A Tale Of Two Car Parades

July 1909. Less than a year earlier, the first Model T rolled out of the Piquette Plant. Cars were becoming affordable for the average family, not just toys for the rich, and Detroit was hosting the Glidden Tour.

Men would drive 2,560 miles, taking the long way from Detroit to Kansas City, showcasing the safety and reliability of the increasingly popular automobile. Several women had participated in previous years. Mrs. Andrew Cuneo had been the first woman to complete the race in 1908. As a reward, the fairer sex were banned. No women would race this year.

But before the race started, on Monday, July 12th, Detroit hosted a big party for the tour. There were banquets, factory and showroom tours, a band concert in front of City Hall, and an afternoon on Belle Isle, with a parade of over a thousand cars, many of them decorated, followed by games and athletic competitions.

The parade began at Woodward and Grand Boulevard and proceeded down Woodward to Jefferson, then across the Belle Isle bridge and around the island.

The 1909 tour itself was actually a bit of a letdown for its planners. The number of entrants was disappointing to organizers. Thanks to the success of the nascent auto industry, many car makers were so busy making and selling cars that they no longer felt the need to promote themselves by participating.


Did you notice the title on the map, "PUBLIC DEMONSTRATION OF KEROSENE AS FUEL"? It seemed ironic, as I walked the dogs near Cobo Hall, where the Auto Show is taking place, in the year of the Volt. Sidewalks and streets can be quiet during the week near Cobo. On this night, I was drawn from Campus Martius to Cobo by voices, laughter, footsteps... going to see an electric car. It felt good.

There are hundreds more amazing 1909 Glidden Tour pictures at The Making Of Modern Michigan website, many of them showing familiar downtown landmarks and Belle Isle in the background.

Map image from the New York Public Library digital collections.
Panorama of cars in front of the Belle Isle Casino from the Library of Congress.
All other Belle Isle images from the Detroit Public Library, Lazarnick Collection, viewable on The Making of Modern Michigan site.