[EastBoundandDownChick]

Which is your favorite and why?

[detwahDJ]

East side has Jefferson Ave around the lake and along the river to downtown.

[danielj72]

Ive never understood this, but my relatives who live in the Detroit area talk about this eastside /westside /downriver thing alot. I have not lived in the Detroit area since I was a very young child so I dont get it. Whenever I travel to southeast Mi the whole place seems to blend together. The only really noticeable thing I see is between the rich affluent areas to the north and west and the older suburbs. Of course Detroit proper is a world of its own. To those of us who live further out in the state we just dont see what all the hype is about east side detroit vs west. It all looks the same to us.

[detwahDJ]

Originally Posted by danielj72

Ive never understood this, but my relatives who live in the Detroit area talk about this eastside /westside /downriver thing alot. I have not lived in the Detroit area since I was a very young child so I dont get it. Whenever I travel to southeast Mi the whole place seems to blend together. The only really noticeable thing I see is between the rich affluent areas to the north and west and the older suburbs. Of course Detroit proper is a world of its own. To those of us who live further out in the state we just dont see what all the hype is about east side detroit vs west. It all looks the same to us.

Woodward Ave was seen as a convenient and prominent dividing line. Downriver was...just downriver (West Fort to the city limits and beyond). This opinion from a far eastsider.

[Ypsi the Clown]

when u say east side/west side r u referring to just detroit or the metro detroit area outside city limits?

[detwahDJ]

Originally Posted by Ypsi the Clown

when u say east side/west side r u referring to just detroit or the metro detroit area outside city limits?

Detroit proper. At one time E Grand Blvd was the city limits. John R is used as the East-West zero address divider (many cities have a "Division Street" for this).
Zero Mile Road is Michigan Ave/Ford road.

[313 TUxedo]

Only from McNichols (AKA 6 Mile) northward is John R the East-West zero address divider. From the Detroit River to McNichols, it is Woodward Avenue.

I tire of hearing so many people argue about East versus West in this day and age.

These days, the two sides of town mirror each other. East has Gratiot, West has Grand River. West has Rouge Park, East has Belle Isle. West has Warrendale, East has Hamtramck (yes, that is another city surrounded by Detroit's East Side), West borders Dearborn Heights, East borders Warren, and so on.

Decades ago, the well-to-do looked down on the East side (it was more Catholic, and it's white residents more likely to root their family tree in Continental Europe, compared to the West Side, seen as being British and Protestant - though in reality there were East Side WASPs and West Side "ethnics", even back then). Moot today with Detroit's current demographics, and "whites" generally being considered as one people.

[detwahDJ]

Originally Posted by 313 TUxedo

Only from McNichols (AKA 6 Mile) northward is John R the East-West zero address divider. From the Detroit River to McNichols, it is Woodward Avenue.
I tire of hearing so many people argue about East versus West in this day and age.

McNichols eh? I may have known that a long time ago, but memory escapes me. I see by the map there is a short jog over from Woodward to John R which continues north into Hazel Park, which uses John R as E-W divider. So they were considering the suburbs.
I wonder if there is a historical significance to McNichols itself

[313Weather]

Originally Posted by detwahDJ

McNichols eh? I may have known that a long time ago, but memory escapes me. I see by the map there is a short jog over from Woodward to John R which continues north into Hazel Park, which uses John R as E-W divider. So they were considering the suburbs.
I wonder if there is a historical significance to McNichols itself

The McNichols/Conant area specifically was a prominent Italian enclave. That's where Buddy's and Loui's originated from. If you drive down that part of McNichols you can also see the ruin of an old Italian bakery. Then of course Shield's original location wasn't far from where. I thoguht it was originally at McNichols and Shields, but instead it was at Davison and Shields.

There's plenty of interesting ruins at least along east McNichols. If you go further east to McNichols and Mt. Elliot you'll see an abandoned Burger King and KFC. Then Marcus Hanburgers is near the same interestion. Then on the otherside of City Airport there's the ruin of an old Evergreen plant store on Strasburg and McNichols and an old 76 sign. Then of course in that same vicinity (McNichols and Hoover) there was that Alousins (sp?) ice cream plant and the old 7-eleven stores that were literally blocks from each other (the original 7-eleven at McNichols was so profitable that they opened an annex store just a few blocks down at McNichols and Teppert).

Finally I'm sure there's plenty of history near the McNichols and Gratiot interesection where the Romana Theatre stood

[detwahDJ]

Originally Posted by 313Weather

There's plenty of interesting ruins at least along east McNichols. If you go further east to McNichols and Mt. Elliot you'll see an abandoned Burger King and KFC. Then Marcus Hanburgers is near the same interestion. Then on the otherside of City Airport there's the ruin of an old Evergreen plant store on Strasburg and McNichols and an old 76 sign. Then of course in that same vicinity (McNichols and Hoover) there was that Alousins (sp?) ice cream plant and the old 7-eleven stores that were literally blocks from each other (the original 7-eleven at McNichols was so profitable that they opened an annex store just a few blocks down at McNichols and Teppert).
Finally I'm sure there's plenty of history near the McNichols and Gratiot interesection where the Romana Theatre stood

Some of these names sound familiar.
Did Shield's have a place on E. Warren nr Outer Drive?
Alinosi's ice cream? If so I knew someone who worked there. I think they had branch "parlors".
Had friends living on Hamburg off Gratiot. Pretty sure there was a German enclave in the area (notice the street names).