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Hart Plaza is a riverfront area in Detroit, Michigan, that is used for large public events. It’s located at the end of Woodward Avenue and south of Jefferson Street, across from Spirit Plaza.
The plaza is named for Philip Hart (1912-1976), a US Senator from Michigan. It opened in 1975 and has a capacity of 40,000 people. In the center is the Horace E. Dodge and Son Memorial Fountain, designed by Isamu Noguchi in 1978 and built in 1981. An amphitheater sits to one side.
Views
The plaza offers great views of the Detroit skyline, including many historic skyscrapers, and the GM Renaissance Center.
It’s also possible to look across the Detroit River at Windsor, Ontario, Canada. Detroit is the only place in the United States where you can look south and see Canada.
Underground Railroad Memorial
On the riverwalk is the Gateway to Freedom International Memorial to the Underground Railroad, which commemorates Detroit’s role in the Underground Railroad. It was sculpted by Ed Dwight and dedicated on October 20, 2001.
The memorial features six fugitive slaves getting ready to board a boat to freedom in Canada. The man pointing across the river is George DeBaptist, a Detroit resident who helped slaves get across the river.
Detroit Princess Riverboat
Along the riverwalk to the west is the Detroit Princess Riverboat, which offers dinner cruises and other events.
La Mothe Statue
A statue of Antoine Laumet de la Mothe, sieur de Cadillac (1658-1730), the founder of Detroit, is also located at Hart Plaza. It depicts the moment the French explorer arrived to the area in 1701 and claimed it for France. La Mothe landed more or less where Hart Plaza is located today and founded Fort Pontchartrain du Détroit, which later became the city of Detroit.
Historical Markers
A pair of historical markers describing La Mothe’s landing sit nearby. One lists the names of all the French Canadians who accompanied him.
Another historical marker dedicated to the Ford Motor Company sits at the other end of the plaza.
Transcending
On the north end of Hart Plaza is Transcending, an arch sculpture that serves as the Michigan Labor Legacy Landmark. It was dedicated on August 30, 2003.
Mariners’ Church
Finally, east of Hart Plaza walking towards the GM Renaissance Center is the Mariners’ Church. It was founded in 1842 to serve the religious needs of the sailors of the Great Lakes. The present building was constructed in 1849 and belongs to the Anglican Church. Interestingly, it was originally located 880 feet to the west and moved to its current location in 1955. The church had been slated for demolition during the construction of a new civic center.
Just outside the Mariners’ Church is a statue of George Washington as a Master Mason, erected in 1966. It’s a copy of an original sculpted in 1959 by Donald De Lue.
