1.
Detroit is the only city in the lower 48 where you can actually look south and see Canada.
2. 70 percent of all the illegal alcohol that entered the US during Prohibition came through Detroit.
3. The very first news broadcast came out of Detroit on 8MK, now WWJ.
4. Fittingly, Detroit is home to the world’s largest tire, at 80 feet tall and a staggering 12 tons.
5. MLK made his “I Have a Dream” speech famous at the March on Washington, but it made its debut in Detroit.
6. Detroit was the first city where you could get someone’s digits - the city assigned individual phone numbers back in 1879.
7. The very first state fair was held in Detroit in 1879.
8. The Marriott at Renaissance Center is the second tallest hotel in the entire continent.
9. In 2010, North Corktown’s feline population was honored with a 7-foot tall cat statue called “Monumental Kitty.”
10. The Detroit River is not a river. It’s a strait, connecting Lake St. Clair to Lake Erie.
11. Despite the Lions' recent track record, Detroit is the third winningest city in the US behind New York and Boston.
12. The longest NHL game in sports history was on March 24, 1936, and Detroit made the winning score at 2:25 am.
13. Potato chip capital of the world… per consumption.
14. Ice cream soda was invented in Detroit when the clerk at Sander’s ran out of sweet cream, so they made one of the best improvisations ever.
15. Detroit has a gang of renegade landscapers called the Mower Gang who beautify public spaces pro bono.
16. At the opening of the Detroit Zoo in 1928, the mayor John C. Nagel tried to shake hands with an escaped polar bear.
17. Pizza deliveryman Richard Davis invented the bulletproof vest, after being attacked by three armed robbers during a delivery. And you thought delivering pizzas was easy.
18. 2014 is the 313th birthday of the 313 (that’s Detroit’s area code)
19. Detroit has more registered bowlers than any other city.
20. The salt mines beneath Detroit could keep our food flavored for over 70,000 years.
21. It’s only city where Feather Bowling, a marvelous mélange of bowling, curling and bocce ball, is a thing.
22. Detroit presented Saddam Hussein with the Key to the City in 1980, before it all started going downhill.
23. The ice rink in Campus Martius Park is bigger than Rockefeller Center’s.
24. Geography nerds will remember that Lansing is Michigan’s capitol, but back in the day it was Motor City.
25. It’s probably impossible to go hungry in the one square mile of downtown Detroit, with the 136 bars and restaurants squeezed into the space.
26. This one will really surprise - the crime rate in downtown Detroit has gone down by 37% between 2001 and 2012.
27. Legend-in-the-making starting pitcher Justin Verlander eats 3 Crunchy Taco Supremes, a Cheesy Gordita Crunch and a Mexican Pizza from Taco Bell before games.
28. Retired Pistons center Elden Campbell’s favorite Christmas song is “A Chipmunks Christmas.”
29. Never again will a Cobb play for the Tigers, as his various team numbers and even his name have been retired.
30. The Detroit Free Press Marathon features a mile-long section that goes underneath the Detroit River.
31. 1872: Elijay J. McCoy invents the best lubrication system for locomotives and other machinery; manufacturers will not settle for anything less than “the real McCoy.” Yep, that’s where it came from.
32. The world’s best carnival ringer, Peter Drakos, donates all of his stuffed animal prizes to charity.
33. The very first four-way traffic light was hung at the intersection of Woodward and Fort St.
What's your favorite Fun Detroit fact? Let us know in the comments below!
