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Detroit d ɪ ˈ t r ɔɪ t dih TROYT locally also ˈ d iː t r ɔɪ t DEE troyt is the most populous city in the U S state of Mi
Detroit
Detroit (/dɪˈtrɔɪt/ dih-TROYT, locally also /ˈdiːtrɔɪt/ DEE-troyt) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 census, making it the 26th-most populous city in the United States and the largest U.S. city on the Canada–United States border. The Metro Detroit area, home to 4.3 million people, is the second-largest in the Midwest after the Chicago metropolitan area and the 14th-largest in the United States. The seat of Wayne County, Detroit is a significant cultural center known for its contributions to music, art, architecture and design, in addition to its historical automotive and industrial background.
Detroit | |
|---|---|
City | |
Downtown Detroit skyline Fox Theatre Renaissance Center Ambassador Bridge Comerica Park Detroit Institute of Arts Hitsville U.S.A. Belle Isle Park | |
 Flag  Seal  Logo | |
| Etymology: French: détroit (strait) | |
| Nicknames: The Motor City, Motown, and others | |
| Motto(s): Speramus Meliora; Resurget Cineribus (Latin: We Hope For Better Things; It Shall Rise From the Ashes) | |
 Interactive map of Detroit | |
 Detroit  Detroit | |
| Coordinates: 42°20′N 83°03′W / 42.333°N 83.050°W | |
| Country |  United States |
| State |  Michigan |
| County | Wayne |
| Founded (Fort Detroit) | July 24, 1701 |
| Incorporated | September 13, 1806 |
| Founded by | Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac (1658–1730) & Alphonse de Tonty (1659–1727) |
| Named after | Detroit River |
| Government | |
| • Type | Strong Mayor |
| • Body | Detroit City Council |
| • Mayor | Mike Duggan (I) |
| • Clerk | Janice Winfrey |
| • City council | Members
|
| Area | |
• City | 142.89 sq mi (370.09 km2) |
| • Land | 138.73 sq mi (359.31 km2) |
| • Water | 4.16 sq mi (10.78 km2) |
| • Urban | 1,284.8 sq mi (3,327.7 km2) |
| • Metro | 3,888.4 sq mi (10,071 km2) |
| Elevation | 656 ft (200 m) |
| Population (2020) | |
• City | 639,111 |
• Estimate (2024) | 645,705  |
| • Rank | 78th in North America 26th in the United States 1st in Michigan |
| • Density | 4,606.84/sq mi (1,778.71/km2) |
| • Urban | 3,776,890 (US: 12th) |
| • Urban density | 2,939.6/sq mi (1,135.0/km2) |
| • Metro | 4,365,205 (US: 14th) |
| Demonym | Detroiter |
| GDP | |
| • Metro | $331.333 billion (2023) |
| Time zone | UTC−5 (EST) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−4 (EDT) |
| ZIP Codes | 482XX |
| Area code | 313 |
| FIPS code | 26-22000 |
| GNIS feature ID | 1617959 |
| Major airports | Detroit Metropolitan Airport, Coleman A. Young International Airport |
| Mass transit | Detroit Department of Transportation, Detroit People Mover, QLine |
| Website | detroitmi |
In 1701, Royal French explorers Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac and Alphonse de Tonty founded Fort Pontchartrain du Détroit. During the late 19th and early 20th century, it became an important industrial hub at the center of the Great Lakes region. The city's population rose to be the fourth-largest in the nation by 1920, with the expansion of the automotive industry in the early 20th century. One of its main features, the Detroit River, became the busiest commercial hub in the world. In the mid-20th century, Detroit entered a state of urban decay that has continued to the present, as a result of industrial restructuring, the loss of jobs in the auto industry, and rapid suburbanization. Since reaching a peak of 1.85 million at the 1950 census, Detroit's population has declined by more than 65 percent. In 2013, Detroit became the largest U.S. city to file for bankruptcy, but successfully exited in 2014. In 2024, the U.S. Census Bureau reported that Detroit's population grew for a second consecutive year and led population growth in Michigan for the first time since the 1950s.
Detroit is a port on the Detroit River, one of the four major straits that connect the Great Lakes system to the St. Lawrence Seaway. The city anchors the third-largest regional economy in the Midwest and the 16th-largest in the United States. It is also best known as the center of the U.S. automotive industry, and the "Big Three" auto manufacturers—General Motors, Ford, and Stellantis North America (Chrysler)—are all headquartered in Metro Detroit. It houses the Detroit Metropolitan Airport, one of the most important hub airports in the United States. Detroit and its neighboring Canadian city Windsor constitute the second-busiest international crossing in North America, after San Diego–Tijuana.
Detroit's culture is marked with diversity, having both local and international influences. Detroit gave rise to the music genres of Motown and techno, and also played an important role in the development of jazz, hip-hop, rock, and punk. A globally unique stock of architectural monuments and historic places was the result of the city's rapid growth in its boom years. Since the 2000s, conservation efforts have managed to save many architectural pieces and achieve several large-scale revitalizations, including the restoration of several historic theaters and entertainment venues, high-rise renovations, new sports stadiums, and a riverfront revitalization project. Detroit is an increasingly popular tourist destination which caters to about 16 million visitors per year. In 2015, Detroit was designated a "City of Design" by UNESCO, the first and only U.S. city to receive that designation.
History
Toponymy
Detroit is named after the Detroit River, connecting Lake Huron with Lake Erie. The name comes from the French language word détroit meaning 'strait' as the city was situated on a narrow north–south passage of water linking the two lakes. The river was known as le détroit du Lac Érié in the French language, which means 'the strait of Lake Erie'. In the historical context, the strait included the St. Clair River, Lake St. Clair, and the Detroit River.
Indigenous settlement
Kingdom of France 1701–1760
Kingdom of Great Britain 1760–1796
United States 1796–1812
United Kingdom 1812–1813
United States 1813–present
Paleo-Indians inhabited areas near Detroit as early as 11,000 years ago including the culture referred to as the Mound Builders. By the 17th century, the region was inhabited by Huron, Odawa, Potawatomi, and Iroquois peoples. The area is known by the Anishinaabe people as Waawiiyaataanong, translating to 'where the water curves around'.
The first Europeans did not penetrate into the region and reach the straits of Detroit until French missionaries and traders worked their way around the Iroquois League, with whom they were at war in the 1630s. The Huron and Neutral people held the north side of Lake Erie until the 1650s, when the Iroquois pushed them and the Erie people away from the lake and its beaver-rich feeder streams in the Beaver Wars of 1649–1655. By the 1670s, the war-weakened Iroquois laid claim to as far south as the Ohio River valley in northern Kentucky as hunting grounds, and had absorbed many other Iroquoian peoples after defeating them in war. For the next hundred years, virtually no British or French action was contemplated without consultation with the Iroquois or consideration of their likely response.
French settlement
On July 24, 1701, the French explorer Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac (1658–1730), with his lieutenant Alphonse de Tonty (1659–1727), and more than a hundred other Royal French settlers traveling south and west from New France (modern Province of Quebec), along the St. Lawrence River valley to the Great Lakes region, began constructing a small fort on the north bank of the Detroit River. Cadillac named the settlement Fort Pontchartrain du Détroit, after Louis Phélypeaux, comte de Pontchartrain (1643–1727), the Secretary of State of the Navy under King Louis XIV (1638–1715, reigned 1643–1715) in the Royal government in Paris. Sainte-Anne de Détroit was founded on July 26 and is the second-oldest continuously operating Roman Catholic parish in the United States. France offered free land to colonists to attract families further west into the Great Lakes region interior of the North American continent to Detroit; when it eventually reached a population of about 800 by 1765, after the colonial conflict of the French and Indian War (1753–1763), (Seven Years' War in Europe), it became the largest European settlement between the important towns of Montreal and New Orleans, both also French settlements, in the former colonies of New France and La Louisiane (further south on the Mississippi River, on the coast of the Gulf of Mexico), respectively. The region's then colonial economy was based on the lucrative fur trade, in which numerous Native American peoples had important roles as trappers and traders.
British rule
During the French and Indian War (1753–63)—the North American front of the Seven Years' War in Europe between the Kingdom of Great Britain and the Kingdom of France—British troops gained control of the settlement a few years into the conflict in 1760 and shortened its name to Detroit. Several regional Native American tribes, such as the Potowatomi, Ojibwe and Huron, launched Pontiac's War (1763–1766), and laid siege in 1763 to Fort Detroit along the Detroit River in the Great Lakes but failed to capture it. In defeat, France ceded its territory in North America of New France and south of the lakes east of the Mississippi to the Appalachian Mountains to Britain following the war.
When Great Britain evicted France from its colonial possessions in New France (Canada) in the peace terms of the Treaty of Paris of 1763, it also removed one barrier to American colonists migrating west across the mountains. British negotiations with the Iroquois would both prove critical and lead to the Royal Proclamation of 1763, which limited settlements South of and below the Great Lakes and west of the Alleghenies / Appalachians. Many colonists and pioneers in the Thirteen Colonies along the East Coast, resented and then simply defied this restraint, later becoming supporters of the rebellious American Revolution. By 1773, after the addition of increasing numbers of the Anglo-American settlers, the population of Detroit and Fort Detroit, was edging up to 1,400 (doubled in the previous decade). During the American Revolutionary War (1775–1783), the indigenous and loyalist raids of 1778 and the resultant 1779 decisive Sullivan Expedition reopened the Ohio Country (north of the Ohio River and west of the mountains) to even more westward emigration, which began almost immediately to get away from the eastern warfare. By 1778, its population had doubled again, reaching 2,144 and it was the third-largest town in what was known then as the Province of Quebec since the British takeover of former French colonial possessions in North America in 1763.
After the American Revolutionary War (1775–1783) and the establishment and recognition of the United States as an independent country, the Great Britain ceded Detroit and other territories in the interior region of the continent, south of the Great Lakes and west of the Appalachian Mountains to the Mississippi River under the peace of the terms of the 1783 Treaty of Paris. The new Northwest Territories established the southern border with Great Britain's remaining colonial provinces in British North America and became provinces of Upper Canada and Lower Canada. However, the disputed border area remained under British control with several military forts and trading posts for another decade, and its forces did not fully withdraw until 1796, following the negotiations and ratification of the subsequent Jay Treaty of 1794 between the British and Americans. By the turn of the 19th century, white American settlers began pouring westwards across the Appalachians and through the Great Lakes.
Legacy
Today the municipal flag of Detroit reflects its both its French and English colonial heritage. Descendants of the earliest French and French-Canadian settlers formed a cohesive community, who gradually were superseded as the dominant population after more Anglo-American settlers arrived in the early 19th century with American westward migration. Living along the shores of Lake St. Clair and south to Monroe and downriver suburbs, the ethnic French Canadians of Detroit, also known as Muskrat French in reference to the fur trade, remain a subculture in the region up into the 21st century.
Post-revolutionary period and 19th century
The Great Detroit Fire of 1805 destroyed most of the city's wooden buildings, leaving only a stone fort, a river warehouse, and brick chimneys from former homes. Despite the extensive damage, none of Detroit's 600 residents perished. The aftermath of the fire left a lasting legacy on the city's heritage. Father Gabriel Richard coined the city motto, "Speramus Meliora; Resurget Cineribus," as he surveyed the ruins. The city seal, designed in 1827, directly depicted the fire by showing two women, one grieving the destruction while the other gestures toward a new city rising from the ashes. The seal forms the center of Detroit's flag.
From 1805 to 1847, Detroit served as the capital city of the Michigan Territory and later became its first state capital in January 1837 after Michigan's admission to the Union. During the War of 1812, Detroit became a focal point of conflict. U.S. Army commander William Hull surrendered Fort Detroit without a fight, underestimating the number of British forces. Later, the U.S. attempted to retake the fort and town during the Battle of Frenchtown in January 1813, a significant victory for the British. The battle is commemorated at the River Raisin National Battlefield Park near Monroe, Michigan. Detroit was eventually recaptured later that year.
Detroit was officially incorporated as a city in 1815, and its urban design was influenced by the grand boulevards of Washington, D.C. Michigan Territorial Chief Justice Augustus B. Woodward, who played a key role in the city's development, designed a geometric street plan that included wide avenues and plazas. In 1817, he founded the Catholepistemiad, later evolving into the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Detroit's growth continued as a center of education and culture for the Michigan Territory.
Before the American Civil War, Detroit's position along the Canada-U.S. border made it a vital stop on the Underground Railroad. Thousands of enslaved African Americans escaped to Canada via the city. Notable activists like George DeBaptiste, William Lambert, and Laura Smith Haviland played key roles in assisting refugees. Detroit's contributions to the Union effort were also significant, with many residents volunteering to fight. The city's 24th Michigan Infantry Regiment, part of the famous Iron Brigade, suffered heavy casualties at the Battle of Gettysburg. The city's tensions over race, in tandem with national concerns over the draft, led to the Detroit race riot of 1863, leaving some dead and over 200 Black residents homeless. This prompted the establishment of a full-time police force in 1865.
In the late 19th century, Detroit grew as a hub for industry, particularly shipping and manufacturing. The city's wealth, driven by industrial magnates, led to the construction of opulent Gilded Age mansions along the grand avenues designed by Woodward. Detroit earned the nickname "Paris of the West" for its architectural beauty. By 1896, Henry Ford's first automobile was built in the city, and Detroit expanded its borders, annexing surrounding villages and townships as it solidified its place as a key player in the automobile industry.
Early 20th century and World War II
In 1903, Henry Ford founded the Ford Motor Company. Alongside automotive pioneers William C. Durant, the Dodge brothers, James and William Packard, and Walter Chrysler, they established the Big Three automakers, solidifying Detroit's status as the world's automotive capital by the early 20th century. The rise of the automotive industry in the United States transformed the city, leading to the development of related businesses such as garages, gas stations, and factories for parts.[citation needed] Detroit's population grew rapidly, reaching the fourth-largest city in the U.S. by 1920.
In 1907, the Detroit River carried 67 million tons of shipping commerce, surpassing both London and New York City in volume. This earned the river the title "the Greatest Commercial Artery on Earth." During prohibition in the United States (1920–1933), the Detroit River became a major route for smuggling illegal alcohol from Canada. The booming auto industry and the expansion of shipping trade were central to Detroit's economic growth in the early 20th century.
With the rapid growth of industrial workers in the auto factories, labor unions such as the American Federation of Labor and the United Auto Workers (UAW) fought to organize workers to gain them better working conditions and wages. They initiated strikes and other tactics in support of improvements such as the 8-hour day/40-hour work week, increased wages, greater benefits, and improved working conditions. The labor activism during those years increased the influence of union leaders in the city such as Jimmy Hoffa of the Teamsters and Walter Reuther of the UAW.
The demographic shifts caused by industrialization led to significant racial tensions in Detroit. The Great Migration brought African Americans from the South, while many southern and eastern European immigrants also moved to the city. Competition for jobs and housing fueled tensions between different ethnic and racial groups.[citation needed] This period saw the rise of the Ku Klux Klan in Detroit, which became a powerful force in the city during the 1920s, targeting Black, Catholic, and Jewish communities. Even after the Klan's decline, the Black Legion, a secret vigilante group, continued to spread fear in the 1930s.
In the 1940s the world's "first urban depressed freeway" ever built, the Davison, was constructed. Systemic racial discrimination remained prevalent in Detroit, with restrictive housing covenants and violence against Black neighborhoods like Black Bottom and Paradise Valley. The city's racial tensions boiled over during the 1943 Detroit race riot. Sparked by a protest at the Packard plant, the riot resulted in 34 deaths, 433 injuries, and widespread property damage.
During World War II, the government encouraged retooling of the automobile industry in support of the Allied powers, leading to Detroit's key role in the American Arsenal of Democracy. Jobs expanded so rapidly due to the defense buildup in World War II that 400,000 people migrated to the city from 1941 to 1943, including 50,000 blacks in the second wave of the Great Migration, and 350,000 whites, many of them from the South. Whites, including ethnic Europeans, feared black competition for jobs and scarce housing. The federal government prohibited discrimination in defense work, but when in June 1943 Packard promoted three black people to work next to whites on its assembly lines, 25,000 white workers walked off the job.
Late 20th century, racial tension and decline
Industrial mergers in the 1950s, especially in the automobile sector, increased oligopoly in the American auto industry. Detroit saw the consolidation of companies like Packard and Hudson, which eventually disappeared. At its peak in the 1950 census, Detroit was the fifth-largest U.S. city, with a population of 1.85 million. In 1950, the city held about one-third of the state's population. Over the next 60 years, the city's population declined to less than 10 percent of the state's population. The sprawling metropolitan area grew to contain more than half of Michigan's population during the same time period.
The city's auto industry, which made up 60% of its economy, continued to offer employment opportunities, especially for African Americans migrating from the South to escape Jim Crow laws. While the migration brought higher employment rates, with a 103% increase in Black workers, racial discrimination persisted in employment and housing. Black Detroiters often held lower-paying factory jobs, while city services and better-paying positions remained largely dominated by white residents. Discriminatory policies, such as redlining, limited Black access to housing and financial services, forcing many into overcrowded, unsafe neighborhoods. White residents and political leaders resisted integration, reinforcing a cycle of exclusion and segregation.
As in other major American cities in the postwar era, urban planning and infrastructure changes also impacted Detroit's racial dynamics. The construction of highways and freeways in the postwar era displaced many Black communities, including historically significant neighborhoods like Black Bottom and Paradise Valley. These areas, vital for Black businesses and culture, were demolished for urban renewal projects, exacerbating the displacement of low-income residents with little consideration for the community impact.
The city also saw a shift in its transportation system, as Detroit's last electric streetcar line was replaced with buses in 1956. This change, alongside the rise of suburbanization and the relocation of industries to the outskirts, favored car-dependent, low-density development. By the 21st century, Detroit's sprawling metro area had developed into one of the most spread-out job markets in the U.S., contributing to a decline in Detroit's population and eroding its tax base as jobs moved beyond the reach of urban low-income workers.
The Detroit Walk to Freedom civil rights march occurred in June 1963. Martin Luther King Jr. gave a major speech that foreshadowed his "I Have a Dream" speech in Washington, D.C., two months later. While the civil rights movement gained significant federal civil rights laws in 1964 and 1965, longstanding inequities resulted in confrontations between the police and inner-city black youth who wanted change.
I have a dream this afternoon that my four little children, that my four little children will not come up in the same young days that I came up within, but they will be judged on the basis of the content of their character, not the color of their skin ... I have a dream this evening that one day we will recognize the words of Jefferson that "all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." I have a dream ...
Longstanding tensions in Detroit culminated in the Twelfth Street riot in July 1967. Governor George W. Romney ordered the Michigan National Guard into Detroit, and President Lyndon B. Johnson sent in U.S. Army troops. The result was 43 dead, 467 injured, over 7,200 arrests, and more than 2,000 buildings destroyed, mostly in black residential and business areas. Thousands of small businesses closed permanently or relocated to safer neighborhoods. The affected district lay in ruins for decades. According to the Chicago Tribune, it was the 3rd most costly riot in the United States.
In 1970, the NAACP filed a lawsuit against Michigan state officials, including Governor William Milliken, alleging de facto segregation in Detroit's public schools. The lawsuit argued that although schools were not legally segregated, policies in Detroit and surrounding counties maintained racial segregation through housing practices, as school demographics mirrored segregated neighborhoods. The District Court ruled in favor of the NAACP, but in the landmark 1974 Milliken v. Bradley decision, the U.S. Supreme Court limited the scope of desegregation, ruling that suburban areas could not be forced to aid in Detroit's school desegregation.
Amid these challenges, Detroit elected Coleman Young as its first Black mayor in 1973. Young focused on increasing racial diversity in city services and improving Detroit's transportation system, although regional tensions with suburban leaders persisted. In 1976, a federal grant for a regional rapid transit system failed due to conflicts over planning, leaving Detroit to develop its own Detroit People Mover system. The city's struggles were exacerbated by the 1973 and 1979 oil crises, which hurt the auto industry and led to layoffs and plant closures, further diminishing the city's tax base.
Despite efforts to revitalize the city, such as the opening of the Renaissance Center in 1977, downtown Detroit continued to lose businesses to suburban areas. Middle-class flight, high unemployment, and increased crime worsened the city's conditions, with abandoned buildings and neighborhoods further contributing to its decline. Young's focus on downtown development was criticized as insufficient in addressing the broader social and economic challenges faced by the city's residents. In 1993, Young retired as Detroit's longest-serving mayor and was succeeded by Dennis Archer. Archer prioritized downtown development, easing tensions with its suburban neighbors. A referendum to allow casino gambling in the city passed in 1996; several temporary casino facilities opened in 1999, and permanent downtown casinos with hotels opened in 2007–08.
