Discuss Detroit » Archives - July 2007 » OK - So its Not Exactly Detroit.... « Previous Next »
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Chuckjav
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Username: Chuckjav

Post Number: 232
Registered: 09-2007
Posted on Wednesday, October 10, 2007 - 3:05 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Many, many years ago - during 1968, to be precise, in Royal Oak - not far from the Detroit Zoo; there was this weird hippie-like indoor mall, full of groovy clothing and jewelry.
It was tremendously popular...that much I know.

I am pretty sure that it was a basement set-up; the various stores seemed to be separated by curtains and blankets. Was it real...or was I just getting high on my pre-pubescent life?

Anyone remember anything like that?
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Ravine
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Username: Ravine

Post Number: 1411
Registered: 01-2006
Posted on Wednesday, October 10, 2007 - 3:11 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

The Trading Post. Need a humungous, multi-colored candle?
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Chuckjav
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Username: Chuckjav

Post Number: 234
Registered: 09-2007
Posted on Wednesday, October 10, 2007 - 4:29 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Ravine...thanks for the memory (literally)
That place was a total happening; far-out, and outta sight!

'Ya Know.
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Jimaz
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Username: Jimaz

Post Number: 3464
Registered: 12-2005
Posted on Wednesday, October 10, 2007 - 4:47 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

I too remember The Trading Post on Woodward. I wasn't sure exactly where it was though.

I recall reading an article about it when it burned down. Having a candle factory right in the hallway among that crowd of customers wasn't the safest idea.

It wasn't just a basement, it was a rather large house with an office upstairs.
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Ravine
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Username: Ravine

Post Number: 1417
Registered: 01-2006
Posted on Wednesday, October 10, 2007 - 4:55 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Chuck, a story for you:
My friend, Marie Wyszomierski (yeah, I liked those dago girls, so wuddaboutit?) worked at the second Trading Post, which was (somewhat briefly) located on Gratiot between 12 Mile and 14 Mile Roads. She managed to get me a try-out as the DJ playing music in the middle, atrium-like area inside the aforementioned hippie mall. I guess that I didn't work out very well, as no interest was shown in asking me back for a return engagement. Small wonder. I have an older brother, and I had been enjoying the stuff that he, and his friends, had been listening to, plus some artists who I had come to on my own, so while the lads & lassies of my age-group were all ga-ga over Led Zeppelin II, Grand Funk LIVE!, and Cat Stevens, here I come with my stack of LP's, stuff like Mountain (Climbing,) Quicksilver Messenger Service, Ten Years After, Jefferson Airplane, Sly & The Family Stone, Al Kooper, The Doors' Soft Parade, Cream's Disraeli Gears, Moody Blues, probably even King freakin' Crimson (the first LP; now, THERE'S some stuff you can dance to,) and God only knows what-all else.
Oops.
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Detroitplanner
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Username: Detroitplanner

Post Number: 1438
Registered: 04-2006
Posted on Wednesday, October 10, 2007 - 5:20 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

My parents used to take us to Plum Street, we didn't need any of that high class suburban hippie crap as kids growing up in the City... I was very young then, I can remember candles, god's-eyes, candy, ice cream, patchouli oil.... And WE LIKED IT!
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Jimaz
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Username: Jimaz

Post Number: 3465
Registered: 12-2005
Posted on Wednesday, October 10, 2007 - 5:28 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Yes, the memories are seeping back now.

My then-future-but-now-ex wife purchased a very attractive sheepskin coat there.

It was always crowded. They had exotic imported clothing, headshop paraphernalia, etc. The fragrances from all the candles and incense gave the place a magical atmosphere.

I was under the impression that it was a very informal collective of independent vendors, not just one organization.

On another occasion we had to escort a young lady from there who had had way too much to drink. She was not at all cooperative but we got her home safely.

I found only a mention of the place near the bottom of http://www.dailykos.com/story/ 2004/11/25/18736/940 but it confirms the place was near 10 Mile Rd.

(Message edited by Jimaz on October 10, 2007)
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Jazzstage
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Username: Jazzstage

Post Number: 134
Registered: 08-2007
Posted on Wednesday, October 10, 2007 - 6:00 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Thanks for sharing that story. It was very revealing. Now I understand why I cried my eyes out in the first grade when they said we were taking a bus on a field trip . I was scared to go on a bus due to all the stories going around at the time.
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Chuckjav
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Username: Chuckjav

Post Number: 235
Registered: 09-2007
Posted on Wednesday, October 10, 2007 - 6:36 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Good stuff....very good stuff.

Jimaz - dang, the Trading Post burned down - during business hours? Your description of a typical night at The Post is exactly the way I remember it.

