See the Motor City as it was exploding with growth in this digitally enhanced and colorized film from 1921.
This stunning artifact is, according to the restorer, RandomStrange History TV, a digitally enhanced and colorized version of a 1921 film from the U.S. National Archives called Dynamic Detroit. (Housekeeping note: A few people say the footage might actually be from 1922 or 1923, but we’re not qualified to say either way.) The film immediately caught our attention because it shows the Motor City in the midst of its becoming, and the sights to be seen here are almost too numerous to count. Let’s see: Downtown, Belle Isle, the brand-new General Motors Building, the Ford Rouge factory, the Packard plant on East Grand Boulevard, Eastern Market, and many, many more. Detroiters, see how many landmarks you can identify.
Of course, films like these are excellent for vintage car-spotting. As you would expect, Model T Fords were common on the streets of Detroit in the ’20s, but maybe not as common as we would expect. As befitting the Motor City, instead there’s exceptional variety. We saw Buicks, Packards, Overlands, Jacksons, electric cars, and at one point, possibly an Earl. And there’s an abundance of public transportation, too, including double-decker buses and electric street cars, while the Detroit River is bustling with commercial traffic and the sidewalks of the city overflowing with people. According to a card at the 1:30 mark in the film, the population of Detroit at that time was just over one million people. That’s considerably greater than its population today. Here we see the city of Detroit exploding with growth. Video below.
Great to see the past – should show the transition to the present!
Really enjoyed this. But can’t get over the black smoke from the ore ships at the start and that passenger boat at the end. It’s worse than diesel trucks were before before emission equipment came in.
The air quality in Detroit was bad and didn’t really start to improve noticeably until around 2000. In photos of the 70s through the 90s it looks like fog but it’s not. It’s constant smoke and smog. Around the Rouge and Zug Island the air stunk like rotten eggs.
Notice the great detail on the buildings, much nicer than the slick drab buildings being built today. Monuments built to men and their businesses, which ironically played a part in the slow destruction of them from pollution. Also amazing to see there was very little traffic control, yet no crashes or people ran over. I guess nobody was walking looking at their phone or driving while trying to maneuver through the screens of a touch screen entertainment center! A simpler, yet still busy time for sure.
I I agree with all your comments. I noticed that all the people wore hats and the men wore suits some with ties and some without. It is a very Interesting film clip . Thank you for sending it. Sorry I didn’t respond sooner, as I didn’t look at my phone messages. Harbor freight sends me A lot of advertisements .