21st century
Campus Martius, a downtown park reconfiguration, opened in 2004 and was cited as one of the best public spaces in the U.S. The first phase of the International Riverfront redevelopment was completed in 2001 for Detroit's 300th-anniversary celebration. In 2008, Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick resigned after felony convictions, and in 2013 was sentenced to 28 years in prison. His actions cost the city an estimated $20 million. In 2011, about half of Detroit's 305,000 property owners failed to pay their taxes, leaving approximately $246 million (~$329 million in 2023) uncollected.
Michigan took control of Detroit's government after the city faced a $327 million deficit and over $14 billion in debt. Governor Rick Snyder declared a financial emergency in March 2013, and the city was relying on bond money to stay afloat, with unpaid days off for workers. Underfunded services and failed turnaround efforts led to the appointment of an emergency manager. In June 2013, Detroit defaulted on $2.5 billion in debt, and on July 18, it became the largest U.S. city to file for bankruptcy. Detroit exited bankruptcy in December 2014, cutting $7 billion in debt and investing $1.7 billion in services. The Detroit Institute of Arts, holding over 60,000 artworks worth billions, became a private organization to help fund the city's recovery after legal battles.
Post-bankruptcy, efforts to improve city services included replacing non-functional street lights with 65,000 LED lights, making Detroit the largest U.S. city with all LED street lighting by 2016. Neighborhood revitalization continued, with volunteer renovation projects and urban gardening movements. In 2011, the Port Authority Passenger Terminal opened, with the riverwalk connecting Hart Plaza to the Renaissance Center.
One symbol of the city's decades-long decline, the Michigan Central Station, was long vacant. The city renovated it with new windows, elevators and facilities, completing the work in December 2015. In 2018, Ford Motor Company purchased the building and plans to use it for mobility testing with a potential return of train service. Several other landmark buildings have been privately renovated and adapted as condominiums, hotels, offices, or for cultural uses. Detroit was mentioned as a city of renaissance and has reversed many of the trends of the prior decades.
The city has seen a rise in gentrification in some neighborhoods. In downtown, for example, the construction of Little Caesars Arena brought with it high class shops and restaurants along Woodward Avenue. Office tower and condominium construction has led to an influx of wealthy families but also a displacement of long-time residents and culture. Areas outside of downtown and other recently revived areas have an average household income of about 25% less than the gentrified areas, a gap that is continuing to grow.
Geography
Metropolitan area
Detroit is the center of a three-county urban area (with a population of 3,734,090 within an area of 1,337 square miles (3,460 km2) according to the 2010 United States census), six-county metropolitan statistical area (population of 5,322,219 in an area of 3,913 square miles [10,130 km2] as of the 2010 census), and a nine-county Combined Statistical Area (population of 5.3 million within 5,814 square miles [15,060 km2] as of 2010[update]).
Topography
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 142.87 square miles (370.03 km2), of which 138.75 square miles (359.36 km2) is land and 4.12 square miles (10.67 km2) is water. Detroit is the principal city in Metro Detroit and Southeast Michigan. It is situated in the Midwestern United States and the Great Lakes region.
The Detroit River International Wildlife Refuge is the only international wildlife preserve in North America and is uniquely located in the heart of a major metropolitan area. The refuge includes islands, coastal wetlands, marshes, shoals, and waterfront lands along 48 miles (77 km) of the Detroit River and western Lake Erie shoreline.
The city slopes gently from the northwest to southeast on a till plain composed largely of glacial and lake clay. The most notable topographical feature in the city is the Detroit Moraine, a broad clay ridge on which the older portions of Detroit and Windsor are located, rising approximately 62 feet (19 m) above the river at its highest point. The highest elevation in the city is directly north of Gorham Playground on the northwest side approximately three blocks south of 8 Mile Road, at a height of 675 to 680 feet (206 to 207 m). Detroit's lowest elevation is along the Detroit River, at a surface height of 572 feet (174 m).
Belle Isle Park is a 982-acre (1.534 sq mi; 397 ha) island park in the Detroit River, between Detroit and Windsor, Ontario. It is connected to the mainland by the MacArthur Bridge. Belle Isle Park contains such attractions as the James Scott Memorial Fountain, the Belle Isle Conservatory, the Detroit Yacht Club on an adjacent island, a half-mile (800 m) beach, a golf course, a nature center, monuments, and gardens. Both the Detroit and Windsor skylines can be viewed at the island's Sunset Point.
Three road systems cross the city: the original French template, with avenues radiating from the waterfront, and true north–south roads based on the Northwest Ordinance township system. The city is north of Windsor, Ontario. Detroit is the only major city along the Canada–U.S. border in which one travels south to cross into Canada.
Detroit has four border crossings: the Ambassador Bridge and the Detroit–Windsor tunnel provide motor vehicle thoroughfares, with the Michigan Central Railway Tunnel providing railroad access to and from Canada. The fourth border crossing is the Detroit–Windsor Truck Ferry, near the Windsor Salt Mine and Zug Island. Near Zug Island, the southwest part of the city was developed over a 1,500-acre (610 ha) salt mine that is 1,100 feet (340 m) below the surface. The Detroit salt mine run by the Detroit Salt Company has over 100 miles (160 km) of roads within.
Cityscape
Architecture
Detroit's waterfront showcases a variety of architectural styles, with the postmodern Neo-Gothic spires of Ally Detroit Center paying homage to the city's Art Deco skyscrapers. Together with the Renaissance Center, these buildings form a distinctive and recognizable skyline. Examples of the Art Deco style include the Guardian Building and Penobscot Building downtown, as well as the Fisher Building and Cadillac Place in New Center. Prominent cultural landmarks from the early 20th century include the Fox Theatre, Detroit Opera House, and Detroit Institute of Arts.
While Downtown Detroit and New Center feature high-rise buildings, much of Detroit consists of low-rise structures and single-family homes. Residential high-rises are concentrated in upscale neighborhoods such as the East Riverfront, extending toward Grosse Pointe, and Palmer Park. The University Commons-Palmer Park district anchors historic areas including Palmer Woods, Sherwood Forest, and the University District near the University of Detroit Mercy.
42 significant structures in the city are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Pre-World War II neighborhoods exhibit architectural styles of the era, with working-class areas featuring wood-frame and brick houses, while middle- and upper-class neighborhoods such as Brush Park, Woodbridge, Indian Village, Palmer Woods, and Boston-Edison contain larger, more ornate homes and mansions. Multi-million dollar restorations and new developments have revitalized neighborhoods such as West Canfield and Brush Park.
The city has one of the United States' largest surviving collections of late 19th- and early 20th-century buildings. Architecturally significant churches and cathedrals in the city include St. Joseph's, Old St. Mary's, the Sweetest Heart of Mary, and the Cathedral of the Most Blessed Sacrament. Historic preservation efforts continue to thrive, with downtown redevelopment projects revitalizing parts of the city, among them Campus Martius Park, Grand Circus Park near the city's theater district, Ford Field, Comerica Park, and Little Caesars Arena.
Neighborhoods
Detroit has a variety of neighborhood types. The revitalized Downtown, Midtown, Corktown, New Center areas feature many historic buildings and are high density, while further out, particularly in the northeast and on the fringes, high vacancy levels are problematic, for which a number of solutions have been proposed. In 2007, Downtown Detroit was recognized as the best city neighborhood in which to retire among the United States' largest metro areas by CNNMoney editors.
Lafayette Park is a revitalized neighborhood on the city's east side, part of the Ludwig Mies van der Rohe residential district. The 78-acre (32 ha) development was originally called the Gratiot Park. Planned by Mies van der Rohe, Ludwig Hilberseimer and Alfred Caldwell it includes a landscaped, 19-acre (7.7 ha) park with no through traffic, in which these and other low-rise apartment buildings are situated. Immigrants have contributed to the city's neighborhood revitalization, especially in southwest Detroit. Southwest Detroit has experienced a thriving economy in recent years, as evidenced by new housing, increased business openings and the recently opened Mexicantown International Welcome Center.
The city has numerous neighborhoods consisting of vacant properties resulting in low inhabited density in those areas, stretching city services and infrastructure. These neighborhoods are concentrated in the northeast and on the city's fringes. A 2009 parcel survey found about a quarter of residential lots in the city to be undeveloped or vacant, and about 10% of the city's housing to be unoccupied. The survey also reported that most (86%) of the city's homes are in good condition with a minority (9%) in fair condition needing only minor repairs.
To deal with vacancy issues, the city has begun demolishing the derelict houses, razing 3,000 of the total 10,000 in 2010, but the resulting low density creates a strain on the city's infrastructure. To remedy this, a number of solutions have been proposed including resident relocation from more sparsely populated neighborhoods and converting unused space to urban agricultural use, including Hantz Woodlands, though the city expects to be in the planning stages for up to another two years.
Public funding and private investment have been made with promises to rehabilitate neighborhoods. In April 2008, the city announced a $300 million (~$417 million in 2023) stimulus plan to create jobs and revitalize neighborhoods, financed by city bonds and paid for by earmarking about 15% of the wagering tax. The city's working plans for neighborhood revitalizations include 7-Mile/Livernois, Brightmoor, East English Village, Grand River/Greenfield, North End, and Osborn. Private organizations have pledged substantial funding to the efforts. Additionally, the city has cleared a 1,200-acre (490 ha) section of land for large-scale neighborhood construction, which the city is calling the Far Eastside Plan. In 2011, Mayor Dave Bing announced a plan to categorize neighborhoods by their needs and prioritize the most needed services for those neighborhoods.
Parks
Detroit Parks & Recreation maintains 308 public parks, totaling 4,950 (2,003 ha) acres or about 5.6% of the city's land area. Belle Isle Park, Detroit's largest and most visited park is the largest city-owned island park in the U.S., covering 982 acres (397 ha).
Grand Circus, the city's first municipal park, opened in 1847. In the early 20th century, the city enlisted landscape architect Augustus Woodward to conceive a framework for Detroit's modern parks system. Augustus Woodward's plan for the city imagined grand boulevards, spacious and elegant common parks, and an orderly, hub-and-spoke city layout.
The Detroit International Riverfront features a 3.5-mile promenade with parks, residential buildings, and commercial areas, extending from Hart Plaza to Belle Isle Park. This area includes Tri-Centennial State Park and Harbor, Michigan's first urban state park. Plans for the riverfront's second phase will extend the promenade to the Ambassador Bridge, stimulating residential redevelopment along the riverfront. Detroit's major parks also include River Rouge, Palmer, and Chene Park, contributing to the city's green space and outdoor recreation.
The Huron-Clinton Metropolitan Authority was created in 1940 by the citizens of Southeast Michigan to serve as a regional park system the park system includes 13 parks totaling more than 24,000 acres (97 km2) arranged along the Huron River and Clinton River forming a partial ring around the Detroit metro area.
Climate
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Detroit and the rest of southeastern Michigan have a hot-summer humid continental climate (Köppen: Dfa) which is influenced by the Great Lakes like other places in the state; the city and close-in suburbs are part of USDA Hardiness zone 6b, while the more distant northern and western suburbs generally are included in zone 6a. Winters are cold, with moderate snowfall and temperatures not rising above freezing on an average 44 days annually, while dropping to or below 0 °F (−18 °C) on an average 4.4 days a year; summers are warm to hot with temperatures exceeding 90 °F (32 °C) on 12 days. The warm season runs from May to September. The monthly daily mean temperature ranges from 25.6 °F (−3.6 °C) in January to 73.6 °F (23.1 °C) in July. Official temperature extremes range from 105 °F (41 °C) on July 24, 1934, down to −21 °F (−29 °C) on January 21, 1984; the record low maximum is −4 °F (−20 °C) on January 19, 1994, while, conversely the record high minimum is 80 °F (27 °C) on August 1, 2006, the most recent of five occurrences. A decade or two may pass between readings of 100 °F (38 °C) or higher, which last occurred July 17, 2012. The average window for freezing temperatures is October 20 through April 22, allowing a growing season of 180 days.
Precipitation is moderate and somewhat evenly distributed throughout the year, although the warmer months such as May and June average more, averaging 33.5 inches (850 mm) annually, but historically ranging from 20.49 in (520 mm) in 1963 to 47.70 in (1,212 mm) in 2011. Snowfall, which typically falls in measurable amounts between November 15 through April 4 (occasionally in October and very rarely in May), averages 42.5 inches (108 cm) per season, although historically ranging from 11.5 in (29 cm) in 1881–82 to 94.9 in (241 cm) in 2013–14. A thick layer of snow is not often seen, with an average of only 27.5 days with 3 in (7.6 cm) or more of snow cover. Thunderstorms are frequent in the Detroit area. These usually occur during spring and summer.
| Climate data for Detroit (DTW), 1991–2020 normals, extremes 1874–present | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °F (°C) | 67 (19) | 73 (23) | 86 (30) | 89 (32) | 95 (35) | 104 (40) | 105 (41) | 104 (40) | 100 (38) | 92 (33) | 81 (27) | 69 (21) | 105 (41) |
| Mean maximum °F (°C) | 53.0 (11.7) | 55.3 (12.9) | 69.3 (20.7) | 79.6 (26.4) | 87.2 (30.7) | 92.6 (33.7) | 93.8 (34.3) | 92.1 (33.4) | 89.3 (31.8) | 80.6 (27.0) | 66.7 (19.3) | 56.1 (13.4) | 95.4 (35.2) |
| Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 32.3 (0.2) | 35.2 (1.8) | 45.9 (7.7) | 58.7 (14.8) | 70.3 (21.3) | 79.7 (26.5) | 83.7 (28.7) | 81.4 (27.4) | 74.4 (23.6) | 62.0 (16.7) | 48.6 (9.2) | 37.2 (2.9) | 59.1 (15.1) |
| Daily mean °F (°C) | 25.8 (−3.4) | 28.0 (−2.2) | 37.2 (2.9) | 48.9 (9.4) | 60.3 (15.7) | 69.9 (21.1) | 74.1 (23.4) | 72.3 (22.4) | 64.9 (18.3) | 53.0 (11.7) | 41.2 (5.1) | 31.3 (−0.4) | 50.6 (10.3) |
| Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 19.2 (−7.1) | 20.8 (−6.2) | 28.6 (−1.9) | 39.1 (3.9) | 50.2 (10.1) | 60.2 (15.7) | 64.4 (18.0) | 63.2 (17.3) | 55.5 (13.1) | 44.0 (6.7) | 33.9 (1.1) | 25.3 (−3.7) | 42.0 (5.6) |
| Mean minimum °F (°C) | 0.1 (−17.7) | 3.5 (−15.8) | 12.0 (−11.1) | 25.5 (−3.6) | 36.3 (2.4) | 47.3 (8.5) | 54.1 (12.3) | 53.4 (11.9) | 41.6 (5.3) | 31.0 (−0.6) | 19.8 (−6.8) | 8.8 (−12.9) | −3.7 (−19.8) |
| Record low °F (°C) | −21 (−29) | −20 (−29) | −4 (−20) | 8 (−13) | 25 (−4) | 36 (2) | 42 (6) | 38 (3) | 29 (−2) | 17 (−8) | 0 (−18) | −11 (−24) | −21 (−29) |
| Average precipitation inches (mm) | 2.23 (57) | 2.08 (53) | 2.43 (62) | 3.26 (83) | 3.72 (94) | 3.26 (83) | 3.51 (89) | 3.26 (83) | 3.22 (82) | 2.53 (64) | 2.57 (65) | 2.25 (57) | 34.32 (872) |
| Average snowfall inches (cm) | 14.0 (36) | 12.5 (32) | 6.2 (16) | 1.5 (3.8) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 1.9 (4.8) | 8.9 (23) | 45.0 (114) |
| Average extreme snow depth inches (cm) | 7.1 (18) | 6.6 (17) | 4.4 (11) | 0.8 (2.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 0.0 (0.0) | 1.1 (2.8) | 4.3 (11) | 10.0 (25) |
| Average precipitation days (≥ 0.01 in) | 13.4 | 11.0 | 11.1 | 12.5 | 12.9 | 10.7 | 10.5 | 9.7 | 9.5 | 10.6 | 11.0 | 13.1 | 136.0 |
| Average snowy days (≥ 0.1 in) | 10.7 | 9.2 | 5.3 | 1.5 | 0.1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.2 | 2.6 | 8.0 | 37.6 |
| Average relative humidity (%) | 74.7 | 72.5 | 70.0 | 66.0 | 65.3 | 67.3 | 68.5 | 71.5 | 73.4 | 71.6 | 74.6 | 76.7 | 71.0 |
| Average dew point °F (°C) | 16.2 (−8.8) | 17.6 (−8.0) | 25.9 (−3.4) | 35.1 (1.7) | 45.7 (7.6) | 55.6 (13.1) | 60.4 (15.8) | 59.7 (15.4) | 53.2 (11.8) | 41.4 (5.2) | 32.4 (0.2) | 21.9 (−5.6) | 38.7 (3.7) |
| Mean monthly sunshine hours | 119.9 | 138.3 | 184.9 | 217.0 | 275.9 | 301.8 | 317.0 | 283.5 | 227.6 | 176.0 | 106.3 | 87.7 | 2,435.9 |
| Percentage possible sunshine | 41 | 47 | 50 | 54 | 61 | 66 | 69 | 66 | 61 | 51 | 36 | 31 | 55 |
| Average ultraviolet index | 1.2 | 2.0 | 3.6 | 5.4 | 6.9 | 8.0 | 8.2 | 7.1 | 5.3 | 3.1 | 1.6 | 1.1 | 4.4 |
| Source 1: NOAA (relative humidity, dew point, and sun 1961–1990) | |||||||||||||
| Source 2: UV Index Today (1995 to 2022) | |||||||||||||
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See or edit raw graph data.
| Climate data for Detroit | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Mean No. of days with Maximum temperature => 90.0 °F (32.2 °C) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 |
| Mean No. of days with Minimum temperature => 68.0 °F (20.0 °C) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 10 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 25 |
| Mean No. of days with Minimum temperature <= 32.0 °F (0.0 °C) | 27 | 25 | 21 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 14 | 24 | 120 |
| Mean No. of days with Maximum temperature <= 32.0 °F (0.0 °C) | 16 | 12 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 10 | 42 |
| Mean No. of days with snow depth => 0.1 in (0.25 cm) | 17 | 14 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 8 | 48 |
| Average sea temperature °F (°C) | 33.6 (0.9) | 32.7 (0.4) | 33.4 (0.8) | 39.7 (4.3) | 48.9 (9.4) | 63.9 (17.7) | 74.7 (23.7) | 75.4 (24.1) | 70.5 (21.4) | 60.3 (15.7) | 48.6 (9.2) | 38.1 (3.4) | 51.7 (10.9) |
| Mean daily daylight hours | 9.0 | 11.0 | 12.0 | 13.0 | 15.0 | 15.0 | 15.0 | 14.0 | 12.0 | 11.0 | 10.0 | 9.0 | 12.2 |
| Average Ultraviolet index | 1 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 8 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 4.8 |
| Source 1: NWS (1991–2020) | |||||||||||||
| Source 2 : Weather Atlas (daylight-UV-water temperature) | |||||||||||||
Demographics
This section needs to be updated. The reason given is: A lot has changed and turned around recently along with a revised estimate of first population increase in decades.. (May 2025) |
| Census | Pop. | Note | %± |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1820 | 1,422 | — | |
| 1830 | 2,222 | 56.3% | |
| 1840 | 9,102 | 309.6% | |
| 1850 | 21,019 | 130.9% | |
| 1860 | 45,619 | 117.0% | |
| 1870 | 79,577 | 74.4% | |
| 1880 | 116,340 | 46.2% | |
| 1890 | 205,876 | 77.0% | |
| 1900 | 285,704 | 38.8% | |
| 1910 | 465,766 | 63.0% | |
| 1920 | 993,678 | 113.3% | |
| 1930 | 1,568,662 | 57.9% | |
| 1940 | 1,623,452 | 3.5% | |
| 1950 | 1,849,568 | 13.9% | |
| 1960 | 1,670,144 | −9.7% | |
| 1970 | 1,511,482 | −9.5% | |
| 1980 | 1,203,368 | −20.4% | |
| 1990 | 1,027,974 | −14.6% | |
| 2000 | 951,270 | −7.5% | |
| 2010 | 713,777 | −25.0% | |
| 2020 | 639,111 | −10.5% | |
| 2024 (est.) | 645,705 | 1.0% | |
| U.S. Decennial Census 2010–2020 | |||
In the 2020 United States census, the city had 639,111 residents, ranking it the 27th-most populous city in the US. Of the large shrinking cities in the US, Detroit has had the most dramatic decline in the population of the past 70 years (down 1,210,457) and the second-largest percentage decline (down 65.4%). In 1950, Detroit was the fourth-largest city in the US behind New York, Chicago, and Philadelphia. While the drop in Detroit's population has been ongoing since 1950, the most dramatic period was the significant 25% decline between the 2000 and 2010 census.
