Time Magazine's urban explorers in Detroit

**night-timer** · April-22-11, 08:34 PM

So, the style of pix on display may be something of a visual cliche by now, but I'm curious to know why professional people abandoning a business or building would opt to leave all their expensive equipment behind?

http://www.time.com/time/photogaller...850979,00.html

**Jimaz** · April-22-11, 09:40 PM

Originally Posted by night-timer

So, the style of pix on display may be something of a visual cliche by now, but I'm curious to know why professional people abandoning a business or building would opt to leave all their expensive equipment behind?

http://www.time.com/time/photogaller...850979,00.html

I've often wondered the same about that particular photo.

Maybe the equipment was defective in some way not visible in the photo?
Maybe the urgency to leave was too great to salvage it?
Maybe the practice was so lucrative that the value of the equipment was negligible in comparison?

These unanswered [[unanswerable?) questions are what makes the photo so intriguing.

**Gsgeorge** · April-23-11, 01:37 AM

It's in the Broderick Tower. When the building was abandoned these offices were long vacant. The equipment was outdated and too heavy to move out, so they just sealed the place until the vandals & explorers found the way in.

**Django** · April-23-11, 01:43 AM

Whatever happened to that Time magazine experiment on the Eastside? Is there a link to read all the articles they put out?

**Richard** · April-23-11, 01:48 AM

Originally Posted by Django

Whatever happened to that Time magazine experiment on the Eastside? Is there a link to read all the articles they put out?

http://www.time.com/time/nation/arti...925681,00.html

Start there and follow the little links around.

In business you buy equipment new and depreciate it on taxes then buy new again that stuff in the pictures although cool has really no value other then to a collector or scrapper.

**Django** · April-23-11, 01:59 AM

Thanks Rich.

**Bella** · April-23-11, 02:06 AM

Originally Posted by Django

Thanks Rich.

I was just about to say this!

**Roadmaster49** · April-23-11, 10:20 AM

That's an old but timeless photographic essay. It's been sent around email chains quite a bit. Still, I love looking at it and the quote at the end is a good one.

They are still doing archeological digs of stuff centuries old. Do we leave some of these Detroit relics alone ? Or tear them down and replace with green space?

**wolverine** · April-23-11, 11:38 AM

Originally Posted by Gsgeorge

It's in the Broderick Tower. When the building was abandoned these offices were long vacant. The equipment was outdated and too heavy to move out, so they just sealed the place until the vandals & explorers found the way in.

"found a way in" LOL. No, they were in INVITED in.

**night-timer** · April-25-11, 03:58 AM

Originally Posted by Roadmaster49

They are still doing archeological digs of stuff centuries old. Do we leave some of these Detroit relics alone ? Or tear them down and replace with green space?

I had asked a similar question once before and was cut down to size for suggesting we try to hold onto "a Detroit that no longer exists". Still, that hasnt changed my opinion. There's little to see on the urban prairie, but it might get rid of urbex gate-crashers - and a few Time photographers - if you really can't stand them.

**Hermod** · April-25-11, 04:35 AM

Originally Posted by night-timer

So, the style of pix on display may be something of a visual cliche by now, but I'm curious to know why professional people abandoning a business or building would opt to leave all their expensive equipment behind?

http://www.time.com/time/photogaller...850979,00.html

That dental equipment is obsolete. When the dentist left, he either retired or bought state of the art for his new digs in a professional building with that fantastic futuristic amenity of "customer parking".

Dentists no longer use that style of chair or the "spit sink".

Edit to Add: It looks a lot like the orthodonist's office in the Broderick that I used to go to in 1949-1950 when i had braces. I can still picture the steam radiator in front of the chair. About 1950, he moved out to the 7 Mile/Evergreen area.

**Gistok** · April-25-11, 02:18 PM

Roadmaster49... that kind of "intact" archeological digging is done best after a pyroclastic flow [[of volcanic origins) buries a city in 100 ft. of ash centuries before...

When cleaning out the Broderick Tower... they should check with Henry Ford Museum to see if they're interested in any early-to-mid 20th century intact medical suites...