Woodward Avenue (M-1) – Automotive Heritage Trail

Story of the Byway

Detroit, the Motor City, and, in particular M-1, Woodward Avenue, put the world on wheels. Visitors will find famed industrial complexes, office buildings, residential mansions, world-renowned museums, cultural institutions, and nine National Historic Landmarks in the area. “Detroit's Main Street” follows, in part, the route of a Native American trail from Detroit to Pontiac and is dotted with the remnants of Detroit’s automotive heritage and decades worth of ethnic neighborhoods, historical homes, and landmarks.

Visitors will begin their journey where Woodward Avenue once met the beautiful sparkling waters of the Detroit River, now Hart Plaza. The area is filled with miles of waterfront parks, plazas, pavilions, and bike greenways. Visitors will have the opportunity to play in the water fountains, ride the carousel, rent a bike or enjoy one of the many concerts along this international waterway. History buffs may wish to retrace the pathways to freedom on the Underground Railroad where the last stop was a boat trip across the river. Visitors can take the opportunity to explore the landmark skyscrapers that make Detroit instantly recognizable as Detroit such as the Renaissance Center and the Guardian building or enjoy performances at the Detroit Opera House and Fox Theatre. Sports enthusiasts can revel in a multitude of sporting events, including hockey with the Detroit Red Wings, football with the Detroit Lions, and baseball with the Detroit Tigers.

The route continues through Midtown. Midtown hosts renowned historic mansions, museums, galleries, theaters, and educational institutions. Wayne State University, a premier research institute, claims several buildings of famed architecture, including the Minoru Yamasaki designed McGregor Conference Center. In the heart of Midtown, visitors can discover one of the nation’s premiere art museums, the Detroit Institute of Arts (DIA), home to Diego Rivera’s Detroit Industry Murals commissioned in 1932 by Edsel Ford and DIA director William Valentiner depicting the Ford Rouge Plant operations. Across the street from the DIA is the Detroit Historical Museum’s Motor City exhibit that chronicles the Detroit automobile industry. Within a short walking distance is the Michigan Science Center and the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History. Other iconic stops to enjoy include the Fisher Building, the historic headquarters of General Motors, and the Argonaut Building.

Visitors will continue to drive through the Historic Boston Edison and Arden Park districts and will have the opportunity to view the home of Henry and Clara Ford on their way to Highland Park. In Highland Park is one of the most historically significant places in automobile history, the Highland Park Ford Plant. Here, Henry Ford introduced the moving assembly line, paid a $5 a day wage and helped launch the modern American middle class. This Albert Kahn-designed complex is not open to the public, however the Woodward Avenue Action Association purchased two buildings fronting Woodward Avenue with restoration plans for an Automobile Heritage Welcome Center. Nearby is Palmer Park and Palmer Woods, home to Detroit’s only Frank Lloyd Wright Home, the Dorothy Turkel House.

As visitors cross over the famed 8 Mile Road, visitors will enter Oakland County. Oakland County is a 16-mile stretch that is home to the Woodward Dream Cruise, held the third Saturday of August. This world-renowned one-day event attracts 1.5 million people and showcases some 40,000 classic cars from around the globe. Today’s cruisers retrace the cruisin’ route where automobile engineers in the 50s and 60s formed car clubs and built hot-rods they unofficially “tested” on Woodward Avenue. As the route continues to Pontiac, visitors will have the opportunity to explore more historic homes such as the Gregor and Elizabeth Affleck House, another Frank Lloyd Wright home. At the north end of the byway is the city named for the Ottawa (Odawa) Native American chief Pontiac. Rich with its automobile heritage, General Motors once dominated much of the city with production factories, and even named a brand after it. The historic downtown is known for its nightlife with great local music.