Detroit's 639,111 residents represent 269,445 households, and 162,924 families residing in the city. The population density was 5,144.3 people per square mile (1,986.2 people/km2). There were 349,170 housing units at an average density of 2,516.5 units per square mile (971.6 units/km2). Of the 269,445 households, 34.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 21.5% were married couples living together, 31.4% had a female householder with no husband present, 39.5% were non-families, 34.0% were made up of individuals, and 3.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.59, and the average family size was 3.36.
There was a wide distribution of age in the city, with 31.1% under the age of 18, 9.7% from 18 to 24, 29.5% from 25 to 44, 19.3% from 45 to 64, and 10.4% 65 years of age or older. The median age was 31 years. For every 100 females, there were 89.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 83.5 males.
Religion
According to a 2014 study, 67% of the population of the city identified themselves as Christians, with 49% professing adherence to Protestant churches, and 16% professing Roman Catholic beliefs, while 24% claim no religious affiliation. Other religions collectively make up about 8% of the population.
Income and employment
The loss of industrial and working-class jobs in the city has resulted in high rates of poverty and associated problems. From 2000 to 2009, the city's estimated median household income fell from $29,526 to $26,098.[citation needed] As of 2010[update], the mean income of Detroit is below the overall U.S. average by several thousand dollars. Of every three Detroit residents, one lives in poverty. Luke Bergmann, author of Getting Ghost: Two Young Lives and the Struggle for the Soul of an American City, said in 2010, "Detroit is now one of the poorest big cities in the country".
In the 2018 American Community Survey, median household income in the city was $31,283, compared with the median for Michigan of $56,697. The median income for a family was $36,842, well below the state median of $72,036. 33.4% of families had income at or below the federally defined poverty level. Out of the total population, 47.3% of those under the age of 18 and 21.0% of those 65 and older had income at or below the federally defined poverty line.
| Area | Number of house- holds | Median House- hold Income | Per Capita Income | Percent- age in poverty |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Detroit City | 263,688 | $30,894 ( ) | $18,621 () | 35.0% ( ) |
| Wayne County, MI | 682,282 | $47,301 | $27,282 | 19.8% |
| United States | 120,756,048 | $62,843 | $34,103 | 11.4% |
Race and ethnicity
| Historical Racial Composition | 2020 | 2010 | 1990 | 1970 | 1950 | 1940 | 1930 | 1920 | 1910 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| White | 14.7% | 10.6% | 21.6% | 55.5% | 83.6% | 90.7% | 92.2% | 95.8% | 98.7% |
| —Non-Hispanic | 10.1% | 7.8% | 20.7% | 54.0% | — | 90.4% | — | — | — |
| Black or African American | 77.7% | 82.7% | 75.7% | 43.7% | 16.2% | 9.2% | 7.7% | 4.1% | 1.2% |
| Hispanic or Latino (of any race) | 8.0% | 6.8% | 2.8% | 1.8% | — | 0.3% | — | — | — |
| Asian | 1.6% | 1.1% | 0.8% | 0.3% | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.1% | 0.1% | — |
| Race / Ethnicity (NH = Non-Hispanic) | Pop 1960 | Pop 1970 | Pop 1980 | Pop 1990 | Pop 2000 | Pop 2010 | Pop 2020 | % 1960 | % 1970 | % 1980 | % 1990 | % 2000 | % 2010 | % 2020 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| White alone (NH) | 1,182,970 | 838,877 | 402,077 | 212,278 | 99,921 | 55,604 | 60,770 | 70.83% | 55.50% | 33.41% | 20.65% | 10.50% | 7.79% | 10.10% |
| Black or African American alone (NH) | 482,223 | 660,428 | 754,274 | 774,529 | 771,966 | 586,573 | 493,212 | 28.87% | 43.69% | 62.68% | 75.35% | 81.15% | 82.18% | 77.17% |
| Native American or Alaska Native alone (NH) | N/A | N/A | 3,420 | 3,305 | 2,572 | 1,927 | 1,399 | N/A | N/A | 0.28% | 0.32% | 0.27% | 0.27% | 0.22% |
| Asian alone (NH) | 4,206 | 7,392 | 6,353 | 8,085 | 9,135 | 7,436 | 10,085 | 0.25% | 0.49% | 0.53% | 0.79% | 0.96% | 1.04% | 1.58% |
| Pacific Islander or Native Hawaiian alone (NH) | N/A | N/A | 268 | N/A | 169 | 82 | 111 | N/A | N/A | 0.02% | N/A | 0.02% | 0.01% | 0.02% |
| Other race alone (NH) | 745 | 4,785 | 8,006 | 1,304 | 1,676 | 994 | 3,066 | 0.04% | 0.32% | 0.67% | 0.13% | 0.18% | 0.14% | 0.48% |
| Mixed race or Multiracial (NH) | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | 18,664 | 12,482 | 19,199 | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | 1.96% | 1.75% | 3.00% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | N/A | N/A | 28,970 | 28,473 | 47,167 | 48,679 | 51,269 | N/A | N/A | 2.41% | 2.77% | 4.96% | 6.82% | 8.02% |
| Total | 1,670,144 | 1,511,482 | 1,203,368 | 1,027,974 | 951,270 | 713,777 | 639,111 | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% | 100.00% |
Beginning with the rise of the automobile industry, Detroit's population increased more than sixfold during the first half of the 20th century as an influx of European, Middle Eastern (Lebanese, Assyrian), and Southern migrants brought their families to the city. With this economic boom following World War I, the African American population grew from a mere 6,000 in 1910 to more than 120,000 by 1930. Perhaps one of the most overt examples of neighborhood discrimination occurred in 1925 when African American physician Ossian Sweet found his home surrounded by an angry mob of his hostile white neighbors violently protesting his new move into a traditionally white neighborhood. Sweet and ten of his family members and friends were put on trial for murder as one of the mob members throwing rocks at the newly purchased house was shot and killed by someone firing out of a second-floor window.
Detroit has a relatively large Mexican-American population. In the early 20th century, thousands of Mexicans came to Detroit to work in agricultural, automotive, and steel jobs. During the Mexican Repatriation of the 1930s many Mexicans in Detroit were willingly repatriated or forced to repatriate. By the 1940s much of the Mexican community began to settle what is now Mexicantown. Immigration from Jalisco significantly increased the Latino population in the 1990s. By 2010 Detroit had 48,679 Hispanics, including 36,452 Mexicans: a 70% increase from 1990. Per the 2023 American Community Survey five-year estimates, the Mexican American population was 35,273 comprising over 75% of the Latino population with Puerto Ricans as the next largest group at 5,887.
After World War II, many people from Appalachia also settled in Detroit. Appalachians formed communities and their children acquired southern accents. Many Lithuanians also settled in Detroit during the World War II era, especially on the city's Southwest side in the West Vernor area, where the renovated Lithuanian Hall reopened in 2006.
While African Americans in 2020 comprised 13.5% of Michigan's population, they made up nearly 77.2% of Detroit's population. The next largest population groups were non-Hispanic whites, at 10.1%, and Hispanics, at 8.0%. In 2001, 103,000 Jews, or about 1.9% of the population, were living in the Detroit area. According to the 2010 census, segregation in Detroit decreased in absolute and relative terms and in the first decade of the 21st century, about two-thirds of the total black population in the metropolitan area resided within the city limits of Detroit. The number of integrated neighborhoods increased from 100 in 2000 to 204 in 2010. After being ranked the most segregated metropolitan area in the United States in 2000, Detroit was ranked fourth most-segregated in 2010. A 2011 op-ed in The New York Times attributed the decreased segregation rating to the overall exodus from the city, cautioning that these areas may soon become more segregated.
There are four areas of Detroit with significant Asian and Asian American populations. Northeast Detroit has a large population of Hmong with a smaller group of Lao people. A portion of Detroit next to eastern Hamtramck includes Bangladeshi Americans, Indian Americans, and Pakistani Americans; nearly all of the Bangladeshi population in Detroit lives in that area. The area north of downtown has transient Asian national origin residents who are university students or hospital workers. Few of them have permanent residency after schooling ends. They are mostly Chinese and Indian but the population also includes Filipinos, Koreans, and Pakistanis. In Southwest and western Detroit there are smaller, scattered Asian communities.
Crime
| Detroit | |
|---|---|
| Crime rates* (2019) | |
| Violent crimes | |
| Homicide | 41.4 |
| Rape | 143.4  |
| Robbery | 353.3 |
| Aggravated assault | 1,425.8 |
| Total violent crime | 1,965.3 |
| Property crimes | |
| Burglary | 1,027.1 |
| Larceny-theft | 2,235.5 |
| Motor vehicle theft | 1,037.0 |
| Total property crime | 4,299.7 |
Notes *Number of reported crimes per 100,000 population. Source: FBI 2019 UCR data | |
Detroit has gained notoriety for its high amount of crime, having struggled with it for decades. The number of homicides in 1974 was 714. The homicide rate in 2022 was the third highest in the nation at 50.0 per 100,000. Downtown typically has lower crime than national and state averages. According to a 2007 analysis, Detroit officials note about 65 to 70 percent of homicides in the city were drug related, with the rate of unsolved murders roughly 70%.
Although the rate of violent crime dropped 11% in 2008, violent crime in Detroit has not declined as much as the national average from 2007 to 2011. The violent crime rate is one of the highest in the United States. "Neighborhoodscout.com" reported a crime rate of 62.18 per 1,000 residents for property crimes, and 16.73 per 1,000 for violent crimes (compared to national figures of 32 per 1,000 for property crimes and 5 per 1,000 for violent crime in 2008). In 2012, crime in the city was among the reasons for more expensive car insurance.
Areas of the city adjacent to the Detroit River are also patrolled by the United States Border Patrol.
Economy
| Rank | Company or organization | # |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Detroit Medical Center | 11,497 |
| 2 | City of Detroit | 9,591 |
| 3 | Rocket Mortgage | 9,192 |
| 4 | Henry Ford Health System | 8,807 |
| 5 | Detroit Public Schools | 6,586 |
| 6 | U.S. Government | 6,308 |
| 7 | Wayne State University | 6,023 |
| 8 | Chrysler | 5,426 |
| 9 | Blue Cross Blue Shield | 5,415 |
| 10 | General Motors | 4,327 |
Several major corporations are based in the city, including three Fortune 500 companies. The most heavily represented sectors are manufacturing (particularly automotive), finance, technology, and health care. The most significant companies based in Detroit include General Motors, Rocket Mortgage, Ally Financial, Compuware, Shinola, American Axle, Little Caesars, DTE Energy, Lowe Campbell Ewald, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, and Rossetti Architects.
About 80,500 people work in downtown Detroit, comprising one-fifth of the city's employment base. Aside from the numerous Detroit-based companies listed above, downtown contains large offices for Comerica, Chrysler, Fifth Third Bank, HP Enterprise, Deloitte, PricewaterhouseCoopers, KPMG, and Ernst & Young. Ford Motor Company is in the adjacent city of Dearborn.
Thousands more employees work in Midtown, north of the central business district. Midtown's anchors are the city's largest single employer Detroit Medical Center, Wayne State University, and the Henry Ford Health System in New Center. Midtown is also home to watchmaker Shinola and an array of small and startup companies. New Center bases TechTown, a research and business incubator hub that is part of the Wayne State University system. Like downtown, Corktown Is experiencing growth with the new Ford Corktown Campus under development.
Many downtown employers are relatively new, as there has been a marked trend of companies moving from satellite suburbs into the downtown core. Compuware completed its world headquarters in downtown in 2003. OnStar, Blue Cross Blue Shield, and HP Enterprise Services are at the Renaissance Center. PricewaterhouseCoopers Plaza offices are adjacent to Ford Field, and Ernst & Young completed its office building at One Kennedy Square in 2006. Perhaps most prominently, in 2010, Quicken Loans, one of the largest mortgage lenders, relocated its world headquarters and 4,000 employees to downtown Detroit, consolidating its suburban offices. In July 2012, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office opened its Elijah J. McCoy Satellite Office in the Rivertown/Warehouse District as its first location outside Washington, D.C.'s metropolitan area.
In April 2014, the United States Department of Labor reported the city's unemployment rate at 14.5%.
The city of Detroit and other public–private partnerships have attempted to catalyze the region's growth by facilitating the building and historical rehabilitation of residential high-rises in the downtown, creating a zone that offers many business tax incentives, creating recreational spaces such as the Detroit RiverWalk, Campus Martius Park, Dequindre Cut Greenway, and Green Alleys in Midtown. The city has cleared sections of land while retaining some historically significant vacant buildings to spur redevelopment; even though it has struggled with finances, the city issued bonds in 2008 to provide funding for ongoing work to demolish blighted properties. Two years earlier, downtown reported $1.3 billion in restorations and new developments which increased the number of construction jobs in the city. In the decade prior to 2006, downtown gained more than $15 billion in new investment from private and public sectors.
Despite the city's recent financial issues, many developers remain unfazed by Detroit's problems. Midtown is one of the most successful areas within Detroit to have a residential occupancy rate of 96%. Numerous developments have been recently completed or are in various stages of construction. These include the $82 million reconstruction of downtown's David Whitney Building (now an Aloft Hotel and luxury residences), the Woodward Garden Block Development in Midtown, the residential conversion of the David Broderick Tower in downtown, the rehabilitation of the Book Cadillac Hotel (now a Westin and luxury condos) and Fort Shelby Hotel (now Doubletree) also in downtown, and various smaller projects.
Downtown's population of young professionals is growing, and retail is expanding. A study in 2007 found out that Downtown's new residents are predominantly young professionals (57% are ages 25 to 34, 45% have bachelor's degrees, and 34% have a master's or professional degree), a trend which has hastened over the last decade. Since 2006, $9 billion has been invested in downtown and surrounding neighborhoods; $5.2 billion of which has come in 2013 and 2014. Construction activity, particularly rehabilitation of historic downtown buildings, has increased markedly. As of 2014, the number of vacant downtown buildings has dropped from nearly 50 to around 13.
In 2013 Meijer, a midwestern retail chain, opened its first supercenter store in Detroit; this was a $20 million, 190,000-square-foot store in the northern portion of the city and it also is the centerpiece of a new $72 million shopping center named Gateway Marketplace. In 2015 Meijer opened its second supercenter store in the city. In 2019 JPMorgan Chase announced plans to invest $50 million more in affordable housing, job training, and entrepreneurship by the end of 2022, growing its investment to $200 million.
Arts and culture
In the central portions of Detroit, the population of young professionals, artists, and other transplants is growing and retail is expanding. This dynamic is luring additional new residents, and former residents returning from other cities, to the city's Downtown along with the revitalized Midtown and New Center areas.
A desire to be closer to the urban scene has attracted some young professionals to reside in inner ring suburbs such as Ferndale and Royal Oak. The proximity to Windsor provides for views and nightlife, along with Ontario's minimum drinking age of 19. A 2011 study by Walk Score recognized Detroit for its above average walkability among large U.S. cities. About two-thirds of suburban residents occasionally dine and attend cultural events or take in professional games in the city.
Nicknames
Known as the world's automotive center, "Detroit" is a metonym for that industry. It is an important source of popular music legacies celebrated by the city's two familiar nicknames, the Motor City and Motown. Other nicknames arose in the 20th century, including City of Champions, beginning in the 1930s for its successes in individual and team sport; The D; Hockeytown (a trademark owned by the Detroit Red Wings); Rock City (after the Kiss song "Detroit Rock City"); and The 313 (its telephone area code).
Music
Live music has been a prominent feature of Detroit's nightlife since the late 1940s, bringing the city recognition under the nickname "Motown". The metropolitan area has many nationally prominent live music venues. Concerts hosted by Live Nation perform throughout the Detroit area. The theater venue circuit is the United States' second largest and hosts Broadway performances.
The city has a rich musical heritage and has contributed to many genres over the decades. Important music events include the Detroit International Jazz Festival, the Detroit Electronic Music Festival, the Motor City Music Conference (MC2), the Urban Organic Music Conference, the Concert of Colors, and the hip-hop Summer Jamz festival.
In the 1940s, Detroit blues artist John Lee Hooker became a long-term resident in the Delray neighborhood. Hooker, among other important blues musicians, migrated from his home in Mississippi, bringing the Delta blues to Detroit. Hooker recorded for Fortune Records, the biggest pre-Motown blues/soul label. During the 1950s, the city became a center for jazz, with stars performing in the Black Bottom neighborhood. Prominent emerging jazz musicians included trumpeter Donald Byrd (who attended Cass Tech and performed with Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers early in his career) and saxophonist Pepper Adams (who enjoyed a solo career and accompanied Byrd on several albums). The Graystone International Jazz Museum documents jazz in Detroit.
Other prominent Motor City R&B stars in the 1950s and early 1960s were Nolan Strong, Andre Williams, and Nathaniel Mayer—who all scored local and national hits on the Fortune Records label. According to Smokey Robinson, Strong was a primary influence on his voice as a teenager. The Fortune label, a family-operated label on Third Avenue, was owned by the husband-and-wife team of Jack Brown and Devora Brown. Fortune—which also released country, gospel and rockabilly LPs and 45s—laid the groundwork for Motown, which became Detroit's most legendary record label.
Berry Gordy, Jr. founded Motown Records, which rose to prominence during the 1960s and early 1970s with acts such as Stevie Wonder, the Temptations, the Four Tops, Smokey Robinson & the Miracles, Diana Ross & the Supremes, the Jackson 5, Martha and the Vandellas, the Spinners, Gladys Knight & the Pips, the Marvelettes, the Elgins, the Monitors, the Velvelettes, and Marvin Gaye. Artists were backed by in-house vocalists the Andantes and the Funk Brothers.
"The Motown sound" played an important role in the crossover appeal with popular music, since it was the first African American–owned record label to primarily feature African-American artists. Gordy moved Motown to Los Angeles in 1972 to pursue film production, but the company has since returned to Detroit. Aretha Franklin, another Detroit R&B star, carried the Motown sound; however, she did not record with Berry's Motown label.
Local artists and bands rose to prominence in the 1960s and 70s, including the MC5, Glenn Frey, the Stooges, Bob Seger, Amboy Dukes featuring Ted Nugent, Mitch Ryder and The Detroit Wheels, Rare Earth, Alice Cooper, and Suzi Quatro. The group Kiss emphasized the city's connection with rock in the song "Detroit Rock City" and the movie produced in 1999. In the 1980s, Detroit was an important center of the hardcore punk rock underground with many nationally known bands coming out of the city and its suburbs, such as the Necros, the Meatmen, and Negative Approach.
In the 1990s and 2000s, the city produced many influential hip hop artists, including Eminem, the hip-hop artist with the highest cumulative sales, his rap group D12, hip-hop rapper and producer Royce da 5'9", hip-hop producer Denaun Porter, hip-hop producer J Dilla, rapper and musician Kid Rock and rappers Big Sean and Danny Brown. The band Sponge toured and produced music. The city also has an active garage rock scene that has generated national attention with acts such as the White Stripes, the Von Bondies, the Detroit Cobras, the Dirtbombs, Electric Six, and the Hard Lessons. Detroit is cited as the birthplace of techno music in the early 1980s. The city also lends its name to an early and pioneering genre of electronic dance music, "Detroit techno". Featuring science fiction imagery and robotic themes, its futuristic style was greatly influenced by the geography of Detroit's urban decline and its industrial past. Prominent Detroit techno artists include Juan Atkins, Derrick May, Kevin Saunderson, and Jeff Mills. The Detroit Electronic Music Festival, now known as Movement, occurs annually in late May on Memorial Day Weekend, and takes place in Hart Plaza.
Performing arts
Major theaters in Detroit include the Fox Theatre (5,174 seats), Music Hall Center for the Performing Arts (1,770 seats), the Gem Theatre (451 seats), Masonic Temple Theatre (4,404 seats), the Detroit Opera House (2,765 seats), the Fisher Theatre (2,089 seats), The Fillmore Detroit (2,200 seats), Saint Andrew's Hall, the Majestic Theater, and Orchestra Hall (2,286 seats), which hosts the renowned Detroit Symphony Orchestra. The Nederlander Organization, the largest controller of Broadway productions in New York City, originated with the purchase of the Detroit Opera House in 1922 by the Nederlander family.
Motown Motion Picture Studios with 535,000 square feet (49,700 m2) produces movies in Detroit and the surrounding area based at the Pontiac Centerpoint Business Campus for a film industry expected to employ over 4,000 people in the metro area.
Tourism
Detroit is home to the world's first destination marketing organization, the Detroit Metro Convention and Visitor's Bureau, also known as Visit Detroit. Founded in 1896, the organization now operates at 211 West Fort Street as Visit Detroit.
Because of its unique culture, distinctive architecture, and revitalization and urban renewal efforts in the 21st century, Detroit has enjoyed increased prominence as a tourist destination in recent years. The New York Times listed Detroit as the ninth-best destination in its list of 52 Places to Go in 2017, while travel guide publisher Lonely Planet named Detroit the second-best city in the world to visit in 2018. Time named Detroit as one of the 50 World's Greatest Places of 2022 to explore.
