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[Free transfer auto, Elliott, Taylor, Woolfenden Co., Detroit, Mich.] – Historic Reproduction

[Free transfer auto, Elliott, Taylor, Woolfenden Co., Detroit, Mich.], [between 1905 and 1915] — historic photograph
[Free transfer auto, Elliott, Taylor, Woolfenden Co., Detroit, Mich.], [between 1905 and 1915]. Historic photograph from the Detroit collection.

(Originally scanned by the Library of Congress. Each image is professionally and digitally cleaned of artifacts such as color bars and extra borders prior to printing.)

Description

Few images capture their era like this historic photograph of [Free transfer auto, Elliott, Taylor, Woolfenden Co., Detroit, Mich.]. An authentic image from the Library of Congress, it carries the weight of the real historical record.

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[Free transfer auto, Elliott, Taylor, Woolfenden Co., Detroit, Mich.]

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Most views of Detroit in this collection show streets and buildings, but this glass negative stands out for its advertising purpose: a motor bus labeled as a "free transfer auto" for the Elliott, Taylor, Woolfenden Co. dry goods store. The title suggests the vehicle carried shoppers between streetcar lines at no extra charge, a convenience that drew customers to the store. The Detroit Publishing Company, which photographed American cities and sold views to the public, made the negative sometime between 1905 and 1915, when motor buses were new on city streets and retailers were eager to use them.

Created / published[between 1905 and 1915]
Medium1 negative : glass ; 8 x 10 in.
GenreDry plate negatives.
NotesTitle from jacket. Possibly to encourage shopping. Detroit Publishing Co. no. 043804. Gift; State Historical Society of Colorado; 1949.
SubjectsDry goods stores. Buses.United States--Michigan--Detroit.
SourceLibrary of Congress, Detroit Publishing Company Collection
Original scan973 × 796 px
ReferenceAMZ-SOTP-DET-70565

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