Ravine - those were some awesome performers and bands; you must have one helluva album collection!

Detroitplanner - Plum Street....now that was some place altogether different; I read a cool article in the Detroit News' nostalgia section about Plum Street.

PS Something else I remember about the Trading Post was walking by the train station in Royal Oak and seeing passenger trains - talk about old school
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Detx
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Username: Detx

Post Number: 24
Registered: 07-2007
Posted on Wednesday, October 10, 2007 - 6:48 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Ravine, with all respect, what is Dago about the name Wyszomierski?
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Kid_dynamite
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Username: Kid_dynamite

Post Number: 300
Registered: 06-2007
Posted on Wednesday, October 10, 2007 - 6:58 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

I was wondering the same thing
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The_rock
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Username: The_rock

Post Number: 1985
Registered: 11-2003
Posted on Wednesday, October 10, 2007 - 7:07 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

chuckjav---I think the Trading Post was the former Hedges Wigwam restaurant that a few old timers on this Forum ( like me) remember very well.
Now if that's the case, my memory tells me that our law firm represented the insurer of the Trading Post when litigation arose after the big fire.
So SOMEONE tell me if it was the former restaurant, and I will proceed with the story!
Kinda of a funny story, actually.
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Jimaz
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Username: Jimaz

Post Number: 3468
Registered: 12-2005
Posted on Wednesday, October 10, 2007 - 7:20 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

I believe the fire was not during business hours but I could be wrong.

I do recall hearing the name Wigwam associated with the place so I think The_rock is correct.
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Douglasm
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Username: Douglasm

Post Number: 948
Registered: 10-2003
Posted on Wednesday, October 10, 2007 - 7:34 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Rock....
....Yup, you're right as usual. It was Hedges (the goldfish pond remained with water and fish) so you can continue with your story.

Hedges was on the South East corner, wedged in between the Shell station on the corner of Main and Woodward, and 10 Mile. I don't remember what was on the North West corner of Woodward and 10 Mile, but there was another row of "head" shops on 10 Mile across from Amy Joy, stretching to the parking lot/souviner stand at 10 Mile and Ridge Road (Lafayette St?).

BTW, Hedges was actually in Pleasant Ridge, wasn't it?

Doug from Ferndale
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Softailrider
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Username: Softailrider

Post Number: 71
Registered: 02-2007
Posted on Wednesday, October 10, 2007 - 7:45 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

If I remember correctly , Hedges Wigwam was a CAFETERIA not a restaurant . Not that it makes a difference , It was a place where you went to eat ( motto of Hedges was " heap good food " )
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Jimaz
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Username: Jimaz

Post Number: 3470
Registered: 12-2005
Posted on Wednesday, October 10, 2007 - 8:53 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Rereading this thread, I recognized that folks too young to have experienced The Trading Post might easily get the wrong impression about it.

Nothing like it exists today. This was not a "mall" in the sense of a sterile, preplanned, heavily-branded retail establishment designed only to optimize profit. It was exactly the opposite. Instead, it was ad hoc, messy, spontaneous, crowded, bohemian bazaar of independent misfits/artists trying (and apparently succeeding) to make a living despite their lack of a strategic "business plan."

Part of the charm was learning that you'd turn the next corner and discover something totally unexpected. You can't get that experience in today's corporate malls.
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Ravine
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Username: Ravine

Post Number: 1418
Registered: 01-2006
Posted on Wednesday, October 10, 2007 - 11:15 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Jesus CHRIST, folks, get to KNOW me... I would never use an impolite term like "dago" without there being something inherently absurd about the usage... Of COURSE, Marie was not Italian or Sicilian. She was, as I ASSUMED would be obvious ENOUGH, Polish (and Russian.)
But, Detx and Kid_, you two are fairly new to this forum. You are forgiven for forcing me to unravel my quip and thereby stripping it of any funniness it may have had.
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Ravine
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Username: Ravine

Post Number: 1419
Registered: 01-2006
Posted on Wednesday, October 10, 2007 - 11:20 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

And oh yeah, Chuck, my LP collection is pretty bitchin', but my brother's is-- almost literally-- unbelievable.
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Kid_dynamite
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Username: Kid_dynamite

Post Number: 304
Registered: 06-2007
Posted on Wednesday, October 10, 2007 - 11:29 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Not exactly new. New username, but that's besides the point; you didn't have to unravel much for it not to be funny.
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Karl_jr
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Username: Karl_jr

Post Number: 124
Registered: 06-2007
Posted on Thursday, October 11, 2007 - 12:52 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

plum street, anyone remember love beads and french bread?
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Detx
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Username: Detx