Many of the area's prominent museums are in the historic cultural center neighborhood around Wayne State University and the College for Creative Studies. These museums include the Detroit Institute of Arts, the Detroit Historical Museum, Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History, the Detroit Science Center, as well as the main branch of the Detroit Public Library. Other cultural highlights include Motown Historical Museum, the Ford Piquette Avenue Plant museum, the Pewabic Pottery studio and school, the Tuskegee Airmen Museum, Fort Wayne, the Dossin Great Lakes Museum, the Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit, the Contemporary Art Institute of Detroit, and the Belle Isle Conservatory.
In 2010, the G.R. N'Namdi Gallery opened in a 16,000-square-foot (1,500 m2) complex in Midtown. Important history of America and the Detroit area are exhibited at The Henry Ford in Dearborn, the United States' largest indoor-outdoor museum complex. The Detroit Historical Society provides information about tours of area churches, skyscrapers, and mansions. Inside Detroit hosts tours, educational programming, and a downtown welcome center. Other sites of interest are the Detroit Zoo in Royal Oak, the Cranbrook Art Museum in Bloomfield Hills, the Anna Scripps Whitcomb Conservatory on Belle Isle, and Walter P. Chrysler Museum in Auburn Hills.
Greektown and three downtown casino resort hotels serve as part of an entertainment hub. The Eastern Market farmer's distribution center is the largest open-air flowerbed market in the United States and has more than 150 foods and specialty businesses. On Saturdays, about 45,000 people shop there. The annual Detroit Festival of the Arts in Midtown draws about 350,000 people.
Annual summer events include the Electronic Music Festival, International Jazz Festival, the Woodward Dream Cruise, the African World Festival, the country music Hoedown, Noel Night, and Dally in the Alley. Within downtown, Campus Martius Park hosts large events, including the annual Motown Winter Blast. As the world's traditional automotive center, the city hosts the North American International Auto Show. Held since 1924, America's Thanksgiving Parade is one of the nation's largest. River Days, a five-day summer festival on the International Riverfront lead up to the Windsor–Detroit International Freedom Festival fireworks, which draw super sized-crowds ranging from hundreds of thousands to over three million people.
An important civic sculpture is The Spirit of Detroit by Marshall Fredericks at the Coleman Young Municipal Center. The image is often used as a symbol of Detroit, and the statue is occasionally dressed in sports jerseys to celebrate when a Detroit team is doing well. A memorial to Joe Louis is located at the intersection of Jefferson and Woodward Avenues. The sculpture, commissioned by Sports Illustrated and executed by Robert Graham, is a 24-foot (7.3 m) long arm with a fist suspended by a pyramidal framework.
Sports
Detroit is one of four U.S. cities that have venues within the city representing the four major sports in North America. Detroit is the only city to have its four major sports teams play within its downtown district. Detroit is also the only city that has a team in all "Big Four" leagues, but lacks an MLS team. Venues include: Comerica Park (home of MLB's Detroit Tigers), Ford Field (home of the NFL's Detroit Lions), and Little Caesars Arena (home of the NHL's Detroit Red Wings and the NBA's Detroit Pistons).
Detroit has won titles in all four of the major professional sports leagues. The Tigers have won four World Series titles (1935, 1945, 1968, and 1984). The Red Wings have won 11 Stanley Cups (1935–36, 1936–37, 1942–43, 1949–50, 1951–52, 1953–54, 1954–55, 1996–97, 1997–98, 2001–02, 2007–08) (the most by an American NHL franchise). The Lions have won 4 NFL titles (1935, 1952, 1953, 1957). The Pistons have won three NBA titles (1989, 1990, 2004). In the years following the mid-1930s, Detroit was referred to as the "City of Champions" after the Tigers, Lions, and Red Wings captured the three major professional sports championships in existence at the time in a seven-month period (the Tigers won the World Series in October 1935; the Lions won the NFL championship in December 1935; the Red Wings won the Stanley Cup in April 1936).
Founded in 2012 as a semi-professional soccer club, Detroit City FC now plays professional soccer in the USL Championship. Nicknamed, Le Rouge, the club are two-time champions of NISA since joining in 2020. They play their home matches in Keyworth Stadium, which is located in the enclave of Hamtramck.
In college sports, Detroit's central location within the Mid-American Conference (MAC) has made it a frequent site for the league's championship events. While the MAC Basketball Tournament moved permanently to Cleveland starting in 2000, the MAC Football Championship Game has been played at Ford Field since 2004 and annually attracts 25,000 to 30,000 fans. The University of Detroit Mercy has an NCAA Division I program, and Wayne State University has both NCAA Division I and II programs. The NCAA football GameAbove Sports Bowl (formerly, Quick Lane Bowl) is held at Ford Field each December.
The city hosted the 2005 MLB All-Star Game, Super Bowl XL in 2006, the 2006 and 2012 World Series, WrestleMania 23 in 2007, and the NCAA Final Four in April 2009. The Detroit Indy Grand Prix is held in Belle Isle Park. In 2007, open-wheel racing returned to Belle Isle with both Indy Racing League and American Le Mans Series Racing. From 1982 to 1988, Detroit held the Detroit Grand Prix, at the Detroit street circuit.
In 1932, Eddie "The Midnight Express" Tolan from Detroit won the 100- and 200-meter races and two gold medals at the 1932 Summer Olympics. Joe Louis won the heavyweight championship of the world in 1937. Detroit has made the most bids to host the Summer Olympics without ever being awarded the games, with seven unsuccessful bids for the 1944, 1952, 1956, 1960, 1964, 1968, and 1972 summer games.
In 2024, Detroit hosted the NFL draft. Over 775,000 people were present in downtown Detroit over the course of the three-day event, making it the highest attended draft on record.
Government
The city is governed pursuant to the home rule Charter of the City of Detroit. The government is run by a mayor, the nine-member Detroit City Council, the eleven-member Board of Police Commissioners, and a clerk. All of these officers are elected on a nonpartisan ballot, with the exception of four of the police commissioners, who are appointed by the mayor. Detroit has a "strong mayoral" system, with the mayor approving departmental appointments. The council approves budgets, but the mayor is not obligated to adhere to any earmarking. The city clerk supervises elections and is formally charged with the maintenance of municipal records. City ordinances and substantially large contracts must be approved by the council. The Detroit City Code is the codification of Detroit's local ordinances.
Presently three Community Advisory Councils advise City Council representatives. Residents of each of Detroit's seven districts have the option of electing Community Advisory Councils. The city clerk supervises elections and is formally charged with the maintenance of municipal records. Municipal elections for mayor, city council and city clerk are held at four-year intervals, in the year after presidential elections. Following a November 2009 referendum, seven council members will be elected from districts beginning in 2013 while two will continue to be elected at-large.
Detroit's courts are state-administered and elections are nonpartisan. The Probate Court for Wayne County is in the Coleman A. Young Municipal Center in downtown. The Circuit Court is across Gratiot Avenue in the Frank Murphy Hall of Justice. The city is home to the Thirty-Sixth District Court, as well as the First District of the Michigan Court of Appeals and the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan. The city provides law enforcement through the Detroit Police Department and emergency services through the Detroit Fire Department.
Politics
Beginning with its incorporation in 1802, Detroit has had a total of 74 mayors. Detroit's last mayor from the Republican Party was Louis Miriani, who served from 1957 to 1962. In 1973, the city elected its first black mayor, Coleman Young. Despite development efforts, his combative style during his five terms in office was not well received by many suburban residents. Mayor Dennis Archer, a former Michigan Supreme Court Justice, refocused the city's attention on redevelopment with a plan to permit three casinos downtown. By 2008, three major casino resort hotels established operations in the city.
In 2000, the city requested an investigation by the United States Justice Department into the Detroit Police Department which was concluded in 2003 over allegations regarding its use of force and civil rights violations. The city proceeded with a major reorganization of the Detroit Police Department. In 2013, felony bribery charges were brought against seven building inspectors. In 2016, further corruption charges were brought against 12 principals, a former school superintendent and supply vendor for a $12 million (~$14.9 million in 2023) kickback scheme. However, law professor Peter Henning argues Detroit's corruption is not unusual for a city its size, especially when compared with Chicago.
Detroit is sometimes referred to as a sanctuary city because it has "anti-profiling ordinances that generally prohibit local police from asking about the immigration status of people who are not suspected of any crime". The city in recent years has been a stronghold for the Democratic Party, with around 90% of votes in the city going to incumbent vice president, Kamala Harris, the Democratic candidate in the 2024 Presidential election.
Education
Colleges and universities
Detroit is home to several institutions of higher learning, including Wayne State University and the University of Detroit Mercy. Grand Valley State University's Detroit Center hosts workshops, seminars, professional development, and other large gatherings. Sacred Heart Major Seminary, founded in 1919, is affiliated with Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas, Angelicum in Rome and offers pontifical degrees as well as civil undergraduate and graduate degrees. Other institutions in the city include the College for Creative Studies and Wayne County Community College. In June 2009, the Michigan State University College of Osteopathic Medicine which is based in East Lansing opened a satellite campus at the Detroit Medical Center.
Primary and secondary schools
As of 2016[update] many K-12 students in Detroit frequently change schools, with some children having been enrolled in seven schools before finishing their K-12 careers. There is a concentration of senior high schools and charter schools in the downtown area, which had wealthier residents and more gentrification relative to other parts of Detroit: Downtown, northwest Detroit, and northeast Detroit have 1,894, 3,742, and 6,018 students of high school age, respectively, while they have 11, three, and two high schools, respectively. As of 2016[update] because of the lack of public transportation and the lack of school bus services, many Detroit families have to rely on themselves to transport children to school.
With about 66,000 public school students (2011–12), the Detroit Public Schools (DPS) district is the largest school district in Michigan. Detroit has an additional 56,000 charter school students for a combined enrollment of about 122,000 students. As of 2009[update] there are about as many students in charter schools as there are in district schools. As of 2016[update] DPS continues to have the majority of the special education pupils. In addition, some Detroit students, as of 2016, attend public schools in other municipalities.
With growing charter schools enrollment as well as a continued exodus of population, the city planned to close many public schools. State officials report a 68% graduation rate for Detroit's public schools adjusted for those who change schools. Traditional public and charter school students in the city have performed poorly on standardized tests. c. 2009 and 2011, while Detroit traditional public schools scored a record low on national tests, the publicly funded charter schools did even worse than the traditional public schools. As of 2016[update] there were 30,000 excess openings in Detroit traditional public and charter schools, bearing in mind the number of K-12-aged children in the city. In 2016, Kate Zernike of The New York Times stated school performance did not improve despite the proliferation of charters, describing the situation as "lots of choice, with no good choice".
Detroit public schools students scored the lowest on tests of reading and writing of all major cities in the United States in 2015. Among eighth-graders, only 27% showed basic proficiency in math and 44% in reading. Nearly half of Detroit's adults are functionally illiterate.
Detroit is served by various private schools, as well as parochial Roman Catholic schools operated by the Archdiocese of Detroit. As of 2013[update] there are four Catholic grade schools and three Catholic high schools in the City of Detroit, with all of them in the city's west side. The Archdiocese of Detroit lists a number of primary and secondary schools in the metro area as Catholic education has emigrated to the suburbs. Of the three Catholic high schools, two are operated by the Society of Jesus and the third is co-sponsored by the Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary and the Congregation of St. Basil.
Media
The Detroit Free Press and The Detroit News are the major daily newspapers, both broadsheet publications published together under a joint operating agreement called the Detroit Media Partnership. Media philanthropy includes the Detroit Free Press high school journalism program and the Old Newsboys' Goodfellow Fund of Detroit. In March 2009, the two newspapers reduced home delivery to three days per week, print reduced newsstand issues of the papers on non-delivery days and focus resources on Internet-based news delivery. The Metro Times, founded in 1980, is a weekly publication, covering news, arts & entertainment.
Founded in 1935 and based in Detroit, the Michigan Chronicle is one of the oldest and most respected African-American weekly newspapers in America, covering politics, entertainment, sports and community events. The Detroit television market is the 11th largest in the United States; according to estimates that do not include audiences in large areas of Ontario (Windsor and its surrounding area on broadcast and cable TV, as well as several other cable markets in Ontario, such as Ottawa) which receive and watch Detroit television stations.
Detroit has the 11th largest radio market in the United States, though this ranking does not take into account Canadian audiences. Nearby Canadian stations such as Windsor's CKLW (whose jingles formerly proclaimed "CKLW-the Motor City") are popular in Detroit.
Infrastructure
Health systems
There are over a dozen major hospitals, which include the Detroit Medical Center (DMC), Henry Ford Health System, St. John Health System, and the John D. Dingell VA Medical Center. DMC, a regional Level I trauma center, consists of Detroit Receiving Hospital and University Health Center, Children's Hospital of Michigan, Harper University Hospital, Hutzel Women's Hospital, Kresge Eye Institute, Rehabilitation Institute of Michigan, Sinai-Grace Hospital, and the Karmanos Cancer Institute. DMC has more than 2,000 licensed beds and 3,000 affiliated physicians. It is the largest private employer in the city. The center is staffed by physicians from the Wayne State University School of Medicine, the largest single-campus medical school in the United States and the fourth largest medical school overall.
DMC formally became a part of Vanguard Health Systems on December 30, 2010, as a for-profit corporation. Vanguard has agreed to invest nearly $1.5 B in the DMC complex. Vanguard has agreed to assume all debts and pension obligations. The metro area has many other hospitals including William Beaumont Hospital, St. Joseph's, and University of Michigan Medical Center.
In 2011, DMC and Henry Ford Health System substantially increased investments in medical research facilities and hospitals in the city's Midtown and New Center. In 2012, two major construction projects were begun in New Center. The Henry Ford Health System started the first phase of a $500 million, 300-acre revitalization project, with the construction of a new $30 million, 275,000-square-foot, Medical Distribution Center for Cardinal Health, Inc. and Wayne State University started construction on a new $93 million, 207,000-square-foot, Integrative Biosciences Center (IBio). As many as 500 researchers and staff will work out of the IBio Center.
Transportation
With its proximity to Canada and its facilities, ports, major highways, rail connections and international airports, Detroit is an important transportation hub. The city has three international border crossings, the Ambassador Bridge, Detroit–Windsor Tunnel and Michigan Central Railway Tunnel, linking Detroit to Windsor. The Ambassador Bridge is the single busiest border crossing in North America, carrying 27% of the total trade between the U.S. and Canada.
In 2015 Canadian Transport Minister Lisa Raitt announced Canada agreed to pay the entire cost to build a $250 million U.S. Customs plaza adjacent to the planned new Detroit–Windsor bridge, now the Gordie Howe International Bridge. Canada had already planned to pay for 95% of the bridge, which will cost $2.1 billion and is expected to open in 2024. "This allows Canada and Michigan to move the project forward immediately to its next steps which include further design work and property acquisition on the U.S. side of the border", Raitt said issued after she spoke in the House of Commons.
Transit systems
Mass transit in the region is provided by bus services. The Detroit Department of Transportation provides service within city limits up to the outer edges of the city. From there, the Suburban Mobility Authority for Regional Transportation (SMART) provides service to the suburbs and the city regionally with local routes and SMART's FAST service. FAST is a new service provided by SMART which offers limited stops along major corridors throughout the Detroit metropolitan area connecting the suburbs to downtown. The new high-frequency service travels along three of Detroit's busiest corridors, Gratiot, Woodward, and Michigan, and only stops at designated FAST stops. Cross border service between the downtown areas of Windsor and Detroit is provided by Transit Windsor via the Tunnel Bus.
An elevated rail system known as the People Mover, completed in 1987, provides daily service around a 2.94-mile (4.73 km) loop downtown. The QLINE serves as a link between the People Mover and the Amtrak station via Woodward Avenue. The Ann Arbor–Detroit Regional Rail line will extend from New Center, connecting to Ann Arbor via Dearborn, Wayne, and Ypsilanti when it is opened.
The Regional Transit Authority (RTA) was established by an act of the Michigan legislature in 2012 to oversee and coordinate all existing regional mass transit operations, and to develop new transit services in the region. The RTA's first project was the introduction of RelfeX, a limited-stop, cross-county bus service connecting downtown and midtown Detroit with Oakland county via Woodward avenue.
Amtrak provides service to Detroit, operating its Wolverine service between Chicago and Pontiac. The Amtrak station is in New Center north of downtown. Intercity bus service is offered at the Detroit Bus Station. Greyhound Lines, Flixbus, Indian Trails, and Barons Bus Lines connect Detroit with numerous cities across the Midwest.
Car ownership
The city of Detroit has a higher than average percentage of households without a car. In 2016, 24.7% of Detroit households lacked a car, much higher than the national average of 8.7%. Detroit averaged 1.15 cars per household in 2016, compared to a national average of 1.8.
Freight railroads
Freight railroad operations in the city of Detroit are provided by Canadian National Railway, Canadian Pacific Railway, Conrail Shared Assets, CSX Transportation and Norfolk Southern Railway, each of which have local yards within the city. Detroit is also served by the Delray Connecting Railroad and Detroit Connecting Railroad shortlines.
Airports
Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport (DTW), the principal airport serving Detroit, is in nearby Romulus. DTW is a primary hub for Delta Air Lines (following its acquisition of Northwest Airlines), and a secondary hub for Spirit Airlines. The airport is connected to Downtown Detroit by the Suburban Mobility Authority for Regional Transportation (SMART) FAST Michigan route.
Coleman A. Young International Airport (DET), previously called Detroit City Airport, is on Detroit's northeast side; the airport now maintains only charter service and general aviation. Willow Run Airport, in western Wayne County near Ypsilanti, is a general aviation and cargo airport.
Freeways
Metro Detroit has an extensive toll-free network of freeways administered by the Michigan Department of Transportation. Four major Interstate Highways surround the city. Detroit is connected via I-75 and I-96 to Kings Highway 401 and to major Southern Ontario cities such as London, Ontario and the Greater Toronto Area. I-75 (Chrysler and Fisher freeways) is the region's main north–south route, serving Flint, Pontiac, Troy, and Detroit, before continuing south (as the Detroit–Toledo and Seaway Freeways) to serve many of the communities along the shore of Lake Erie.
I-94 (Edsel Ford Freeway) runs east–west through Detroit and serves Ann Arbor to the west (where it continues to Chicago) and Port Huron to the northeast. The stretch of the I-94 freeway from Ypsilanti to Detroit was one of America's earlier limited-access highways. Henry Ford built it to link the factories at Willow Run and Dearborn during World War II. A portion was known as the Willow Run Expressway. The I-96 freeway runs northwest–southeast through Livingston, Oakland and Wayne counties and (as the Jeffries Freeway through Wayne County) has its eastern terminus in downtown Detroit.
I-275 runs north–south from I-75 in the south to the junction of I-96 and I-696 in the north, providing a bypass through the western suburbs of Detroit. I-375 is a short spur route in downtown Detroit, an extension of the Chrysler Freeway. I-696 (Reuther Freeway) runs east–west from the junction of I-96 and I-275, providing a route through the northern suburbs of Detroit. Taken together, I-275 and I-696 form a semicircle around Detroit. Michigan state highways designated with the letter M serve to connect major freeways.
Floating post office
Detroit has a floating post office, the J. W. Westcott II, which serves lake freighters along the Detroit River. Its ZIP Code is 48222. The ZIP Code is used exclusively for the J. W. Westcott II, which makes it the only floating ZIP Code in the United States. It has a land-based office at 12 24th Street, just south of the Ambassador Bridge. The J.W. Westcott Company was established in 1874 by Captain John Ward Westcott as a maritime reporting agency to inform other vessels about port conditions, and the J. W. Westcott II vessel began service in 1949 and is still in operation today.
Notable people
Sister cities
Detroit's sister cities include the following:
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Chongqing, China
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Dubai, United Arab Emirates![image]()
Huế, Vietnam![image]()
Kitwe, Zambia![image]()
Minsk, Belarus
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Nassau, Bahamas![image]()
Toyota, Japan![image]()
Turin, Italy
See also
- USS Detroit, at least 6 ships
Notes
- Mean monthly maxima and minima (i.e. the highest and lowest temperature readings during an entire month or year) calculated based on data at said location from 1991 to 2020.
- Official records for Detroit were kept at downtown from January 1874 to December 1933, Detroit City Airport from February 1934 to March 1966, and at DTW since April 1966. For more information, see ThreadEx.
