Detroit museums: African American, art & historical museums

Within just a few blocks of each other, you’ll find four Detroit museums that are all worth a visit. The Detroit Historical Museum, the Wright Museum of African American History and the Detroit Institute of Art (DIA), and the children’s museum Michigan Science Center are all in the same Detroit neighborhood. That’s lucky, because you’ll want to maximize your time in each of these Detroit Museums. With less time traveling between them, you’ll have more opportunity to admire art, experiment with science and learn about Motor City history.

These four Detroit museums find their home on or near Woodward Avenue, nicknamed “Detroit’s Main Street.” The nearby Wayne State University is Michigan’s third-largest.

It makes sense that this area is called the Art Center district. You can barely walk a block without bumping into a museum, a building of cultural significance, a publishing house or an independent gallery.

If you’re looking for things to do in Detroit, you’ll definitely want to stop at these Detroit museums.

Detroit Historical Museum

When I visited the Detroit Historical Museum, I knew Motor City was an important place for American music, industry and civil rights. Almost all of my knowledge of Detroit history was from the 1950s onward. Well I can tell you I learned a lot more at the Detroit Historical Museum.

You’ll want to start from the museum’s lower level, where it has recreated street scenes from the 1840s, 1870s and 1900s. You can walk inside storefronts that actually existed in long-ago Detroit, imagining what it would be like to order a few yards of cloth or get a shave from an old-time barber.

The museum’s main floor takes you along a timeline of the 20th century in the Allesee Gallery of Culture, highlighting important moments in sports, music, television and of course cars. Kids in particular will love the Kid Rock Music Lab, which includes displays of famous Detroit musicians, and where you can try your own hand at mixing the next hit.

Detroit wouldn’t be Detroit without the auto industry, so it makes sense that the Detroit Historical Museum includes a two-story display about Motor City. My favorite part: the assembly line with several cars mid-assembly. It was so cool to look inside the “guts” of these cars. I find I take my own car for granted sometimes, which makes it doubly cool to see all the intricate work that goes into making one run!

Finally, you’ll go upstairs. This area includes room for special exhibits. When I visited the Detroit Historical Museum, it reflected on 1967, the contentious year of protests and demonstrations in Downtown Detroit. I thought it did an excellent job of critically looking at the context of the so-called Detroit Riot, and encouraging visitors to consider what we want Detroit to be like 67 years from now.

Visiting Detroit Historical Museum: Details

Address: 5401 Woodward Ave, Detroit, MI

Admission: $10 for adults, $6 for children

Hours: Museum closed Mondays. See museum hours for other details.

African American Museum in Detroit

The Charles Wright Museum of African American History celebrates the culture and highlights the history of African Americans. From the moment you step inside this Detroit museum, you’ll feel the magnitude of its mission. The Freedom Rotunda lets in sunlight that illuminates the flags of countries from which African Americans can trace their ancestry.

I took about an hour and a half to go through the African American Museum in Detroit. Most of that was in its current main exhibition, “And Still We Rise.” This thorough, immersive exhibition traces the history of African Americans from the inhumanity of the Middle Passage to present-day. “Enslaved but never mastered” perfectly summed up this exhibition.

One thing that stood out in this exhibition was its use of sound. Museums tend to be hushed spaces, but the Wright used recorded music, dialogue and environmental noise to transport visitors back in time. You might hear the noises of a bustling market in West Africa or the shouts of a slave auction as you walk throughout this African American Museum in Detroit.

A word to the wise: Some parts of “And Still We Rise” were, understandably, disturbing and graphic. (You can’t exactly explore the history of slavery without going into its horrific details, can you?) Still, I would have thought twice before bringing very young children through. For example, one part played a recording of a man screaming as his skin was branded. Teaching all children our country’s history—the proud and the ugly parts equally—is critical. I also want to teach them in a way that’s age-appropriate and share details they have the tools and language to process.

I loved the “Personal to Political” exhibition, too. This showcased prints and other media from African American artists, including stunning quilts from an artist of Gee’s Bend, Alabama. I loved seeing artists who favored a particular medium (like fabric for quilt-making) explore other modes of expression.

The Wright Museum of African American History continually updates its exhibition. I’m bummed that “Queen,” showcasing artwork of African American women, wasn’t yet installed when I visited. Oh well—it’s just another reason to return to this Detroit museum!

