Detroit United Lines and Interurban Connections

Michigan’s largest interurban railway near its height.

The lines of the Detroit United Railway can be seen stretching from Kalamazoo to Port Huron and Bay City to Toledo on this map, published in 1916. Through its primary routes and connecting lines the company operated the largest interurban network in the state, though financial mismanagement and political pressure would cause it to become largely abandoned or sold off by about a decade later.

Labeled lines are shown in bright red emanating from Detroit and reach numerous cities across southeastern Michigan and northern Ohio. Major urban areas are represented with an industrial skyline unappealing to the modern senses, though Lansing and Ann Arbor are differentiated by their respective universities.

An interesting typographic strategy is employed to name stops along each line, as well as other towns and features. Ships of all shapes and sizes are shown across the Great Lakes, while a soft color palette adds to the overall pleasing aesthetic. Tranquil photographs ‘from a million beauty spots along the interurban lines’ and general information about the lines can be found on the verso.

Published in Detroit by the Calvert Lithograph Company on behalf of Detroit United Lines in 1916. Scarce, with only one example for this year found in OCLC at the University of Michigan.

Source: OCLC# 855210175