- From 15% sample
- Commemorated in the movie 8 Mile (2002)
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Detroit d ɪ ˈ t r ɔɪ t dih TROYT locally also ˈ d iː t r ɔɪ t DEE troyt is the most populous city in the U S state of Michigan It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor Ontario It had a population of 639 111 at the 2020 census making it the 26th most populous city in the United States and the largest U S city on the Canada United States border The Metro Detroit area home to 4 3 million people is the second largest in the Midwest after the Chicago metropolitan area and the 14th largest in the United States The seat of Wayne County Detroit is a significant cultural center known for its contributions to music art architecture and design in addition to its historical automotive and industrial background DetroitCityDowntown Detroit skylineFox TheatreRenaissance CenterAmbassador BridgeComerica ParkDetroit Institute of ArtsHitsville U S A Belle Isle ParkFlagSealLogoEtymology French detroit strait Nicknames The Motor City Motown and othersMotto s Speramus Meliora Resurget Cineribus Latin We Hope For Better Things It Shall Rise From the Ashes Interactive map of DetroitDetroitShow map of MichiganDetroitShow map of the United StatesCoordinates 42 20 N 83 03 W 42 333 N 83 050 W 42 333 83 050Country United StatesState MichiganCountyWayneFounded Fort Detroit July 24 1701 1701 07 24 IncorporatedSeptember 13 1806 1806 09 13 Founded byAntoine de la Mothe Cadillac 1658 1730 amp Alphonse de Tonty 1659 1727 Named afterDetroit RiverGovernment TypeStrong Mayor BodyDetroit City Council MayorMike Duggan I ClerkJanice Winfrey City councilMembers Mary D Waters At LargeColeman Young II At LargeJames Tate District 1 NorthwestAngela Calloway District 2 Near NorthwestScott Benson District 3 NortheastLatisha Johnson District 4 Far East SideMary Sheffield District 5 Central Near East SideGabriela Santiago Romero District 6 SouthwestFred Durhal III District 7 West SideArea City142 89 sq mi 370 09 km2 Land138 73 sq mi 359 31 km2 Water4 16 sq mi 10 78 km2 Urban1 284 8 sq mi 3 327 7 km2 Metro3 888 4 sq mi 10 071 km2 Elevation656 ft 200 m Population 2020 City639 111 Estimate 2024 645 705 Rank78th in North America 26th in the United States 1st in Michigan Density4 606 84 sq mi 1 778 71 km2 Urban3 776 890 US 12th Urban density2 939 6 sq mi 1 135 0 km2 Metro4 365 205 US 14th DemonymDetroiterGDP Metro 331 333 billion 2023 Time zoneUTC 5 EST Summer DST UTC 4 EDT ZIP Codes482XX 48201 48227 48242 48244 48255 48260 48264 48269 48272 48275 48240 48277 48279 48288Area code313FIPS code26 22000GNIS feature ID1617959Major airportsDetroit Metropolitan Airport Coleman A Young International AirportMass transitDetroit Department of Transportation Detroit People Mover QLineWebsitedetroitmi wbr gov In 1701 Royal French explorers Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac and Alphonse de Tonty founded Fort Pontchartrain du Detroit During the late 19th and early 20th century it became an important industrial hub at the center of the Great Lakes region The city s population rose to be the fourth largest in the nation by 1920 with the expansion of the automotive industry in the early 20th century One of its main features the Detroit River became the busiest commercial hub in the world In the mid 20th century Detroit entered a state of urban decay that has continued to the present as a result of industrial restructuring the loss of jobs in the auto industry and rapid suburbanization Since reaching a peak of 1 85 million at the 1950 census Detroit s population has declined by more than 65 percent In 2013 Detroit became the largest U S city to file for bankruptcy but successfully exited in 2014 In 2024 the U S Census Bureau reported that Detroit s population grew for a second consecutive year and led population growth in Michigan for the first time since the 1950s Detroit is a port on the Detroit River one of the four major straits that connect the Great Lakes system to the St Lawrence Seaway The city anchors the third largest regional economy in the Midwest and the 16th largest in the United States It is also best known as the center of the U S automotive industry and the Big Three auto manufacturers General Motors Ford and Stellantis North America Chrysler are all headquartered in Metro Detroit It houses the Detroit Metropolitan Airport one of the most important hub airports in the United States Detroit and its neighboring Canadian city Windsor constitute the second busiest international crossing in North America after San Diego Tijuana Detroit s culture is marked with diversity having both local and international influences Detroit gave rise to the music genres of Motown and techno and also played an important role in the development of jazz hip hop rock and punk A globally unique stock of architectural monuments and historic places was the result of the city s rapid growth in its boom years Since the 2000s conservation efforts have managed to save many architectural pieces and achieve several large scale revitalizations including the restoration of several historic theaters and entertainment venues high rise renovations new sports stadiums and a riverfront revitalization project Detroit is an increasingly popular tourist destination which caters to about 16 million visitors per year In 2015 Detroit was designated a City of Design by UNESCO the first and only U S city to receive that designation HistoryToponymy Detroit and adjacent Windsor Ontario Canada separated by the Detroit River Detroit is named after the Detroit River connecting Lake Huron with Lake Erie The name comes from the French language word detroit meaning strait as the city was situated on a narrow north south passage of water linking the two lakes The river was known as le detroit du Lac Erie in the French language which means the strait of Lake Erie In the historical context the strait included the St Clair River Lake St Clair and the Detroit River Indigenous settlement Historical affiliations Kingdom of France 1701 1760 Kingdom of Great Britain 1760 1796 United States 1796 1812 United Kingdom 1812 1813 United States 1813 present Paleo Indians inhabited areas near Detroit as early as 11 000 years ago including the culture referred to as the Mound Builders By the 17th century the region was inhabited by Huron Odawa Potawatomi and Iroquois peoples The area is known by the Anishinaabe people as Waawiiyaataanong translating to where the water curves around The first Europeans did not penetrate into the region and reach the straits of Detroit until French missionaries and traders worked their way around the Iroquois League with whom they were at war in the 1630s The Huron and Neutral people held the north side of Lake Erie until the 1650s when the Iroquois pushed them and the Erie people away from the lake and its beaver rich feeder streams in the Beaver Wars of 1649 1655 By the 1670s the war weakened Iroquois laid claim to as far south as the Ohio River valley in northern Kentucky as hunting grounds and had absorbed many other Iroquoian peoples after defeating them in war For the next hundred years virtually no British or French action was contemplated without consultation with the Iroquois or consideration of their likely response French settlement Topographical plan of the Town of Detroit and Fort Lernoult showing major streets gardens fortifications military comple xes and public buildings John Jacob Ulrich Rivardi ca 1800 On July 24 1701 the French explorer Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac 1658 1730 with his lieutenant Alphonse de Tonty 1659 1727 and more than a hundred other Royal French settlers traveling south and west from New France modern Province of Quebec along the St Lawrence River valley to the Great Lakes region began constructing a small fort on the north bank of the Detroit River Cadillac named the settlement Fort Pontchartrain du Detroit after Louis Phelypeaux comte de Pontchartrain 1643 1727 the Secretary of State of the Navy under King Louis XIV 1638 1715 reigned 1643 1715 in the Royal government in Paris Sainte Anne de Detroit was founded on July 26 and is the second oldest continuously operating Roman Catholic parish in the United States France offered free land to colonists to attract families further west into the Great Lakes region interior of the North American continent to Detroit when it eventually reached a population of about 800 by 1765 after the colonial conflict of the French and Indian War 1753 1763 Seven Years War in Europe it became the largest European settlement between the important towns of Montreal and New Orleans both also French settlements in the former colonies of New France and La Louisiane further south on the Mississippi River on the coast of the Gulf of Mexico respectively The region s then colonial economy was based on the lucrative fur trade in which numerous Native American peoples had important roles as trappers and traders British rule During the French and Indian War 1753 63 the North American front of the Seven Years War in Europe between the Kingdom of Great Britain and the Kingdom of France British troops gained control of the settlement a few years into the conflict in 1760 and shortened its name to Detroit Several regional Native American tribes such as the Potowatomi Ojibwe and Huron launched Pontiac s War 1763 1766 and laid siege in 1763 to Fort Detroit along the Detroit River in the Great Lakes but failed to capture it In defeat France ceded its territory in North America of New France and south of the lakes east of the Mississippi to the Appalachian Mountains to Britain following the war When Great Britain evicted France from its colonial possessions in New France Canada in the peace terms of the Treaty of Paris of 1763 it also removed one barrier to American colonists migrating west across the mountains British negotiations with the Iroquois would both prove critical and lead to the Royal Proclamation of 1763 which limited settlements South of and below the Great Lakes and west of the Alleghenies Appalachians Many colonists and pioneers in the Thirteen Colonies along the East Coast resented and then simply defied this restraint later becoming supporters of the rebellious American Revolution By 1773 after the addition of increasing numbers of the Anglo American settlers the population of Detroit and Fort Detroit was edging up to 1 400 doubled in the previous decade During the American Revolutionary War 1775 1783 the indigenous and loyalist raids of 1778 and the resultant 1779 decisive Sullivan Expedition reopened the Ohio Country north of the Ohio River and west of the mountains to even more westward emigration which began almost immediately to get away from the eastern warfare By 1778 its population had doubled again reaching 2 144 and it was the third largest town in what was known then as the Province of Quebec since the British takeover of former French colonial possessions in North America in 1763 After the American Revolutionary War 1775 1783 and the establishment and recognition of the United States as an independent country the Great Britain ceded Detroit and other territories in the interior region of the continent south of the Great Lakes and west of the Appalachian Mountains to the Mississippi River under the peace of the terms of the 1783 Treaty of Paris The new Northwest Territories established the southern border with Great Britain s remaining colonial provinces in British North America and became provinces of Upper Canada and Lower Canada However the disputed border area remained under British control with several military forts and trading posts for another decade and its forces did not fully withdraw until 1796 following the negotiations and ratification of the subsequent Jay Treaty of 1794 between the British and Americans By the turn of the 19th century white American settlers began pouring westwards across the Appalachians and through the Great Lakes Legacy Today the municipal flag of Detroit reflects its both its French and English colonial heritage Descendants of the earliest French and French Canadian settlers formed a cohesive community who gradually were superseded as the dominant population after more Anglo American settlers arrived in the early 19th century with American westward migration Living along the shores of Lake St Clair and south to Monroe and downriver suburbs the ethnic French Canadians of Detroit also known as Muskrat French in reference to the fur trade remain a subculture in the region up into the 21st century Post revolutionary period and 19th century From top Woodward Avenue shopping district in 1865 The City of Detroit from Canada Shore 1872 by A C Warren the Belle Isle Park in 1891 The Great Detroit Fire of 1805 destroyed most of the city s wooden buildings leaving only a stone fort a river warehouse and brick chimneys from former homes Despite the extensive damage none of Detroit s 600 residents perished The aftermath of the fire left a lasting legacy on the city s heritage Father Gabriel Richard coined the city motto Speramus Meliora Resurget Cineribus as he surveyed the ruins The city seal designed in 1827 directly depicted the fire by showing two women one grieving the destruction while the other gestures toward a new city rising from the ashes The seal forms the center of Detroit s flag From 1805 to 1847 Detroit served as the capital city of the Michigan Territory and later became its first state capital in January 1837 after Michigan s admission to the Union During the War of 1812 Detroit became a focal point of conflict U S Army commander William Hull surrendered Fort Detroit without a fight underestimating the number of British forces Later the U S attempted to retake the fort and town during the Battle of Frenchtown in January 1813 a significant victory for the British The battle is commemorated at the River Raisin National Battlefield Park near Monroe Michigan Detroit was eventually recaptured later that year Detroit was officially incorporated as a city in 1815 and its urban design was influenced by the grand boulevards of Washington D C Michigan Territorial Chief Justice Augustus B Woodward who played a key role in the city s development designed a geometric street plan that included wide avenues and plazas In 1817 he founded the Catholepistemiad later evolving into the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor Michigan Detroit s growth continued as a center of education and culture for the Michigan Territory Before the American Civil War Detroit s position along the Canada U S border made it a vital stop on the Underground Railroad Thousands of enslaved African Americans escaped to Canada via the city Notable activists like George DeBaptiste William Lambert and Laura Smith Haviland played key roles in assisting refugees Detroit s contributions to the Union effort were also significant with many residents volunteering to fight The city s 24th Michigan Infantry Regiment part of the famous Iron Brigade suffered heavy casualties at the Battle of Gettysburg The city s tensions over race in tandem with national concerns over the draft led to the Detroit race riot of 1863 leaving some dead and over 200 Black residents homeless This prompted the establishment of a full time police force in 1865 In the late 19th century Detroit grew as a hub for industry particularly shipping and manufacturing The city s wealth driven by industrial magnates led to the construction of opulent Gilded Age mansions along the grand avenues designed by Woodward Detroit earned the nickname Paris of the West for its architectural beauty By 1896 Henry Ford s first automobile was built in the city and Detroit expanded its borders annexing surrounding villages and townships as it solidified its place as a key player in the automobile industry Early 20th century and World War II From top Cadillac Square and Wayne County Building 1902 Cadillac Square 1910s corner of Michigan Avenue and Griswold Street circa 1920 In 1903 Henry Ford founded the Ford Motor Company Alongside automotive pioneers William C Durant the Dodge brothers James and William Packard and Walter Chrysler they established the Big Three automakers solidifying Detroit s status as the world s automotive capital by the early 20th century The rise of the automotive industry in the United States transformed the city leading to the development of related businesses such as garages gas stations and factories for parts citation needed Detroit s population grew rapidly reaching the fourth largest city in the U S by 1920 In 1907 the Detroit River carried 67 million tons of shipping commerce surpassing both London and New York City in volume This earned the river the title the Greatest Commercial Artery on Earth During prohibition in the United States 1920 1933 the Detroit River became a major route for smuggling illegal alcohol from Canada The booming auto industry and the expansion of shipping trade were central to Detroit s economic growth in the early 20th century With the rapid growth of industrial workers in the auto factories labor unions such as the American Federation of Labor and the United Auto Workers UAW fought to organize workers to gain them better working conditions and wages They initiated strikes and other tactics in support of improvements such as the 8 hour day 40 hour work week increased wages greater benefits and improved working conditions The labor activism during those years increased the influence of union leaders in the city such as Jimmy Hoffa of the Teamsters and Walter Reuther of the UAW The demographic shifts caused by industrialization led to significant racial tensions in Detroit The Great Migration brought African Americans from the South while many southern and eastern European immigrants also moved to the city Competition for jobs and housing fueled tensions between different ethnic and racial groups citation needed This period saw the rise of the Ku Klux Klan in Detroit which became a powerful force in the city during the 1920s targeting Black Catholic and Jewish communities Even after the Klan s decline the Black Legion a secret vigilante group continued to spread fear in the 1930s In the 1940s the world s first urban depressed freeway ever built the Davison was constructed Systemic racial discrimination remained prevalent in Detroit with restrictive housing covenants and violence against Black neighborhoods like Black Bottom and Paradise Valley The city s racial tensions boiled over during the 1943 Detroit race riot Sparked by a protest at the Packard plant the riot resulted in 34 deaths 433 injuries and widespread property damage During World War II the government encouraged retooling of the automobile industry in support of the Allied powers leading to Detroit s key role in the American Arsenal of Democracy Jobs expanded so rapidly due to the defense buildup in World War II that 400 000 people migrated to the city from 1941 to 1943 including 50 000 blacks in the second wave of the Great Migration and 350 000 whites many of them from the South Whites including ethnic Europeans feared black competition for jobs and scarce housing The federal government prohibited discrimination in defense work but when in June 1943 Packard promoted three black people to work next to whites on its assembly lines 25 000 white workers walked off the job The skyline of Detroit 1929 Late 20th century racial tension and decline From top Aerial photo of Detroit 1932 Detroit at its population peak in the mid 20th century Looking south down Woodward Avenue from the Maccabees Building with the city s skyline in the distance Industrial mergers in the 1950s especially in the automobile sector increased oligopoly in the American auto industry Detroit saw the consolidation of companies like Packard and Hudson which eventually disappeared At its peak in the 1950 census Detroit was the fifth largest U S city with a population of 1 85 million In 1950 the city held about one third of the state s population Over the next 60 years the city s population declined to less than 10 percent of the state s population The sprawling metropolitan area grew to contain more than half of Michigan s population during the same time period The city s auto industry which made up 60 of its economy continued to offer employment opportunities especially for African Americans migrating from the South to escape Jim Crow laws While the migration brought higher employment rates with a 103 increase in Black workers racial discrimination persisted in employment and housing Black Detroiters often held lower paying factory jobs while city services and better paying positions remained largely dominated by white residents Discriminatory policies such as redlining limited Black access to housing and financial services forcing many into overcrowded unsafe neighborhoods White residents and political leaders resisted integration reinforcing a cycle of exclusion and segregation As in other major American cities in the postwar era urban planning and infrastructure changes also impacted Detroit s racial dynamics The construction of highways and freeways in the postwar era displaced many Black communities including historically significant neighborhoods like Black Bottom and Paradise Valley These areas vital for Black businesses and culture were demolished for urban renewal projects exacerbating the displacement of low income residents with little consideration for the community impact An electric PCC streetcar in Detroit 1953 The city also saw a shift in its transportation system as Detroit s last electric streetcar line was replaced with buses in 1956 This change alongside the rise of suburbanization and the relocation of industries to the outskirts favored car dependent low density development By the 21st century Detroit s sprawling metro area had developed into one of the most spread out job markets in the U S contributing to a decline in Detroit s population and eroding its tax base as jobs moved beyond the reach of urban low income workers The Detroit Walk to Freedom civil rights march occurred in June 1963 Martin Luther King Jr gave a major speech that foreshadowed his I Have a Dream speech in Washington D C two months later While the civil rights movement gained significant federal civil rights laws in 1964 and 1965 longstanding inequities resulted in confrontations between the police and inner city black youth who wanted change I have a dream this afternoon that my four little children that my four little children will not come up in the same young days that I came up within but they will be judged on the basis of the content of their character not the color of their skin I have a dream this evening that one day we will recognize the words of Jefferson that all men are created equal that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights that among these are Life Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness I have a dream Martin Luther King Jr June 1963 Speech at the Detroit Walk to Freedom The deadly 1967 Detroit riot resulted in massive demographic shifts via white flight Longstanding tensions in Detroit culminated in the Twelfth Street riot in July 1967 Governor George W Romney ordered the Michigan National Guard into Detroit and President Lyndon B Johnson sent in U S Army troops The result was 43 dead 467 injured over 7 200 arrests and more than 2 000 buildings destroyed mostly in black residential and business areas Thousands of small businesses closed permanently or relocated to safer neighborhoods The affected district lay in ruins for decades According to the Chicago Tribune it was the 3rd most costly riot in the United States First Williams Block in 1915 left and 1989 right In 1970 the NAACP filed a lawsuit against Michigan state officials including Governor William Milliken alleging de facto segregation in Detroit s public schools The lawsuit argued that although schools were not legally segregated policies in Detroit and surrounding counties maintained racial segregation through housing practices as school demographics mirrored segregated neighborhoods The District Court ruled in favor of the NAACP but in the landmark 1974 Milliken v Bradley decision the U S Supreme Court limited the scope of desegregation ruling that suburban areas could not be forced to aid in Detroit s school desegregation Amid these challenges Detroit elected Coleman Young as its first Black mayor in 1973 Young focused on increasing racial diversity in city services and improving Detroit s transportation system although regional tensions with suburban leaders persisted In 1976 a federal grant for a regional rapid transit system failed due to conflicts over planning leaving