While Belle Isle's conservatory is under renovation, we figured a walk down memory lane would be justified. And what better decade to revisit than the 1970s?
We dug through
Detroit Historical Society's digital archives and grabbed a few of the photos that best captured Belle Isle in the 1970s, along with captions provided by the historical society. From picnics to pony cart rides to elderly Detroiters getting a dance lesson, they charmingly illustrate what the state park was like five decades ago.
!["Black and white photographic print depicting the Major General Alpheus Starkey Williams memorial on Belle Isle standing in the intersection of Central and Inselruhe Avenues. The statue depicts Williams sitting astride his horse studying a map of a battlefield during a storm. An inscription on the front base reads "Major General/ Alpheus Starky Williams/ 1810-1878/ [south side of base], Hero of two wars. Judge, editor, postmaster, diplomat member of Congress. An untiring servant of the People, an honor to the City Of Detroit." Visible in the background are street signs reading Central Ave. and Inselruhe Ave. and the stables."](https://media1.metrotimes.com/metrotimes/imager/see-belle-isle-in-the-1970s-with-these-vintage-photos/u/zoom/33362113/history7.webp?cb=1738583328)
