Sunday, April 22, 2012

When Detroit Ruled - Part 2


Part 2 – When Detroit Ruled - First in the Nation

In 1961 on a national level  Detroit was:

·         One of few cities whose electric utility was building an atomic reactor.
  • Only North American city connected to all three great sources of natural gas.
·         Detroit Institute of Arts was one of America’s finest.  It also boasted one of the greatest    symphony orchestras.

·         A pioneer in the field of investment, as a member of the National Association of Investment Clubs.
·         All vitamin capsules and ingredients were made in Detroit by R. P. Scherer and Parke, Davis.
·         From motors to missiles, America’s Astronauts’ space capsules were made in Detroit.    Burroughs Corporation was Michigan’s largest defense contractor.
·         Headquarters for companies producing 85% of America’s cars and trucks: two million a year. 
·         Henry Ford’s $5 a day made Detroit the country’s most successful stealer of headlines.
·         Pleasure boating capital; had more pleasure boats that any other city.
·         Greatest supply of fresh water.  During WWII the military paid for a 42-inch main running into Macomb County for a jet engine plant which would have been located in Chicago otherwise.

·         Detroit was FIRST among ten largest cities to write a master plan. Approved in 1950 it set objectives for 25 years in advance.

·         Detroit Zoo pioneered in displaying wild animals in natural settings without bars.
·         Six of top ten advertising agencies had offices in Detroit.
·         ONE of nation’s best-lighted streets and the city pioneered lighting alleys.
·         Among 100 top cities in U.S. ranked FIRST in average weekly wages to production workers in manufacturing.
·         Had the strictest civil service recruiting program in NATION. 
·         Montgomery Ward’s distribution center in Allen Park was the pilot for a nation-wide chain of electronically controlled warehouses. 
FIRST large city to organize a large group of citizens to plan school needs.  Over 3000 citizens, headed by American Motors President, George Romney, surveyed each of the 312 public

NEXT: Part 3 - When Detroit Ruled - On a local level

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