Detroit to develop its own Detroit People Mover system The city s struggles were exacerbated by the 1973 and 1979 oil crises which hurt the auto industry and led to layoffs and plant closures further diminishing the city s tax base Despite efforts to revitalize the city such as the opening of the Renaissance Center in 1977 downtown Detroit continued to lose businesses to suburban areas Middle class flight high unemployment and increased crime worsened the city s conditions with abandoned buildings and neighborhoods further contributing to its decline Young s focus on downtown development was criticized as insufficient in addressing the broader social and economic challenges faced by the city s residents In 1993 Young retired as Detroit s longest serving mayor and was succeeded by Dennis Archer Archer prioritized downtown development easing tensions with its suburban neighbors A referendum to allow casino gambling in the city passed in 1996 several temporary casino facilities opened in 1999 and permanent downtown casinos with hotels opened in 2007 08 21st century Michigan Central Station once symbolic of the city s decline was redeveloped by Ford Motor Company and reopened in 2024 Campus Martius a downtown park reconfiguration opened in 2004 and was cited as one of the best public spaces in the U S The first phase of the International Riverfront redevelopment was completed in 2001 for Detroit s 300th anniversary celebration In 2008 Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick resigned after felony convictions and in 2013 was sentenced to 28 years in prison His actions cost the city an estimated 20 million In 2011 about half of Detroit s 305 000 property owners failed to pay their taxes leaving approximately 246 million 329 million in 2023 uncollected Michigan took control of Detroit s government after the city faced a 327 million deficit and over 14 billion in debt Governor Rick Snyder declared a financial emergency in March 2013 and the city was relying on bond money to stay afloat with unpaid days off for workers Underfunded services and failed turnaround efforts led to the appointment of an emergency manager In June 2013 Detroit defaulted on 2 5 billion in debt and on July 18 it became the largest U S city to file for bankruptcy Detroit exited bankruptcy in December 2014 cutting 7 billion in debt and investing 1 7 billion in services The Detroit Institute of Arts holding over 60 000 artworks worth billions became a private organization to help fund the city s recovery after legal battles Post bankruptcy efforts to improve city services included replacing non functional street lights with 65 000 LED lights making Detroit the largest U S city with all LED street lighting by 2016 Neighborhood revitalization continued with volunteer renovation projects and urban gardening movements In 2011 the Port Authority Passenger Terminal opened with the riverwalk connecting Hart Plaza to the Renaissance Center One symbol of the city s decades long decline the Michigan Central Station was long vacant The city renovated it with new windows elevators and facilities completing the work in December 2015 In 2018 Ford Motor Company purchased the building and plans to use it for mobility testing with a potential return of train service Several other landmark buildings have been privately renovated and adapted as condominiums hotels offices or for cultural uses Detroit was mentioned as a city of renaissance and has reversed many of the trends of the prior decades The city has seen a rise in gentrification in some neighborhoods In downtown for example the construction of Little Caesars Arena brought with it high class shops and restaurants along Woodward Avenue Office tower and condominium construction has led to an influx of wealthy families but also a displacement of long time residents and culture Areas outside of downtown and other recently revived areas have an average household income of about 25 less than the gentrified areas a gap that is continuing to grow GeographyA satellite image from Sentinel 2 taken in September 2021 of Detroit and its surrounding metropolitan area with Windsor across the river Metropolitan area Detroit is the center of a three county urban area with a population of 3 734 090 within an area of 1 337 square miles 3 460 km2 according to the 2010 United States census six county metropolitan statistical area population of 5 322 219 in an area of 3 913 square miles 10 130 km2 as of the 2010 census and a nine county Combined Statistical Area population of 5 3 million within 5 814 square miles 15 060 km2 as of 2010 update Topography According to the U S Census Bureau the city has a total area of 142 87 square miles 370 03 km2 of which 138 75 square miles 359 36 km2 is land and 4 12 square miles 10 67 km2 is water Detroit is the principal city in Metro Detroit and Southeast Michigan It is situated in the Midwestern United States and the Great Lakes region The Detroit River International Wildlife Refuge is the only international wildlife preserve in North America and is uniquely located in the heart of a major metropolitan area The refuge includes islands coastal wetlands marshes shoals and waterfront lands along 48 miles 77 km of the Detroit River and western Lake Erie shoreline The city slopes gently from the northwest to southeast on a till plain composed largely of glacial and lake clay The most notable topographical feature in the city is the Detroit Moraine a broad clay ridge on which the older portions of Detroit and Windsor are located rising approximately 62 feet 19 m above the river at its highest point The highest elevation in the city is directly north of Gorham Playground on the northwest side approximately three blocks south of 8 Mile Road at a height of 675 to 680 feet 206 to 207 m Detroit s lowest elevation is along the Detroit River at a surface height of 572 feet 174 m Belle Isle Park is a 982 acre 1 534 sq mi 397 ha island park in the Detroit River between Detroit and Windsor Ontario It is connected to the mainland by the MacArthur Bridge Belle Isle Park contains such attractions as the James Scott Memorial Fountain the Belle Isle Conservatory the Detroit Yacht Club on an adjacent island a half mile 800 m beach a golf course a nature center monuments and gardens Both the Detroit and Windsor skylines can be viewed at the island s Sunset Point Three road systems cross the city the original French template with avenues radiating from the waterfront and true north south roads based on the Northwest Ordinance township system The city is north of Windsor Ontario Detroit is the only major city along the Canada U S border in which one travels south to cross into Canada Detroit has four border crossings the Ambassador Bridge and the Detroit Windsor tunnel provide motor vehicle thoroughfares with the Michigan Central Railway Tunnel providing railroad access to and from Canada The fourth border crossing is the Detroit Windsor Truck Ferry near the Windsor Salt Mine and Zug Island Near Zug Island the southwest part of the city was developed over a 1 500 acre 610 ha salt mine that is 1 100 feet 340 m below the surface The Detroit salt mine run by the Detroit Salt Company has over 100 miles 160 km of roads within Cityscape Skyline of Detroit from Windsor Ontario in 2014 Notable buildings include the Renaissance Center Ally Detroit Center and Penobscot Building Architecture Ally Detroit Center and the Michigan Labor Legacy Monument Merchants Row on Woodward Avenue between Grand Circus Park and Campus Martius Park downtown Detroit s waterfront showcases a variety of architectural styles with the postmodern Neo Gothic spires of Ally Detroit Center paying homage to the city s Art Deco skyscrapers Together with the Renaissance Center these buildings form a distinctive and recognizable skyline Examples of the Art Deco style include the Guardian Building and Penobscot Building downtown as well as the Fisher Building and Cadillac Place in New Center Prominent cultural landmarks from the early 20th century include the Fox Theatre Detroit Opera House and Detroit Institute of Arts While Downtown Detroit and New Center feature high rise buildings much of Detroit consists of low rise structures and single family homes Residential high rises are concentrated in upscale neighborhoods such as the East Riverfront extending toward Grosse Pointe and Palmer Park The University Commons Palmer Park district anchors historic areas including Palmer Woods Sherwood Forest and the University District near the University of Detroit Mercy 42 significant structures in the city are listed on the National Register of Historic Places Pre World War II neighborhoods exhibit architectural styles of the era with working class areas featuring wood frame and brick houses while middle and upper class neighborhoods such as Brush Park Woodbridge Indian Village Palmer Woods and Boston Edison contain larger more ornate homes and mansions Multi million dollar restorations and new developments have revitalized neighborhoods such as West Canfield and Brush Park The city has one of the United States largest surviving collections of late 19th and early 20th century buildings Architecturally significant churches and cathedrals in the city include St Joseph s Old St Mary s the Sweetest Heart of Mary and the Cathedral of the Most Blessed Sacrament Historic preservation efforts continue to thrive with downtown redevelopment projects revitalizing parts of the city among them Campus Martius Park Grand Circus Park near the city s theater district Ford Field Comerica Park and Little Caesars Arena Neighborhoods The Cass Park Historic District in Midtown Detroit New Center Houses in the Indian Village neighborhood Detroit has a variety of neighborhood types The revitalized Downtown Midtown Corktown New Center areas feature many historic buildings and are high density while further out particularly in the northeast and on the fringes high vacancy levels are problematic for which a number of solutions have been proposed In 2007 Downtown Detroit was recognized as the best city neighborhood in which to retire among the United States largest metro areas by CNNMoney editors Lafayette Park is a revitalized neighborhood on the city s east side part of the Ludwig Mies van der Rohe residential district The 78 acre 32 ha development was originally called the Gratiot Park Planned by Mies van der Rohe Ludwig Hilberseimer and Alfred Caldwell it includes a landscaped 19 acre 7 7 ha park with no through traffic in which these and other low rise apartment buildings are situated Immigrants have contributed to the city s neighborhood revitalization especially in southwest Detroit Southwest Detroit has experienced a thriving economy in recent years as evidenced by new housing increased business openings and the recently opened Mexicantown International Welcome Center The city has numerous neighborhoods consisting of vacant properties resulting in low inhabited density in those areas stretching city services and infrastructure These neighborhoods are concentrated in the northeast and on the city s fringes A 2009 parcel survey found about a quarter of residential lots in the city to be undeveloped or vacant and about 10 of the city s housing to be unoccupied The survey also reported that most 86 of the city s homes are in good condition with a minority 9 in fair condition needing only minor repairs To deal with vacancy issues the city has begun demolishing the derelict houses razing 3 000 of the total 10 000 in 2010 but the resulting low density creates a strain on the city s infrastructure To remedy this a number of solutions have been proposed including resident relocation from more sparsely populated neighborhoods and converting unused space to urban agricultural use including Hantz Woodlands though the city expects to be in the planning stages for up to another two years Public funding and private investment have been made with promises to rehabilitate neighborhoods In April 2008 the city announced a 300 million 417 million in 2023 stimulus plan to create jobs and revitalize neighborhoods financed by city bonds and paid for by earmarking about 15 of the wagering tax The city s working plans for neighborhood revitalizations include 7 Mile Livernois Brightmoor East English Village Grand River Greenfield North End and Osborn Private organizations have pledged substantial funding to the efforts Additionally the city has cleared a 1 200 acre 490 ha section of land for large scale neighborhood construction which the city is calling the Far Eastside Plan In 2011 Mayor Dave Bing announced a plan to categorize neighborhoods by their needs and prioritize the most needed services for those neighborhoods Parks Belle Isle and Grand Circus park Detroit Parks amp Recreation maintains 308 public parks totaling 4 950 2 003 ha acres or about 5 6 of the city s land area Belle Isle Park Detroit s largest and most visited park is the largest city owned island park in the U S covering 982 acres 397 ha Grand Circus the city s first municipal park opened in 1847 In the early 20th century the city enlisted landscape architect Augustus Woodward to conceive a framework for Detroit s modern parks system Augustus Woodward s plan for the city imagined grand boulevards spacious and elegant common parks and an orderly hub and spoke city layout The Detroit International Riverfront features a 3 5 mile promenade with parks residential buildings and commercial areas extending from Hart Plaza to Belle Isle Park This area includes Tri Centennial State Park and Harbor Michigan s first urban state park Plans for the riverfront s second phase will extend the promenade to the Ambassador Bridge stimulating residential redevelopment along the riverfront Detroit s major parks also include River Rouge Palmer and Chene Park contributing to the city s green space and outdoor recreation The Huron Clinton Metropolitan Authority was created in 1940 by the citizens of Southeast Michigan to serve as a regional park system the park system includes 13 parks totaling more than 24 000 acres 97 km2 arranged along the Huron River and Clinton River forming a partial ring around the Detroit metro area Climate Detroit Michigan Climate chart explanation J F M A M J J A S O N D 2 32 19 2 35 21 2 3 46 29 2 9 59 39 3 4 70 49 3 5 79 60 3 4 83 64 3 81 63 3 3 74 55 2 5 62 43 2 8 49 34 2 5 36 24 Average max and min temperatures in F Precipitation totals in inches Metric conversion J F M A M J J A S O N D 50 0 7 51 2 6 58 8 2 74 15 4 86 21 10 89 26 15 86 29 18 76 27 17 83 23 13 64 16 6 71 9 1 62 2 4 Average max and min temperatures in C Precipitation totals in mm Detroit and the rest of southeastern Michigan have a hot summer humid continental climate Koppen Dfa which is influenced by the Great Lakes like other places in the state the city and close in suburbs are part of USDA Hardiness zone 6b while the more distant northern and western suburbs generally are included in zone 6a Winters are cold with moderate snowfall and temperatures not rising above freezing on an average 44 days annually while dropping to or below 0 F 18 C on an average 4 4 days a year summers are warm to hot with temperatures exceeding 90 F 32 C on 12 days The warm season runs from May to September The monthly daily mean temperature ranges from 25 6 F 3 6 C in January to 73 6 F 23 1 C in July Official temperature extremes range from 105 F 41 C on July 24 1934 down to 21 F 29 C on January 21 1984 the record low maximum is 4 F 20 C on January 19 1994 while conversely the record high minimum is 80 F 27 C on August 1 2006 the most recent of five occurrences A decade or two may pass between readings of 100 F 38 C or higher which last occurred July 17 2012 The average window for freezing temperatures is October 20 through April 22 allowing a growing season of 180 days Precipitation is moderate and somewhat evenly distributed throughout the year although the warmer months such as May and June average more averaging 33 5 inches 850 mm annually but historically ranging from 20 49 in 520 mm in 1963 to 47 70 in 1 212 mm in 2011 Snowfall which typically falls in measurable amounts between November 15 through April 4 occasionally in October and very rarely in May averages 42 5 inches 108 cm per season although historically ranging from 11 5 in 29 cm in 1881 82 to 94 9 in 241 cm in 2013 14 A thick layer of snow is not often seen with an average of only 27 5 days with 3 in 7 6 cm or more of snow cover Thunderstorms are frequent in the Detroit area These usually occur during spring and summer Climate data for Detroit DTW 1991 2020 normals extremes 1874 present Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year Record high F C 67 19 73 23 86 30 89 32 95 35 104 40 105 41 104 40 100 38 92 33 81 27 69 21 105 41 Mean maximum F C 53 0 11 7 55 3 12 9 69 3 20 7 79 6 26 4 87 2 30 7 92 6 33 7 93 8 34 3 92 1 33 4 89 3 31 8 80 6 27 0 66 7 19 3 56 1 13 4 95 4 35 2 Mean daily maximum F C 32 3 0 2 35 2 1 8 45 9 7 7 58 7 14 8 70 3 21 3 79 7 26 5 83 7 28 7 81 4 27 4 74 4 23 6 62 0 16 7 48 6 9 2 37 2 2 9 59 1 15 1 Daily mean F C 25 8 3 4 28 0 2 2 37 2 2 9 48 9 9 4 60 3 15 7 69 9 21 1 74 1 23 4 72 3 22 4 64 9 18 3 53 0 11 7 41 2 5 1 31 3 0 4 50 6 10 3 Mean daily minimum F C 19 2 7 1 20 8 6 2 28 6 1 9 39 1 3 9 50 2 10 1 60 2 15 7 64 4 18 0 63 2 17 3 55 5 13 1 44 0 6 7 33 9 1 1 25 3 3 7 42 0 5 6 Mean minimum F C 0 1 17 7 3 5 15 8 12 0 11 1 25 5 3 6 36 3 2 4 47 3 8 5 54 1 12 3 53 4 11 9 41 6 5 3 31 0 0 6 19 8 6 8 8 8 12 9 3 7 19 8 Record low F C 21 29 20 29 4 20 8 13 25 4 36 2 42 6 38 3 29 2 17 8 0 18 11 24 21 29 Average precipitation inches mm 2 23 57 2 08 53 2 43 62 3 26 83 3 72 94 3 26 83 3 51 89 3 26 83 3 22 82 2 53 64 2 57 65 2 25 57 34 32 872 Average snowfall inches cm 14 0 36 12 5 32 6 2 16 1 5 3 8 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 9 4 8 8 9 23 45 0 114 Average extreme snow depth inches cm 7 1 18 6 6 17 4 4 11 0 8 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 2 8 4 3 11 10 0 25 Average precipitation days 0 01 in 13 4 11 0 11 1 12 5 12 9 10 7 10 5 9 7 9 5 10 6 11 0 13 1 136 0 Average snowy days 0 1 in 10 7 9 2 5 3 1 5 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 2 6 8 0 37 6 Average relative humidity 74 7 72 5 70 0 66 0 65 3 67 3 68 5 71 5 73 4 71 6 74 6 76 7 71 0 Average dew point F C 16 2 8 8 17 6 8 0 25 9 3 4 35 1 1 7 45 7 7 6 55 6 13 1 60 4 15 8 59 7 15 4 53 2 11 8 41 4 5 2 32 4 0 2 21 9 5 6 38 7 3 7 Mean monthly sunshine hours 119 9 138 3 184 9 217 0 275 9 301 8 317 0 283 5 227 6 176 0 106 3 87 7 2 435 9 Percentage possible sunshine 41 47 50 54 61 66 69 66 61 51 36 31 55 Average ultraviolet index 1 2 2 0 3 6 5 4 6 9 8 0 8 2 7 1 5 3 3 1 1 6 1 1 4 4 Source 1 NOAA relative humidity dew point and sun 1961 1990 Source 2 UV Index Today 1995 to 2022 This graph was using the legacy Graph extension which is no longer supported It needs to be converted to the new Chart extension See or edit raw graph data Climate data for Detroit Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year Mean No of days with Maximum temperature gt 90 0 F 32 2 C 0 0 0 0 1 3 5 3 1 0 0 0 13 Mean No of days with Minimum temperature gt 68 0 F 20 0 C 0 0 0 0 1 5 10 8 2 0 0 0 25 Mean No of days with Minimum temperature lt 32 0 F 0 0 C 27 25 21 6 0 0 0 0 0 2 14 24 120 Mean No of days with Maximum temperature lt 32 0 F 0 0 C 16 12 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 10 42 Mean No of days with snow depth gt 0 1 in 0 25 cm 17 14 6 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 8 48 Average sea temperature F C 33 6 0 9 32 7 0 4 33 4 0 8 39 7 4 3 48 9 9 4 63 9 17 7 74 7 23 7 75 4 24 1 70 5 21 4 60 3 15 7 48 6 9 2 38 1 3 4 51 7 10 9 Mean daily daylight hours 9 0 11 0 12 0 13 0 15 0 15 0 15 0 14 0 12 0 11 0 10 0 9 0 12 2 Average Ultraviolet index 1 2 4 6 7 8 9 8 6 4 2 1 4 8 Source 1 NWS 1991 2020 Source 2 Weather Atlas daylight UV water temperature DemographicsThis section needs to be updated The reason given is A lot has changed and turned around recently along with a revised estimate of first population increase in decades Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information May 2025 Population pyramid of Detroit in 2021 Historical population CensusPop Note 18201 422 18302 22256 3 18409 102309 6 185021 019130 9 186045 619117 0 187079 57774 4 1880116 34046 2 1890205 87677 0 1900285 70438 8 1910465 76663 0 1920993 678113 3 19301 568 66257 9 19401 623 4523 5 19501 849 56813 9 19601 670 144 9 7 19701 511 482 9 5 19801 203 368 20 4 19901 027 974 14 6 2000951 270 7 5 2010713 777 25 0 2020639 111 10 5 2024 est 645 7051 0 U S Decennial Census 2010 2020 Ethnic origins in Detroit In the 2020 United States census the city had 639 111 residents ranking it the 27th most populous city in the US Of the large shrinking cities in the US Detroit has had the most dramatic decline in the population of the past 70 years down 1 210 457 and the second largest percentage decline down 65 4 In 1950 Detroit was the fourth largest city in the US behind New York Chicago and Philadelphia While the drop in Detroit s population has been ongoing since 1950 the most dramatic period was the significant 25 decline between the 2000 and 2010 census Detroit s 639 111 residents represent 269 445 households and 162 924 families residing in the city The population density was 5 144 3 people per square mile 1 986 2 people km2 There were 349 170 housing units at an average density of 2 516 5 units per square mile 971 6 units km2 Of the 269 445 households 34 4 had children under the age of 18 living with them 21 5 were married couples living together 31 4 had a female householder with no husband present 39 5 were non families 34 0 were made up of individuals and 3 9 had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older The average household size was 2 59 and the average family size was 3 36 There was a wide distribution of age in the city with 31 1 under the age of 18 9 7 from 18 to 24 29 5 from 25 to 44 19 3 from 45 to 64 and 10 4 65 years of age or older The median age was 31 years For every 100 females there were 89 1 males For every 100 females age 18 and over there were 83 5 males Religion According to a 2014 study 67 of the population of the city identified themselves as Christians with 49 professing adherence to Protestant churches and 16 professing Roman Catholic beliefs while 24 claim no religious affiliation Other religions collectively make up about 8 of the population Income and employment The loss of industrial and working class jobs in the city has resulted in high rates of poverty and associated problems From 2000 to 2009 the city s estimated median household income fell from 29 526 to 26 098 citation needed As of 2010 update the mean income of Detroit is below the overall U S average by several thousand dollars Of every three Detroit residents one lives in poverty Luke Bergmann author of Getting Ghost Two Young Lives and the Struggle for the Soul of an American City said in 2010 Detroit is now one of the poorest big cities in the country In the 2018 American Community Survey median household income in the city was 31 283 compared with the median for Michigan of 56 697 The median income for a family was 36 842 well below the state median of 72 036 33 4 of families had income at or below the federally defined poverty level Out of the total population 47 3 of those under the age of 18 and 21 0 of those 65 and older had income at or below the federally defined poverty line Median income in Detroit as of July 1 2019 Area Number of house holds Median House hold Income Per Capita Income Percent age in poverty Detroit City 263 688 30 894 18 621 35 0 Wayne County MI 682 282 47 301 27 282 19 8 United States 120 756 048 62 843 34 103 11 4 Race and ethnicity Historical Racial Composition 2020 2010 1990 1970 1950 1940 1930 1920 1910 White 14 7 10 6 21 6 55 5 83 6 90 7 92 2 95 8 98 7 Non Hispanic 10 1 7 8 20 7 54 0 90 4 Black or African American 77 7 82 7 75 7 43 7 16 2 9 2 7 7 4 1 1 2 Hispanic or Latino of any race 8 0 6 8 2 8 1 8 0 3 Asian 1 6 1 1 0 8 0 3 0 1 0 1 0 1 0 1 Detroit Michigan Racial and ethnic composition Note the US Census treats Hispanic Latino as an ethnic category This table excludes Latinos from the racial categories and assigns them to a separate category Hispanics Latinos may be of any race Race Ethnicity NH Non Hispanic Pop 1960 Pop 1970 Pop 1980 Pop 1990 Pop 2000 Pop 2010 Pop 2020 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 2020 White alone NH 1 182 970 838 877 402 077 212 278 99 921 55 604 60 770 70 83 55 50 33 41 20 65 10 50 7 79 10 10 Black or African American alone NH 482 223 660 428 754 274 774 529 771 966 586 573 493 212 28 87 43 69 62 68 75 35 81 15 82 18 77 17 Native American or Alaska Native alone NH N A