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Sure, the idea that historians and archivists are like detectives is clichéd and overwrought; however, it seemed especially apt in regards to this innocent looking photo.

Finding a uniquely historic object in the collection is always a thrill. However, finding two items that relate to each other is an unforgettable experience. While cataloging some beautiful old coin purses in the collection, one of our volunteers ran across an object that was obviously not a purse — it was a bullet. What was a bullet doing in the coin purse drawer?

While the DHS artifact collection is primarily centered around metro Detroit objects, there is a significant collection of Native American material from throughout the Great Lakes region. As the ancestral home to more than a dozen different tribes, the Great Lakes were a source of food, transportation, clothing, shelter, and trade for thousands of years. With the establishment of Detroit came manufactured trade goods. One of the more common trade items among American Indians were glass beads.

While examining photos of Detroit around the turn of the last century, we frequently noticed strange towers which taper from a single pole at the base into a very tall latticed structure.  Seldom is the entirety of one in view.  Initially we took them to be utility poles supporting the city’s electric streetcar, telegraph, or phone lines.  After doing some digging we discovered that these were actually “