Downtown Detroit was literally built on the premise of parking lots when the city population was at its peak of over 1.8 million people in the 1950s. This “Shoppers Parking Guide” in 1954 promoted the message, “To Shop Drive Car, To Work Ride DSR.” The pamphlet notes that there is always a parking space available and if you find yourself at a parking lot that is full, simply use the guide to find another parking option. The guide shares the tax benefits of parking Downtown and that Downtown has a “greater and better” concentration of amenities and attractions.

The pamphlet guide and map were produced by Educational Cards Inc. and are clearly hand drawn and hand colored to denote parking lots and parking decks or garages as well as future parking. Detroiters and national pundits alike often shout the ills of dedicating land to parking, but perhaps the real metric is the parking space relative to population?

This map is part of the Hill Map Collection digitized in partnership with the Reuther Library and Archives as part of the Detroit Atlas Project funded in part by the WSU Union of Part Time Faculty (UPTF) Professional Development Fund.