N A 3 420 3 305 2 572 1 927 1 399 N A N A 0 28 0 32 0 27 0 27 0 22 Asian alone NH 4 206 7 392 6 353 8 085 9 135 7 436 10 085 0 25 0 49 0 53 0 79 0 96 1 04 1 58 Pacific Islander or Native Hawaiian alone NH N A N A 268 N A 169 82 111 N A N A 0 02 N A 0 02 0 01 0 02 Other race alone NH 745 4 785 8 006 1 304 1 676 994 3 066 0 04 0 32 0 67 0 13 0 18 0 14 0 48 Mixed race or Multiracial NH N A N A N A N A 18 664 12 482 19 199 N A N A N A N A 1 96 1 75 3 00 Hispanic or Latino any race N A N A 28 970 28 473 47 167 48 679 51 269 N A N A 2 41 2 77 4 96 6 82 8 02 Total 1 670 144 1 511 482 1 203 368 1 027 974 951 270 713 777 639 111 100 00 100 00 100 00 100 00 100 00 100 00 100 00 Map of racial distribution in Detroit 2010 U S Census Each dot is 25 people White Black Asian Hispanic Other Beginning with the rise of the automobile industry Detroit s population increased more than sixfold during the first half of the 20th century as an influx of European Middle Eastern Lebanese Assyrian and Southern migrants brought their families to the city With this economic boom following World War I the African American population grew from a mere 6 000 in 1910 to more than 120 000 by 1930 Perhaps one of the most overt examples of neighborhood discrimination occurred in 1925 when African American physician Ossian Sweet found his home surrounded by an angry mob of his hostile white neighbors violently protesting his new move into a traditionally white neighborhood Sweet and ten of his family members and friends were put on trial for murder as one of the mob members throwing rocks at the newly purchased house was shot and killed by someone firing out of a second floor window Detroit has a relatively large Mexican American population In the early 20th century thousands of Mexicans came to Detroit to work in agricultural automotive and steel jobs During the Mexican Repatriation of the 1930s many Mexicans in Detroit were willingly repatriated or forced to repatriate By the 1940s much of the Mexican community began to settle what is now Mexicantown Immigration from Jalisco significantly increased the Latino population in the 1990s By 2010 Detroit had 48 679 Hispanics including 36 452 Mexicans a 70 increase from 1990 Per the 2023 American Community Survey five year estimates the Mexican American population was 35 273 comprising over 75 of the Latino population with Puerto Ricans as the next largest group at 5 887 Greektown Historic District in Detroit After World War II many people from Appalachia also settled in Detroit Appalachians formed communities and their children acquired southern accents Many Lithuanians also settled in Detroit during the World War II era especially on the city s Southwest side in the West Vernor area where the renovated Lithuanian Hall reopened in 2006 While African Americans in 2020 comprised 13 5 of Michigan s population they made up nearly 77 2 of Detroit s population The next largest population groups were non Hispanic whites at 10 1 and Hispanics at 8 0 In 2001 103 000 Jews or about 1 9 of the population were living in the Detroit area According to the 2010 census segregation in Detroit decreased in absolute and relative terms and in the first decade of the 21st century about two thirds of the total black population in the metropolitan area resided within the city limits of Detroit The number of integrated neighborhoods increased from 100 in 2000 to 204 in 2010 After being ranked the most segregated metropolitan area in the United States in 2000 Detroit was ranked fourth most segregated in 2010 A 2011 op ed in The New York Times attributed the decreased segregation rating to the overall exodus from the city cautioning that these areas may soon become more segregated Chaldean Town a historically Assyrian neighborhood in Detroit There are four areas of Detroit with significant Asian and Asian American populations Northeast Detroit has a large population of Hmong with a smaller group of Lao people A portion of Detroit next to eastern Hamtramck includes Bangladeshi Americans Indian Americans and Pakistani Americans nearly all of the Bangladeshi population in Detroit lives in that area The area north of downtown has transient Asian national origin residents who are university students or hospital workers Few of them have permanent residency after schooling ends They are mostly Chinese and Indian but the population also includes Filipinos Koreans and Pakistanis In Southwest and western Detroit there are smaller scattered Asian communities Crime DetroitCrime rates 2019 Violent crimesHomicide41 4Rape143 4Robbery353 3Aggravated assault1 425 8Total violent crime1 965 3Property crimesBurglary1 027 1Larceny theft2 235 5Motor vehicle theft1 037 0Total property crime4 299 7Notes Number of reported crimes per 100 000 population Source FBI 2019 UCR data Detroit has gained notoriety for its high amount of crime having struggled with it for decades The number of homicides in 1974 was 714 The homicide rate in 2022 was the third highest in the nation at 50 0 per 100 000 Downtown typically has lower crime than national and state averages According to a 2007 analysis Detroit officials note about 65 to 70 percent of homicides in the city were drug related with the rate of unsolved murders roughly 70 Although the rate of violent crime dropped 11 in 2008 violent crime in Detroit has not declined as much as the national average from 2007 to 2011 The violent crime rate is one of the highest in the United States Neighborhoodscout com reported a crime rate of 62 18 per 1 000 residents for property crimes and 16 73 per 1 000 for violent crimes compared to national figures of 32 per 1 000 for property crimes and 5 per 1 000 for violent crime in 2008 In 2012 crime in the city was among the reasons for more expensive car insurance Areas of the city adjacent to the Detroit River are also patrolled by the United States Border Patrol EconomyTop city employers as of 2014 Source Crain s Detroit Business Rank Company or organization 1 Detroit Medical Center 11 497 2 City of Detroit 9 591 3 Rocket Mortgage 9 192 4 Henry Ford Health System 8 807 5 Detroit Public Schools 6 586 6 U S Government 6 308 7 Wayne State University 6 023 8 Chrysler 5 426 9 Blue Cross Blue Shield 5 415 10 General Motors 4 327 The Detroit River is one of the busiest straits in the world Pictured is lake freighter MV American Courage passing the strait Several major corporations are based in the city including three Fortune 500 companies The most heavily represented sectors are manufacturing particularly automotive finance technology and health care The most significant companies based in Detroit include General Motors Rocket Mortgage Ally Financial Compuware Shinola American Axle Little Caesars DTE Energy Lowe Campbell Ewald Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan and Rossetti Architects About 80 500 people work in downtown Detroit comprising one fifth of the city s employment base Aside from the numerous Detroit based companies listed above downtown contains large offices for Comerica Chrysler Fifth Third Bank HP Enterprise Deloitte PricewaterhouseCoopers KPMG and Ernst amp Young Ford Motor Company is in the adjacent city of Dearborn Thousands more employees work in Midtown north of the central business district Midtown s anchors are the city s largest single employer Detroit Medical Center Wayne State University and the Henry Ford Health System in New Center Midtown is also home to watchmaker Shinola and an array of small and startup companies New Center bases TechTown a research and business incubator hub that is part of the Wayne State University system Like downtown Corktown Is experiencing growth with the new Ford Corktown Campus under development Many downtown employers are relatively new as there has been a marked trend of companies moving from satellite suburbs into the downtown core Compuware completed its world headquarters in downtown in 2003 OnStar Blue Cross Blue Shield and HP Enterprise Services are at the Renaissance Center PricewaterhouseCoopers Plaza offices are adjacent to Ford Field and Ernst amp Young completed its office building at One Kennedy Square in 2006 Perhaps most prominently in 2010 Quicken Loans one of the largest mortgage lenders relocated its world headquarters and 4 000 employees to downtown Detroit consolidating its suburban offices In July 2012 the U S Patent and Trademark Office opened its Elijah J McCoy Satellite Office in the Rivertown Warehouse District as its first location outside Washington D C s metropolitan area In April 2014 the United States Department of Labor reported the city s unemployment rate at 14 5 The city of Detroit and other public private partnerships have attempted to catalyze the region s growth by facilitating the building and historical rehabilitation of residential high rises in the downtown creating a zone that offers many business tax incentives creating recreational spaces such as the Detroit RiverWalk Campus Martius Park Dequindre Cut Greenway and Green Alleys in Midtown The city has cleared sections of land while retaining some historically significant vacant buildings to spur redevelopment even though it has struggled with finances the city issued bonds in 2008 to provide funding for ongoing work to demolish blighted properties Two years earlier downtown reported 1 3 billion in restorations and new developments which increased the number of construction jobs in the city In the decade prior to 2006 downtown gained more than 15 billion in new investment from private and public sectors Construction progress at Hudson s Detroit slated to be the second tallest building in Detroit Despite the city s recent financial issues many developers remain unfazed by Detroit s problems Midtown is one of the most successful areas within Detroit to have a residential occupancy rate of 96 Numerous developments have been recently completed or are in various stages of construction These include the 82 million reconstruction of downtown s David Whitney Building now an Aloft Hotel and luxury residences the Woodward Garden Block Development in Midtown the residential conversion of the David Broderick Tower in downtown the rehabilitation of the Book Cadillac Hotel now a Westin and luxury condos and Fort Shelby Hotel now Doubletree also in downtown and various smaller projects Downtown s population of young professionals is growing and retail is expanding A study in 2007 found out that Downtown s new residents are predominantly young professionals 57 are ages 25 to 34 45 have bachelor s degrees and 34 have a master s or professional degree a trend which has hastened over the last decade Since 2006 9 billion has been invested in downtown and surrounding neighborhoods 5 2 billion of which has come in 2013 and 2014 Construction activity particularly rehabilitation of historic downtown buildings has increased markedly As of 2014 the number of vacant downtown buildings has dropped from nearly 50 to around 13 In 2013 Meijer a midwestern retail chain opened its first supercenter store in Detroit this was a 20 million 190 000 square foot store in the northern portion of the city and it also is the centerpiece of a new 72 million shopping center named Gateway Marketplace In 2015 Meijer opened its second supercenter store in the city In 2019 JPMorgan Chase announced plans to invest 50 million more in affordable housing job training and entrepreneurship by the end of 2022 growing its investment to 200 million Arts and cultureMarch for Science North American International Auto Show In the central portions of Detroit the population of young professionals artists and other transplants is growing and retail is expanding This dynamic is luring additional new residents and former residents returning from other cities to the city s Downtown along with the revitalized Midtown and New Center areas A desire to be closer to the urban scene has attracted some young professionals to reside in inner ring suburbs such as Ferndale and Royal Oak The proximity to Windsor provides for views and nightlife along with Ontario s minimum drinking age of 19 A 2011 study by Walk Score recognized Detroit for its above average walkability among large U S cities About two thirds of suburban residents occasionally dine and attend cultural events or take in professional games in the city Nicknames Known as the world s automotive center Detroit is a metonym for that industry It is an important source of popular music legacies celebrated by the city s two familiar nicknames the Motor City and Motown Other nicknames arose in the 20th century including City of Champions beginning in the 1930s for its successes in individual and team sport The D Hockeytown a trademark owned by the Detroit Red Wings Rock City after the Kiss song Detroit Rock City and The 313 its telephone area code Music Motown Mansion in Boston Edison Historic District former home of Berry Gordy founder of Motown Records Detroit Electronic Music Festival Detroit Institute of Music Education Live music has been a prominent feature of Detroit s nightlife since the late 1940s bringing the city recognition under the nickname Motown The metropolitan area has many nationally prominent live music venues Concerts hosted by Live Nation perform throughout the Detroit area The theater venue circuit is the United States second largest and hosts Broadway performances The city has a rich musical heritage and has contributed to many genres over the decades Important music events include the Detroit International Jazz Festival the Detroit Electronic Music Festival the Motor City Music Conference MC2 the Urban Organic Music Conference the Concert of Colors and the hip hop Summer Jamz festival In the 1940s Detroit blues artist John Lee Hooker became a long term resident in the Delray neighborhood Hooker among other important blues musicians migrated from his home in Mississippi bringing the Delta blues to Detroit Hooker recorded for Fortune Records the biggest pre Motown blues soul label During the 1950s the city became a center for jazz with stars performing in the Black Bottom neighborhood Prominent emerging jazz musicians included trumpeter Donald Byrd who attended Cass Tech and performed with Art Blakey and the Jazz Messengers early in his career and saxophonist Pepper Adams who enjoyed a solo career and accompanied Byrd on several albums The Graystone International Jazz Museum documents jazz in Detroit Other prominent Motor City R amp B stars in the 1950s and early 1960s were Nolan Strong Andre Williams and Nathaniel Mayer who all scored local and national hits on the Fortune Records label According to Smokey Robinson Strong was a primary influence on his voice as a teenager The Fortune label a family operated label on Third Avenue was owned by the husband and wife team of Jack Brown and Devora Brown Fortune which also released country gospel and rockabilly LPs and 45s laid the groundwork for Motown which became Detroit s most legendary record label Berry Gordy Jr founded Motown Records which rose to prominence during the 1960s and early 1970s with acts such as Stevie Wonder the Temptations the Four Tops Smokey Robinson amp the Miracles Diana Ross amp the Supremes the Jackson 5 Martha and the Vandellas the Spinners Gladys Knight amp the Pips the Marvelettes the Elgins the Monitors the Velvelettes and Marvin Gaye Artists were backed by in house vocalists the Andantes and the Funk Brothers The Motown sound played an important role in the crossover appeal with popular music since it was the first African American owned record label to primarily feature African American artists Gordy moved Motown to Los Angeles in 1972 to pursue film production but the company has since returned to Detroit Aretha Franklin another Detroit R amp B star carried the Motown sound however she did not record with Berry s Motown label Local artists and bands rose to prominence in the 1960s and 70s including the MC5 Glenn Frey the Stooges Bob Seger Amboy Dukes featuring Ted Nugent Mitch Ryder and The Detroit Wheels Rare Earth Alice Cooper and Suzi Quatro The group Kiss emphasized the city s connection with rock in the song Detroit Rock City and the movie produced in 1999 In the 1980s Detroit was an important center of the hardcore punk rock underground with many nationally known bands coming out of the city and its suburbs such as the Necros the Meatmen and Negative Approach In the 1990s and 2000s the city produced many influential hip hop artists including Eminem the hip hop artist with the highest cumulative sales his rap group D12 hip hop rapper and producer Royce da 5 9 hip hop producer Denaun Porter hip hop producer J Dilla rapper and musician Kid Rock and rappers Big Sean and Danny Brown The band Sponge toured and produced music The city also has an active garage rock scene that has generated national attention with acts such as the White Stripes the Von Bondies the Detroit Cobras the Dirtbombs Electric Six and the Hard Lessons Detroit is cited as the birthplace of techno music in the early 1980s The city also lends its name to an early and pioneering genre of electronic dance music Detroit techno Featuring science fiction imagery and robotic themes its futuristic style was greatly influenced by the geography of Detroit s urban decline and its industrial past Prominent Detroit techno artists include Juan Atkins Derrick May Kevin Saunderson and Jeff Mills The Detroit Electronic Music Festival now known as Movement occurs annually in late May on Memorial Day Weekend and takes place in Hart Plaza Performing arts The Detroit Fox Theatre in Downtown Major theaters in Detroit include the Fox Theatre 5 174 seats Music Hall Center for the Performing Arts 1 770 seats the Gem Theatre 451 seats Masonic Temple Theatre 4 404 seats the Detroit Opera House 2 765 seats the Fisher Theatre 2 089 seats The Fillmore Detroit 2 200 seats Saint Andrew s Hall the Majestic Theater and Orchestra Hall 2 286 seats which hosts the renowned Detroit Symphony Orchestra The Nederlander Organization the largest controller of Broadway productions in New York City originated with the purchase of the Detroit Opera House in 1922 by the Nederlander family Motown Motion Picture Studios with 535 000 square feet 49 700 m2 produces movies in Detroit and the surrounding area based at the Pontiac Centerpoint Business Campus for a film industry expected to employ over 4 000 people in the metro area Tourism Detroit is home to the world s first destination marketing organization the Detroit Metro Convention and Visitor s Bureau also known as Visit Detroit Founded in 1896 the organization now operates at 211 West Fort Street as Visit Detroit Detroit Institute of Arts Because of its unique culture distinctive architecture and revitalization and urban renewal efforts in the 21st century Detroit has enjoyed increased prominence as a tourist destination in recent years The New York Times listed Detroit as the ninth best destination in its list of 52 Places to Go in 2017 while travel guide publisher Lonely Planet named Detroit the second best city in the world to visit in 2018 Time named Detroit as one of the 50 World s Greatest Places of 2022 to explore Many of the area s prominent museums are in the historic cultural center neighborhood around Wayne State University and the College for Creative Studies These museums include the Detroit Institute of Arts the Detroit Historical Museum Charles H Wright Museum of African American History the Detroit Science Center as well as the main branch of the Detroit Public Library Other cultural highlights include Motown Historical Museum the Ford Piquette Avenue Plant museum the Pewabic Pottery studio and school the Tuskegee Airmen Museum Fort Wayne the Dossin Great Lakes Museum the Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit the Contemporary Art Institute of Detroit and the Belle Isle Conservatory In 2010 the G R N Namdi Gallery opened in a 16 000 square foot 1 500 m2 complex in Midtown Important history of America and the Detroit area are exhibited at The Henry Ford in Dearborn the United States largest indoor outdoor museum complex The Detroit Historical Society provides information about tours of area churches skyscrapers and mansions Inside Detroit hosts tours educational programming and a downtown welcome center Other sites of interest are the Detroit Zoo in Royal Oak the Cranbrook Art Museum in Bloomfield Hills the Anna Scripps Whitcomb Conservatory on Belle Isle and Walter P Chrysler Museum in Auburn Hills Greektown and three downtown casino resort hotels serve as part of an entertainment hub The Eastern Market farmer s distribution center is the largest open air flowerbed market in the United States and has more than 150 foods and specialty businesses On Saturdays about 45 000 people shop there The annual Detroit Festival of the Arts in Midtown draws about 350 000 people The Ford Piquette Avenue Plant birthplace of the Ford Model T and the world s oldest car factory building open to the public Annual summer events include the Electronic Music Festival International Jazz Festival the Woodward Dream Cruise the African World Festival the country music Hoedown Noel Night and Dally in the Alley Within downtown Campus Martius Park hosts large events including the annual Motown Winter Blast As the world s traditional automotive center the city hosts the North American International Auto Show Held since 1924 America s Thanksgiving Parade is one of the nation s largest River Days a five day summer festival on the International Riverfront lead up to the Windsor Detroit International Freedom Festival fireworks which draw super sized crowds ranging from hundreds of thousands to over three million people An important civic sculpture is The Spirit of Detroit by Marshall Fredericks at the Coleman Young Municipal Center The image is often used as a symbol of Detroit and the statue is occasionally dressed in sports jerseys to celebrate when a Detroit team is doing well A memorial to Joe Louis is located at the intersection of Jefferson and Woodward Avenues The sculpture commissioned by Sports Illustrated and executed by Robert Graham is a 24 foot 7 3 m long arm with a fist suspended by a pyramidal framework SportsTop Comerica Park home of the American League Detroit Tigers middle Ford Field home of the Detroit Lions bottom Little Caesars Arena home of the Detroit Red Wings and the Detroit Pistons Detroit is one of four U S cities that have venues within the city representing the four major sports in North America Detroit is the only city to have its four major sports teams play within its downtown district Detroit is also the only city that has a team in all Big Four leagues but lacks an MLS team Venues include Comerica Park home of MLB s Detroit Tigers Ford Field home of the NFL s Detroit Lions and Little Caesars Arena home of the NHL s Detroit Red Wings and the NBA s Detroit Pistons Detroit has won titles in all four of the major professional sports leagues The Tigers have won four World Series titles 1935 1945 1968 and 1984 The Red Wings have won 11 Stanley Cups 1935 36 1936 37 1942 43 1949 50 1951 52 1953 54 1954 55 1996 97 1997 98 2001 02 2007 08 the most by an American NHL franchise The Lions have won 4 NFL titles 1935 1952 1953 1957 The Pistons have won three NBA titles 1989 1990 2004 In the years following the mid 1930s Detroit was referred to as the City of Champions after the Tigers Lions and Red Wings captured the three major professional sports championships in existence at the time in a seven month period the Tigers won the World Series in October 1935 the Lions won the NFL championship in December 1935 the Red Wings won the Stanley Cup in April 1936 Founded in 2012 as a semi professional soccer club Detroit City FC now plays professional soccer in the USL Championship Nicknamed Le Rouge the club are two time champions of NISA since joining in 2020 They play their home matches in Keyworth Stadium which is located in the enclave of Hamtramck In college sports Detroit s central location within the Mid American Conference MAC has made it a frequent site for the league s championship events While the MAC Basketball Tournament moved permanently to Cleveland starting in 2000 the MAC Football Championship Game has been played at Ford Field since 2004 and annually attracts 25 000 to 30 000 fans The University of Detroit Mercy has an NCAA Division I program and Wayne State University has both NCAA Division I and II programs The NCAA football GameAbove Sports Bowl formerly Quick Lane Bowl is held at Ford Field each December The city hosted the 2005 MLB All Star Game Super Bowl XL in 2006 the 2006 and 2012 World Series WrestleMania 23 in 2007 and the NCAA Final Four in April 2009 The Detroit Indy