Wright Museum of African American History: Details

Address: 315 East Warren Ave., Detroit, MI

Admission: $8 for adults, $5 for children, free for children under 3

Hours: Tuesday – Saturday 9am to 5pm. Sunday 1 – 5pm. Museum closed Mondays except for Martin Luther King, Jr. Day and Mondays in February.

DIA: Detroit Institute of Arts

The Detroit Institute of Arts is home to some of the most famous art in Detroit. The famous murals by Diego Rivera that take up an expansive room draw visitors from all over. These Detroit-centric murals highlight the auto industry, the WWII war effort and the artist’s worker-centric politics.

Although its 27 panels aren’t as controversial today, Detroit leaders called for the entire artwork to be destroyed. The head of the museum, as well as Henry Ford’s son Edsel (who provided some of the commission for the work), refused to give in. Thank goodness.

(Do you love murals—and want more? Then you’ll want to read my post on the best place to see street art in Detroit. This spot has murals on every block, so you’ll see dozens of them in one concentrated area.)

This Detroit art museum has much more than Rivera’s Detroit Industry Murals, of course. Art from Asia, Africa and the Middle East, as well as iconic pieces from the Americas and Europe, draw thousands of visitors each day. And the General Motors Center for African American Art puts a special emphasis on Black artwork, which was too long marginalized by museums.

Finally, if you visit DIA with kids, keep an eye on family-friendly activities and events. For example, look for a cart next to a statue of a donkey, called Artie, in the Prentis Court. This cart has free games kids can play throughout the museum. And on the weekends, volunteers lead kids’ activities throughout the museum. Finally, occasional workshops (like one making crayon rubbings and another stitching handmade books) are free with museum admission.

Detroit Institute of Arts: Details

Address: 5200 Woodward Ave., Detroit, MI

Admission: $14 for adults, $56 for children, free for children 5 and under

Hours: Open 7 days a week, most mornings at 9am. See the museum’s hours page for more details.

Michigan Science Center

Full disclosure: I haven’t visited this Detroit science museum—yet. But y’all know how much I love a good hands-on children’s museum! I know that the next time my kids and I are in Detroit, we’ll be spending a day at the Michigan Science Center.

This Detroit museum is directly next to the Detroit African American museum so I couldn’t resist including it. Like all the best children’s museum, the Science Center is interactive and hands-on. Kids can build model satellites, drive toy rovers over a pretend Mars, build an epic marble track and tinker in the Spark!Lab to invent new creations.

The Michigan Science Center also has a play area designed for preschoolers called Kid Town. It’s an area modeled after a city, with plenty of ways kids can use their imaginations and their sense of play, of course. Science-themed play dates with stories and guided activities take place here Wednesdays and Saturdays at 11am.

Where to eat near these Detroit museums

Going to museums makes me *hungry*! If you’re the same, here’s where to fill up.

For lunch, I recommend Seva, an all-vegetarian restaurant with hearty, seriously delicious fare. Meat-eaters and vegans alike will find plenty to love here. It took me ages to decide on what to order because I wanted it all. And every time a server brought out someone else’s meal, I changed my mind because it all looked so good!

In the end, I ordered vegan “cheese” dip with homemade tortilla chips, the parsnip chowder (which was featured in Vegetarian Times) and a mega satisfying vegan kale Caesar salad.

For dinner, head to Chartreuse, which was voted Detroit restaurant of the year in 2017. Its menu changes regularly to make the best use of what’s in season, so you know you’re always getting the freshest ingredients in whatever you order. To wit: A selection of just-picked vegetables from Recovery Park, the organization that turns vacant lots into urban gardens, is always on the menu.

You’ll also want to try chartreuse, the green liqueur this little restaurant is named after. You can taste a few of the varieties or order a cocktail mixed with this distinctive, herby liqueur. Finally, don’t forget to check out the living wall and flower installation at Chartreuse—definitely inspired by its green name!

So many Detroit museums!

I can’t imagine seeing all these Detroit museums in one day. (Just the thought of hitting up four museums at once makes me exhausted.) So when you’re in Detroit’s Art Center district, you’ll have to either pick which museums most interest you or pace yourself over a few days.

Have you been to any of these Detroit museums? Do you have other must-do recommendations for Motor City? Let me know in the comments!