Augustus B. Woodward's Paris of the West

"A man of middle age, a hardened bachelor who wore nut-brown clothing . . . he slept in his office which was never swept . . . and was eccentric and erratic. His friends were few and his practice was so small that he hardly made a living." However, when criticized, "he always assumed a lofty and dispassionate attitude, and his written and spoken defenses were always ingenious, plausible and pointed." (Ross, Robert B. The Early Bench and Bar of Detroit: From 1805 - 1850)

And so was described Augustus B. Woodward (1774-1827), first Chief Justice of the Michigan Territories, disciple of Thomas Jefferson, and father of the City of Detroit, Michigan. President Jefferson appointed Woodward as Judge of Michigan on March 3, 1805; and when he arrived in Detroit to begin his duties, he found the city in ruins as a result of a massive fire that destroyed most of the city. That being so, he set about planning the city -- with Charles L'Enfant's grand design for Washington, DC as the model. 

Shifting the focus from the Detroit River to its avenues, Woodward proposed a system of hexagonal street blocks, with the Grand Circus Park at its center. Wide avenues, alternatively 200 feet and 120 feet, would proceed from large circular plazas like wheel spokes. The result was a Baroque city of magnificent architecture and elegant charm; and visitors were quick to dub Detroit as the "Paris of the West."

Until the middle of the twentieth century, Detroit was known as America's finest city (this title has since been awarded to San Diego, California), with prosperous businesses, higher-than-average standard of living, and beautiful architecture. Of course the '60s rolled around, with its urban renewal and social justice crusades, and the result has been nothing less than tragic. Perhaps the city of Detroit could use a modern-day Augustus Woodward to set a new vision for this struggling city with a glorious past.

 

Once a truly great American city...

...now, John Conyer's and the AFL-CIO's utopia.