Current Exhibitions

Detroit’s rich heritage lies with the men and women who’ve always called Detroit “home,” even as they went on to help shape our nation’s cultural landscape.

We cheered their accomplishments on the field, welcomed them into our lives through television and radio and were thrilled to see them perform on stage. Their championships became our championships and their hit songs formed the soundtracks of our lives.

Origins: Life Where the River Bends is a story of many Detroit beginnings. It invites guests to explore the lives and events that have shaped - and been shaped by - the area on the river now called Detroit. This region’s First People called it Waawiiyaataanong, or “where the river bends,” but it would earn many monikers over the years including “le détroit” and the “Motor City.”

Starting in 2015, the Detroit Historical Society convened diverse groups and communities around the effects of a historic crisis with its Detroit 67: Looking Back to Move Forward project. From the hundreds of oral histories in our archive, the assistance and input of our many partners, and the latest historical scholarship, we have developed the Detroit 67: Perspectives exhibition to allow visitors to better understand the events of July 1967, what led up to them, where we are today, and how to connect to efforts moving Detroit forward

Adjacent to the Allesee Gallery of Culture, visitors find the Motor City Music exhibition — an interactive, participatory space that explores the rich legacy of Detroit’s music from Gospel to Motown and all things in between.

The Detroit Historical Museum’s most beloved signature exhibit, located on the lower level, is undoubtedly the Streets of Old Detroit. 

Step into Detroit’s past and experience the city’s dramatic transformation from rural frontier town to industrial giant in three time periods: the 1840s, 1870s and 1900s.

Imagine hearing the unmistakable sound of a baseball meeting the full force of Hall of Famer Al Kaline’s bat at Tiger Stadium. Imagine feeling the thrill as the solid, brass-colored elevator doors slowly opening onto the 12th floor of downtown Hudson’s, revealing aisle upon aisle of your favorite toys. Imagine working on the assembly line at Ford Motor Company when the first Model T rolled off it and, shortly thereafter, drove onto Woodward.

The America’s Motor City exhibition tells the fascinating stories of both how cars built metro Detroit and how metro Detroit built cars, as well as why Detroit became the Motor City.

The exhibit incorporates the museum’s popular Automotive Showplace exhibit at its entrance, where cars from our collection are featured.

It took Louis Meier, Sr. twelve years to build his clock.  Its hand-carved mahogany base, detailed glass clock face and intricate mechanisms made it a Detroit marvel when it debuted in his jewelry store at East Grand Boulevard and Gratiot Avenue in 1904.