love seeing the marquee/advertisement for Dr. Adams the Dentist. He must have really wanted to get people's attention!

**EastsideAl** · February-07-10, 01:02 AM

Here is a shot on Lafayette from probably about 1965 [[note the new First Federal Building standing in the background) showing United Shirt in that building at the point of Lafayette and Michigan with the upper floors still intact. I wonder when those floors were removed? Next to it are of course the American and Lafayette Coneys, before their upper floors were covered over with modern facades. At least the Lafayette certainly appears to be in the building in the 1905 picture.

Interestingly, if you look at the zoomed-in detail from that picture below, you can see that there was yet another Coney Island in the building where the Arcade Bar was located [[edit: it's in the space where the pipe shop is now)..

**M CD M** · February-07-10, 04:10 PM

Here's a question.
But in many of these great 1900's photo's.
What's up with those tall towers with the lights on them?
They seem to be too tall, and all those guy wires keeping them upright.
I would think that there would be at least twice as many lights on it to be decently bight.

**Hornwrecker** · February-07-10, 04:18 PM

Originally Posted by M CD M

Here's a question.
But in many of these great 1900's photo's.
What's up with those tall towers with the lights on them?
They seem to be too tall, and all those guy wires keeping them upright.
I would think that there would be at least twice as many lights on it to be decently bight.

They're arc lighting towers, a few of Detroit's old ones are still in use in Austin, TX.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moonlight_tower

**MikeM** · February-07-10, 04:30 PM

Originally Posted by M CD M

Here's a question.
I would think that there would be at least twice as many lights on it to be decently bight.

Problem was, they were too bright. They were arc lights which cast a bright, cold, blue-white light, creating intense contrast, making the shadows and unlit areas seem even darker.

**EastsideAl** · February-07-10, 07:09 PM

Interesting to see the 2 streetcars passing each other on Michigan Ave. in the Shorpy photo, both routed to streets that no longer exist. The eastbound car is signed "Sherman," a street entirely removed for the Lafayette and Elmwood Park developments.

The westbound car is signed "Baker," which was renamed Bagley, I believe sometime in the early 1920s. Although a streetcar line, and later a bus line, named Baker operated until just a few years ago, when it was merged into the Vernor line.

**Detroit Galaxian** · February-07-10, 08:27 PM

Originally Posted by Hornwrecker

They're arc lighting towers, a few of Detroit's old ones are still in use in Austin, TX.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moonlight_tower

I have long been fascinated by Detroit's old lighting towers. Until now I had always assumed that these towers were long, long gone. I am absolutely shocked to learn that some of them may still exist and have been in continuous use all of this time. Check out these photos: [[!)

http://www.andymattern.com/moonlighttowers

Researching this further online, there seems to be conflicting information as to whether the ones in Austin really came from Detroit or not.