With handprints and signatures forever captured in cement, nearly two dozen celebrities with Detroit roots will be permanently commemorated throughout Detroit Legends Plaza, as the Detroit Historical Society welcomes the public to its newly renovated and re-imagined outdoor entrance exhibition, on the corner of Woodward Avenue and Kirby Street.

Detroit Legends Plaza opens to the public on Wednesday, Sept. 19 featuring castings of an array of legendary Detroiters: Juan Atkins, Mayor Dave Bing, Alice Cooper, Carl Craig, Joe Dumars, Eddies Fowlkes, Carmen Harlan, Tommy Hearns, Gordie Howe, Mike and Marian Ilitch, Al Kaline, Elmore Leonard, Ted Lindsay, Derrick May, Jeff Mills, Dick Purtan, Sam Raimi, Martha Reeves, Barry Sanders, Kevin Saunderson, Devin Scillian and Lily Tomlin. The Detroit Historical Society has been collecting handprints for Detroit Legends Plaza since July 2011 as part of its Past>Forward campaign. The collection will continue to grow over time.

“We’ve been looking forward to this day since the launch of our Past>Forward campaign and are excited to unveil this new, interactive outdoor exhibition, in celebration of those who’ve been integral in establishing and continuing to shape Detroit’s rich culture,” said Bob Bury, CEO and executive director of Detroit Historical Society. “Detroit Legends Plaza is a tribute to the accomplishments of so many exceptional Detroiters and offers an outdoor introduction to some of the cultural treasures featured indoors within our new Allesee Gallery of Culture, which opens later this fall.”

Detroit Legends Plaza is made possible via the Detroit Historical Society’s Past>Forward campaign, a fundraising effort to raise $20.1 million towards new and expanded exhibits, technology upgrades, educational offerings and enhancements to the Detroit Historical Museum, Dossin Great Lakes Museum and the Detroit Historical Society Collection. The upgrades and improvements funded by the campaign marked the first major renovations of this scale since the museum was expanded in the 1960s.

The newly renovated Detroit Historical Museum will reopen Friday, Nov. 23 with free admission for 60 straight hours throughout Thanksgiving weekend.


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