1967: Early Hours of the 12th Street Riot

Racial tensions boiled over again in July of 1967. A botched raid by the Detroit Police Department on an after-hours bar on 12th Street and Clairmount Street touched off rioting, looting and arson that lasted for four days. In the picture above, looters ransack businesses along 12th Street in the early hours of the riot.

The images from 1967 and present day don't line up, as 12th Street (later renamed Rosa Parks Boulevard) was widened in the 1980's.

Original photo: July 23rd, 1967. Courtesy of the Burton Historical Collection, Detroit Public Library

Current photo: September, 2013