24 July: Detroit

On this date in 1701, French explorer Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac landed at the present site of Detroit and founded Fort Detroit. 10 facts about Detroit:

1. The name is of French origin. It literally means "The Straight" because it was named for ‘le Detroit de lac Erie’ or the strait of Lake Erie. It's also known as the Paris of the Midwest, City of Champions because of its success in sports, and The 313, after the telephone code.
2. Talking of sport, Detroit has made seven unsuccessful bids for the summer Olympic Games —the most by any city in the world never to have hosted the event.
3. It's the only major city in the USA which is further north than parts of Canada.
4. The city's proximity to Canada made it a popular place during prohibition for smuggling in booze, both by road and via the waterways. 75% of the booze smuggled into America at that time passed through Detroit.
5. It's known by the nickname Motor City because it was a centre for the car manufacturing industry. During the second world war, however, the car factories switched to making military vehicles, including Sherman tanks and B-24 bombers. Stalin is said to have commented, “Detroit is winning the war.” As well as the car industry, Detroit was home to the first mile of concrete highway, and the first traffic tunnel to link two nations. A bonus car related fact: The city of Detroit spends more money issuing parking fines than it collects from them.
6. It's also known for Music, thanks to the Motown record label founded in the city by Berry Gordy Jr. Detroit is also considered the home of techno music, a genre which started in the 1980s.
7. Underneath the city are 1,400 acres of Salt mines with 100 miles of road serving them. It used to be possible to go on guided tours of them, but I expect the plague has put paid to that. If you're wondering where all the salt goes, at least some of it must end up on potato chips (aka crisps on the other side of the pond). Another nickname Detroit has is the Potato Chip Capital. People here consume 7 pounds of chips a year, compared to about 4 pounds in the rest of the US.
8. Detroit Zoo was the first zoo in America to feature cageless, open exhibits. The zoo originated when a circus came to town, and while it was there, went bankrupt.
9. Other things found in the city include the only floating post office in the US, which has its own zip code; the largest Satanic temple in America; and the tallest hotel in North America the Marriott at the Renaissance Center, which has 72 floors and was, when it was first built, the tallest hotel in the world.
10. In 1980, Detroit gave Saddam Hussein a key to the city in recognition of donations he made to local churches.

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