Grand Prix is held in Belle Isle Park In 2007 open wheel racing returned to Belle Isle with both Indy Racing League and American Le Mans Series Racing From 1982 to 1988 Detroit held the Detroit Grand Prix at the Detroit street circuit In 1932 Eddie The Midnight Express Tolan from Detroit won the 100 and 200 meter races and two gold medals at the 1932 Summer Olympics Joe Louis won the heavyweight championship of the world in 1937 Detroit has made the most bids to host the Summer Olympics without ever being awarded the games with seven unsuccessful bids for the 1944 1952 1956 1960 1964 1968 and 1972 summer games In 2024 Detroit hosted the NFL draft Over 775 000 people were present in downtown Detroit over the course of the three day event making it the highest attended draft on record GovernmentThe Guardian Building serves as the headquarters of Wayne County The city is governed pursuant to the home rule Charter of the City of Detroit The government is run by a mayor the nine member Detroit City Council the eleven member Board of Police Commissioners and a clerk All of these officers are elected on a nonpartisan ballot with the exception of four of the police commissioners who are appointed by the mayor Detroit has a strong mayoral system with the mayor approving departmental appointments The council approves budgets but the mayor is not obligated to adhere to any earmarking The city clerk supervises elections and is formally charged with the maintenance of municipal records City ordinances and substantially large contracts must be approved by the council The Detroit City Code is the codification of Detroit s local ordinances Presently three Community Advisory Councils advise City Council representatives Residents of each of Detroit s seven districts have the option of electing Community Advisory Councils The city clerk supervises elections and is formally charged with the maintenance of municipal records Municipal elections for mayor city council and city clerk are held at four year intervals in the year after presidential elections Following a November 2009 referendum seven council members will be elected from districts beginning in 2013 while two will continue to be elected at large Detroit s courts are state administered and elections are nonpartisan The Probate Court for Wayne County is in the Coleman A Young Municipal Center in downtown The Circuit Court is across Gratiot Avenue in the Frank Murphy Hall of Justice The city is home to the Thirty Sixth District Court as well as the First District of the Michigan Court of Appeals and the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan The city provides law enforcement through the Detroit Police Department and emergency services through the Detroit Fire Department Politics Beginning with its incorporation in 1802 Detroit has had a total of 74 mayors Detroit s last mayor from the Republican Party was Louis Miriani who served from 1957 to 1962 In 1973 the city elected its first black mayor Coleman Young Despite development efforts his combative style during his five terms in office was not well received by many suburban residents Mayor Dennis Archer a former Michigan Supreme Court Justice refocused the city s attention on redevelopment with a plan to permit three casinos downtown By 2008 three major casino resort hotels established operations in the city In 2000 the city requested an investigation by the United States Justice Department into the Detroit Police Department which was concluded in 2003 over allegations regarding its use of force and civil rights violations The city proceeded with a major reorganization of the Detroit Police Department In 2013 felony bribery charges were brought against seven building inspectors In 2016 further corruption charges were brought against 12 principals a former school superintendent and supply vendor for a 12 million 14 9 million in 2023 kickback scheme However law professor Peter Henning argues Detroit s corruption is not unusual for a city its size especially when compared with Chicago Detroit is sometimes referred to as a sanctuary city because it has anti profiling ordinances that generally prohibit local police from asking about the immigration status of people who are not suspected of any crime The city in recent years has been a stronghold for the Democratic Party with around 90 of votes in the city going to incumbent vice president Kamala Harris the Democratic candidate in the 2024 Presidential election EducationColleges and universities College of Business Administration University of Detroit Mercy Detroit is home to several institutions of higher learning including Wayne State University and the University of Detroit Mercy Grand Valley State University s Detroit Center hosts workshops seminars professional development and other large gatherings Sacred Heart Major Seminary founded in 1919 is affiliated with Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas Angelicum in Rome and offers pontifical degrees as well as civil undergraduate and graduate degrees Other institutions in the city include the College for Creative Studies and Wayne County Community College In June 2009 the Michigan State University College of Osteopathic Medicine which is based in East Lansing opened a satellite campus at the Detroit Medical Center Primary and secondary schools As of 2016 update many K 12 students in Detroit frequently change schools with some children having been enrolled in seven schools before finishing their K 12 careers There is a concentration of senior high schools and charter schools in the downtown area which had wealthier residents and more gentrification relative to other parts of Detroit Downtown northwest Detroit and northeast Detroit have 1 894 3 742 and 6 018 students of high school age respectively while they have 11 three and two high schools respectively As of 2016 update because of the lack of public transportation and the lack of school bus services many Detroit families have to rely on themselves to transport children to school With about 66 000 public school students 2011 12 the Detroit Public Schools DPS district is the largest school district in Michigan Detroit has an additional 56 000 charter school students for a combined enrollment of about 122 000 students As of 2009 update there are about as many students in charter schools as there are in district schools As of 2016 update DPS continues to have the majority of the special education pupils In addition some Detroit students as of 2016 attend public schools in other municipalities With growing charter schools enrollment as well as a continued exodus of population the city planned to close many public schools State officials report a 68 graduation rate for Detroit s public schools adjusted for those who change schools Traditional public and charter school students in the city have performed poorly on standardized tests c 2009 and 2011 while Detroit traditional public schools scored a record low on national tests the publicly funded charter schools did even worse than the traditional public schools As of 2016 update there were 30 000 excess openings in Detroit traditional public and charter schools bearing in mind the number of K 12 aged children in the city In 2016 Kate Zernike of The New York Times stated school performance did not improve despite the proliferation of charters describing the situation as lots of choice with no good choice Detroit public schools students scored the lowest on tests of reading and writing of all major cities in the United States in 2015 Among eighth graders only 27 showed basic proficiency in math and 44 in reading Nearly half of Detroit s adults are functionally illiterate Detroit is served by various private schools as well as parochial Roman Catholic schools operated by the Archdiocese of Detroit As of 2013 update there are four Catholic grade schools and three Catholic high schools in the City of Detroit with all of them in the city s west side The Archdiocese of Detroit lists a number of primary and secondary schools in the metro area as Catholic education has emigrated to the suburbs Of the three Catholic high schools two are operated by the Society of Jesus and the third is co sponsored by the Sisters Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary and the Congregation of St Basil MediaOffices of the Detroit Free Press and Detroit News The Detroit Free Press and The Detroit News are the major daily newspapers both broadsheet publications published together under a joint operating agreement called the Detroit Media Partnership Media philanthropy includes the Detroit Free Press high school journalism program and the Old Newsboys Goodfellow Fund of Detroit In March 2009 the two newspapers reduced home delivery to three days per week print reduced newsstand issues of the papers on non delivery days and focus resources on Internet based news delivery The Metro Times founded in 1980 is a weekly publication covering news arts amp entertainment Founded in 1935 and based in Detroit the Michigan Chronicle is one of the oldest and most respected African American weekly newspapers in America covering politics entertainment sports and community events The Detroit television market is the 11th largest in the United States according to estimates that do not include audiences in large areas of Ontario Windsor and its surrounding area on broadcast and cable TV as well as several other cable markets in Ontario such as Ottawa which receive and watch Detroit television stations Detroit has the 11th largest radio market in the United States though this ranking does not take into account Canadian audiences Nearby Canadian stations such as Windsor s CKLW whose jingles formerly proclaimed CKLW the Motor City are popular in Detroit InfrastructureThe Detroit Public Library in 2018 Health systems There are over a dozen major hospitals which include the Detroit Medical Center DMC Henry Ford Health System St John Health System and the John D Dingell VA Medical Center DMC a regional Level I trauma center consists of Detroit Receiving Hospital and University Health Center Children s Hospital of Michigan Harper University Hospital Hutzel Women s Hospital Kresge Eye Institute Rehabilitation Institute of Michigan Sinai Grace Hospital and the Karmanos Cancer Institute DMC has more than 2 000 licensed beds and 3 000 affiliated physicians It is the largest private employer in the city The center is staffed by physicians from the Wayne State University School of Medicine the largest single campus medical school in the United States and the fourth largest medical school overall Harper Hospital and Hutzel Women s Hospital DMC formally became a part of Vanguard Health Systems on December 30 2010 as a for profit corporation Vanguard has agreed to invest nearly 1 5 B in the DMC complex Vanguard has agreed to assume all debts and pension obligations The metro area has many other hospitals including William Beaumont Hospital St Joseph s and University of Michigan Medical Center In 2011 DMC and Henry Ford Health System substantially increased investments in medical research facilities and hospitals in the city s Midtown and New Center In 2012 two major construction projects were begun in New Center The Henry Ford Health System started the first phase of a 500 million 300 acre revitalization project with the construction of a new 30 million 275 000 square foot Medical Distribution Center for Cardinal Health Inc and Wayne State University started construction on a new 93 million 207 000 square foot Integrative Biosciences Center IBio As many as 500 researchers and staff will work out of the IBio Center Transportation A QLine streetcar at Campus Martius station With its proximity to Canada and its facilities ports major highways rail connections and international airports Detroit is an important transportation hub The city has three international border crossings the Ambassador Bridge Detroit Windsor Tunnel and Michigan Central Railway Tunnel linking Detroit to Windsor The Ambassador Bridge is the single busiest border crossing in North America carrying 27 of the total trade between the U S and Canada In 2015 Canadian Transport Minister Lisa Raitt announced Canada agreed to pay the entire cost to build a 250 million U S Customs plaza adjacent to the planned new Detroit Windsor bridge now the Gordie Howe International Bridge Canada had already planned to pay for 95 of the bridge which will cost 2 1 billion and is expected to open in 2024 This allows Canada and Michigan to move the project forward immediately to its next steps which include further design work and property acquisition on the U S side of the border Raitt said issued after she spoke in the House of Commons Transit systems The Detroit People Mover DPM elevated railway in Bricktown Mass transit in the region is provided by bus services The Detroit Department of Transportation provides service within city limits up to the outer edges of the city From there the Suburban Mobility Authority for Regional Transportation SMART provides service to the suburbs and the city regionally with local routes and SMART s FAST service FAST is a new service provided by SMART which offers limited stops along major corridors throughout the Detroit metropolitan area connecting the suburbs to downtown The new high frequency service travels along three of Detroit s busiest corridors Gratiot Woodward and Michigan and only stops at designated FAST stops Cross border service between the downtown areas of Windsor and Detroit is provided by Transit Windsor via the Tunnel Bus An elevated rail system known as the People Mover completed in 1987 provides daily service around a 2 94 mile 4 73 km loop downtown The QLINE serves as a link between the People Mover and the Amtrak station via Woodward Avenue The Ann Arbor Detroit Regional Rail line will extend from New Center connecting to Ann Arbor via Dearborn Wayne and Ypsilanti when it is opened The Regional Transit Authority RTA was established by an act of the Michigan legislature in 2012 to oversee and coordinate all existing regional mass transit operations and to develop new transit services in the region The RTA s first project was the introduction of RelfeX a limited stop cross county bus service connecting downtown and midtown Detroit with Oakland county via Woodward avenue Amtrak Wolverine at Detroit station Amtrak provides service to Detroit operating its Wolverine service between Chicago and Pontiac The Amtrak station is in New Center north of downtown Intercity bus service is offered at the Detroit Bus Station Greyhound Lines Flixbus Indian Trails and Barons Bus Lines connect Detroit with numerous cities across the Midwest Car ownership The city of Detroit has a higher than average percentage of households without a car In 2016 24 7 of Detroit households lacked a car much higher than the national average of 8 7 Detroit averaged 1 15 cars per household in 2016 compared to a national average of 1 8 Freight railroads Freight railroad operations in the city of Detroit are provided by Canadian National Railway Canadian Pacific Railway Conrail Shared Assets CSX Transportation and Norfolk Southern Railway each of which have local yards within the city Detroit is also served by the Delray Connecting Railroad and Detroit Connecting Railroad shortlines Airports Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport DTW the principal airport serving Detroit is located in nearby Romulus Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport DTW the principal airport serving Detroit is in nearby Romulus DTW is a primary hub for Delta Air Lines following its acquisition of Northwest Airlines and a secondary hub for Spirit Airlines The airport is connected to Downtown Detroit by the Suburban Mobility Authority for Regional Transportation SMART FAST Michigan route Coleman A Young International Airport DET previously called Detroit City Airport is on Detroit s northeast side the airport now maintains only charter service and general aviation Willow Run Airport in western Wayne County near Ypsilanti is a general aviation and cargo airport Freeways Metro Detroit has an extensive toll free network of freeways administered by the Michigan Department of Transportation Four major Interstate Highways surround the city Detroit is connected via I 75 and I 96 to Kings Highway 401 and to major Southern Ontario cities such as London Ontario and the Greater Toronto Area I 75 Chrysler and Fisher freeways is the region s main north south route serving Flint Pontiac Troy and Detroit before continuing south as the Detroit Toledo and Seaway Freeways to serve many of the communities along the shore of Lake Erie I 94 Edsel Ford Freeway runs east west through Detroit and serves Ann Arbor to the west where it continues to Chicago and Port Huron to the northeast The stretch of the I 94 freeway from Ypsilanti to Detroit was one of America s earlier limited access highways Henry Ford built it to link the factories at Willow Run and Dearborn during World War II A portion was known as the Willow Run Expressway The I 96 freeway runs northwest southeast through Livingston Oakland and Wayne counties and as the Jeffries Freeway through Wayne County has its eastern terminus in downtown Detroit I 275 runs north south from I 75 in the south to the junction of I 96 and I 696 in the north providing a bypass through the western suburbs of Detroit I 375 is a short spur route in downtown Detroit an extension of the Chrysler Freeway I 696 Reuther Freeway runs east west from the junction of I 96 and I 275 providing a route through the northern suburbs of Detroit Taken together I 275 and I 696 form a semicircle around Detroit Michigan state highways designated with the letter M serve to connect major freeways Floating post office J W Westcott II on the Detroit River in front of the Ambassador Bridge Detroit has a floating post office the J W Westcott II which serves lake freighters along the Detroit River Its ZIP Code is 48222 The ZIP Code is used exclusively for the J W Westcott II which makes it the only floating ZIP Code in the United States It has a land based office at 12 24th Street just south of the Ambassador Bridge The J W Westcott Company was established in 1874 by Captain John Ward Westcott as a maritime reporting agency to inform other vessels about port conditions and the J W Westcott II vessel began service in 1949 and is still in operation today Notable peopleSister citiesDetroit s sister cities include the following Chongqing China Dubai United Arab Emirates Huế Vietnam Kitwe Zambia Minsk Belarus Nassau Bahamas Toyota Japan Turin ItalySee alsoUSS Detroit at least 6 shipsNotesMean monthly maxima and minima i e the highest and lowest temperature readings during an entire month or year calculated based on data at said location from 1991 to 2020 Official records for Detroit were kept at downtown from January 1874 to December 1933 Detroit City Airport from February 1934 to March 1966 and at DTW since April 1966 For more information see ThreadEx From 15 sample Commemorated in the movie 8 Mile 2002 References Detroit Geographic Names Information System United States Geological Survey United States Department of the Interior Retrieved July 27 2009 2020 U S Gazetteer Files United States Census Bureau Retrieved May 21 2022 City and Town Population Totals 2020 2021 United States Census Bureau May 30 2022 Retrieved May 30 2022 City and Town Population Totals 2020 2023 United States Census Bureau May 16 2024 Retrieved May 16 2024 List of 2020 Census Urban Areas census gov United States Census Bureau Retrieved January 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Detroit Free Press Retrieved May 15 2025 Gross Domestic Product by County and Metropolitan Area FRED St Louis Fed fred stlouisfed org Retrieved July 5 2024 Livengood Chad March 3 2019 Commentary A MEGA bargain for Michigan s future Crain s Detroit Business Detroit Archived from the original on March 6 2019 Retrieved February 3 2020 Emmott Robin April 19 2007 Massive traffic cripples Tijuana border crossing Reuters Travel USA Visitor Profile Michigan Economic Development Corporation Box Longwoods International Retrieved July 20 2022 Hadley Keller December 16 2015 Detroit Named First American City of Design by UNESCO Architectural Digest Rousseau Mary October 16 2018 How Did Michigan Cities Get Their Names Michigan Retrieved February 16 2022 Detroit word origin Etymologeek Retrieved February 16 2022 La riviere du Detroit depuis le lac Erie 1764 Archived from the original on July 3 2008 Retrieved May 5 2009 List of U S place names of French origin Lemke Ashley 2015 Great Lakes Rangifer and Paleoindians Archaeological and Paleontological Caribou Remains from Michigan PaleoAmerica 1 3 277 doi 10 1179 2055557115Y 0000000003 ISSN 2055 5563 S2CID 129841191 Teasdale Guillaume 2012 Old Friends and New Foes French Settlers and Indians in the Detroit River Border Region Michigan Historical Review 38 2 35 62 doi 10 5342 michhistrevi 38 2 0035 DeVito Lee How New Red Order and MOCAD could redefine land acknowledgment for Indigenous people Detroit Metro Times Retrieved June 27 2021 William Brandon 1961 Alvin M Josephy Jr ed The American Heritage Book of Indians American Heritage Publishing Co Inc pp 187 219 LCCN 61 14871 Woodford Arthur M 2001 This is Detroit 1701 2001 Wayne State University Press pp 15 ISBN 0814329144 Riley John L 2013 The Once and Future Great Lakes Country An Ecological History McGill Queen s University Press ISBN 978 0 7735 4177 1 p 56 Stechschulte Michael March 1 2020 Pope names Ste Anne Church a basilica cementing historic parish s importance to Detroit Detroit Catholic Retrieved November 13 2023 French Ontario in the 17th and 18th centuries Detroit Archived August 24 2004 at the Wayback Machine Archives of Ontario July 14 2008 Retrieved July 23 2008 Ross Marc January 18 2017 Why Detroit is Built to Succeed Looking at Detroit s Past to See Its Future Diplomatic Courier Global Affairs Media Archived from the original on February 17 2020 Retrieved February 17 2020 The French amp Indian War Seven Years War Summary Totally History September 9 2011 Jacqueline Peterson Jennifer S H Brown Many Roads to Red River 2001 p69 History of Detroit A Chronicle of Its Progress Page 71 1912 Mocavo com Retrieved October 22 2024 Museum Outreach exhibitions nysm nysed gov LaForest James March 7 2014 Muskrat French French Canadian River Culture in the Windsor Detroit Region Voyageur Heritage Community Journal and Resource Guide James LaForest Retrieved September 5 2015 Beneteau Marcel Detroit River A Special Place in French North American History 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Department of Interior National Park Service Denver Service Center 1995 Underground Railroad DIANE Publishing p 168 a href wiki Template Cite book title Template Cite book cite book a CS1 maint multiple names authors list link Tobin Jacqueline L From Midnight to Dawn The Last Tracks of the Underground Railroad Anchor 2008 p200 209 Rosentreter Roger July August 1998 Come on you Wolverines Michigan at Gettysburg Michigan History Why do Hamtramck and Highland Park exist inside the city of Detroit Wdet org September 19 2014 Retrieved January 14 2021 Biggest US Cities in 1920 Historical Population Data www biggestuscities com Retrieved June 4 2021 Important U S Labor Leaders Jimmy Hoffa Cross Currents CULCON A Digital Cultural Resource of the US Japan Conference on Cultural and Educational Interchange 2003 Retrieved October 19 2017 Detroit Race Riots 1943 Archived March 1 2017 at the Wayback Machine Eleanor Roosevelt WGBH American Experience PBS June 20 1983 Retrieved on September 5 2013 Bak Richard February 23 2009 The Dark Days of the Black Legion Hour Detroit Retrieved January 14 2021 Route Listings M 8 Michigan Highways Retrieved on July 16 2013 Race and Hispanic Origin for Selected Cities and Other Places Earliest Census to 1990 U S Census Bureau Archived from the original on August 12 2012 Sugrue Thomas J March 26 2011 A Dream Still Deferred The New York Times Archived from the original on January 1 2022 Retrieved July 27 2012 Reynolds Farley Sheldon Danziger Harry J Holzer 2002 The Evolution of Racial Segregation Detroit divided New York Russell Sage Foundation ISBN 978 0 87154 281 6 Dominic J Capeci Jr and Martha Wilkerson The Detroit Rioters of 1943 A Reinterpretation Michigan Historical Review January 1990 Vol 16 Issue 1 pp 49 72 The 1943 Detroit race riots Michigan History Archived October 29 2013 at the Wayback Machine The Detroit News February 10 1999 Retrieved on July 16 2013 Nolan Jenny January 28 1997 Willow Run and the Arsenal of Democracy Archived 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