By the early 1900s, Poletown East boasted one of the finest commercial corridors in the city, had a handful of magnificent churches, and operated numerous public and church schools. In 1985, GM’s new Hamtramck Assembly plant opened. It decimated Poletown, the neighborhood northwest of Poletown East, making it harder to get to the neighborhood from Hamtramck, which hurt local businesses. Detroit built a new incinerator complex to the southwest, opening in 1986, adding smell and asthma problems to the already struggling neighborhood. Of the structures that still stand, not many are utilized to their full potential.

Every location listed here may not technically be in Poletown East proper, but it’s close or relevant enough to be included on this page.

At the bottom of this page, every location I’ve documented in Poletown East is plotted on a map to better understand the neighborhood.