Detroit Citizens Railway, Michigan 1978
$20.00
Instant royalty-free digital download. No watermark. You will receive a JPG image of between 3000 and 4000 pixels on the longest side. Perfect for prints, books, media, creative projects, and more. The download link will appear in the checkout after successful purchase.
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The Citizens Railway in Detroit opened in 1976 and ran for about a mile through the downtown area from Washington Blvd (near Grand Circus), down to Jefferson, where it turned left and ended by the Renaissance Center. Here we see Car 247 headed south on Washington.
It was designed purely as a tourist attraction and was operated by nine vintage trams from Europe. By the 1990s it was carrying less than 5,000 people a year. Six of the trams were taken away for “refurbishment” and were never seen again. It all closed in 2003. In 2014 the City of Detroit held a huge bankruptcy sale which included 115 garbage trucks, 79 buses and 3 of the old trolley cars.
Cars 247 and 6, both originally from Portugal, were sold to local buyers. Car 14 was acquired by the Statfold Barn Railway and shipped back to England where it was restored to running order.
This high-resolution scan provides a vibrant historical record of the heritage streetcar line that briefly returned rail transit to the heart of the Motor City. This digital download is an incredible piece of local history, perfect to print for yourself as vintage Michigan wall art.
About Retro Stock Photography
Retro Stock Photography specializes in genuine vintage color photographs from the 1950s through the 1990s, all available as royalty-free instant downloads. Our photos are popular for editorial features, books, magazines, websites, documentaries, advertising, social media, local history projects, creative design, and as unique gifts when printed.
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