Detroit: The Paris of the West?

Wikipedia claims the D was once known as the Paris of the West. When you drive down some of the grand boulevards and see the once-stately homes, you can see why.

But I get a taste of its French connection several times a week when I try to drive the few blocks from my office building to the Y and back and somehow end up halfway across town. As mentioned in my earlier post, downtown D is built on a spoke.

Downtown Detroit historic map





And a Paris map from Place Charles de Gaulle (which was originally called Place de l'Etoile or star square).