As Eastern Market recovers from Flower Day's 150,000-200,000 attendees, it's hard to understate the importance of the Detroit's one major marketplace . Easily one of the city's best-known tourist draws, the Eastern Market is also a critical food supplier for residents and restaurants alike. With that in mind, it's worth remembering that we once had another one of these valuable places: Western Market, Eastern's one-time sister establishment on the corner of Michigan Avenue and 18th Street. Though both markets were made official by Detroit's Common Council in 1891, Western Market was almost entirely erased by the Fisher Freeway in 1965. There's still some evidence of where it once stood.

Eastern Market would eventually grow larger than its Western counterpart, being called "the largest farmer's market in the world" by 1924. The "before" image below was taken in 1961, just four years before Western Market was demolished. The large street on the bottom of the photo is Michigan Avenue.









Ahead, archival photos of Western Market interspersed with recent photos of the same area. Most of the modern photos aren't exact matches of the historic photos, as much of the block containing what was once the main shed has been completely covered up by I-75.

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· Thousands flock to Flower Day at Eastern Market [Freep]

· Wild times at the farmers market [Det News]

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