Post Number: 25
Registered: 07-2007
Posted on Thursday, October 11, 2007 - 12:56 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

So the Dago thing was your own little absurd joke. I’m not familiar with your personality so obviously I’m not going to pick up on that. But the pointless blasphemy? There’s no humor behind that.
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The_rock
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Username: The_rock

Post Number: 1987
Registered: 11-2003
Posted on Thursday, October 11, 2007 - 8:57 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

OK--Thank you for the connection between Hedge's and The Trading Post. By the way, the last time I saw them, the wooden Indians that used to be in front of Hedges were on display at a cider mill out north of Rochester. (Paint Creek cider mill?) which I believe is no longer a cider mill.
Anyway, after the fire, the insurance carrier that insured the building and paid for the damage, sued our client which was a one -man security guard service. The insurance company claimed that the security guard was not ON the premises when the boys on the motorcycles showed up and torched the place. If he had been "on duty", the motorcyclists would not have burned the place down. At least, that was their contention.
Yes, the guard was not present. There was no working bathroom on the premises, and this was before the days of porta-potties. The owners declined to provide one. The poor guard had stood his post for several hours, his bladder was now bursting at the seems, and so he crossed Woodward to the West side of the street and used the facilities at the donut shop. When he returned, the fire had started and that was that.
My law partner argued to the jury that the owners should have at least had the brains ( and the courtesy) to provide the security guard with a working bathroom, and perhaps the place would not have been torched while he was across the street doing his thing.
The security guard was a really nice chap who both testified and made a sincere impression on the Oakland County jury, much better than the absentee landlords, and we won the case.
"If you gotta go, you gotta go." At least it worked for us back then.
And I agree with Softrider, I believe that Hedges was "cafeteria style." I remember the gold fish pond inside the place as my brother pushed me in it once.
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Chuckjav
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Username: Chuckjav

Post Number: 238
Registered: 09-2007
Posted on Thursday, October 11, 2007 - 11:07 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Jimaz...very good description of the Trading Post as an ad hoc, messy, spontaneous, crowded, bohemian bazaar of independent misfits/artists trying (and apparently succeeding) to make a living despite their lack of a strategic "business plan."

I remember seeing some folks twisting up doobies at that place.

Yes my friends, gone are those days of open individualism without repercussion.

Dat's foe-sho.
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Toolbox
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Username: Toolbox

Post Number: 1108
Registered: 10-2003
Posted on Thursday, October 11, 2007 - 1:02 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Hedges was in PR.

The indians are still at the Paint Creek Cider Mill on Orion Road. It is still a cider mill with an upscale resturant in a portion now.

quote:

Chuckjav

Yes my friends, gone are those days of open individualism without repercussion.



You just buy individualism at the mall at Hot Topic now
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Philm
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Username: Philm

Post Number: 36
Registered: 03-2005
Posted on Thursday, October 11, 2007 - 1:05 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

"Yes my friends, gone are those days of open individualism without repercussion. "

..and John Sinclair now lives in Amsterdam....go figure.

Phil
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Jazzstage
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Username: Jazzstage

Post Number: 138
Registered: 08-2007
Posted on Saturday, October 13, 2007 - 2:03 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Interesting article about the giant stove as well as the Uniroyal tire.

http://info.detnews.com/histor y/story/index.cfm?id=198&categ ory=life
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Lilpup
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Username: Lilpup

Post Number: 2931
Registered: 06-2004
Posted on Saturday, October 13, 2007 - 3:19 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

having trouble visualizing the layout, as I was just a tot at the time, but I do remember the Red Barn restaurant (later Alligator Alley) was near there - virtually right under the water tower - and there was a flea market type store on or near the NW corner of 10 Mile - I distinctly remember the horse that always stood at a door on the 10 Mile side of the store and wondering what happened to it when the building disappeared
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Ookpik
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Username: Ookpik

Post Number: 341
Registered: 01-2007
Posted on Saturday, October 13, 2007 - 5:18 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)





Corner of 10 Mile and Woodward - 1940's

Larger View

Ookpik
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Douglasm
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Username: Douglasm

Post Number: 950
Registered: 10-2003
Posted on Saturday, October 13, 2007 - 8:25 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Fasinating. That would have put the Shell station in the Hedges parking lot at the time of the picture. I remember the station being on the corner of Woodward and Main, with Hedges behind it on Woodward.
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Lilpup
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Username: Lilpup

Post Number: 2932
Registered: 06-2004
Posted on Saturday, October 13, 2007 - 10:33 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

my brother definitely remembers the Shell station being on the point of land between Woodward & Main

My dad said the store I was thinking of as a flea market was an antiques market

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