Noteworthy Artifacts from Our Main Storage Building

The 606 Horse Shoe Bar was the last remaining nightclub from Paradise Valley, center of Detroit's African American community during the 1930s-1940s. This tight-knit and lively neighborhood teemed with clubs, theaters and dance halls where African American artists lit up the night. Beginning in the 1950s, urban renewal scattered the community’s residents. This sign and its story? Preserved in MSB! --Jeanine Miller, Curator of Domestic Life

Standing nearly eight feet tall, this telephone switchboard is imposing even in the vast expanse of MSB. It hints at both the scale and complexity of manual telephone exchanges in sprawling urban areas (like metro Detroit, where this unit was used) and evokes an appreciation for the switchboard operators who kept them running. --Saige Jedele, Associate Curator, Digital Content

This machine wound together different elements of the second transatlantic telegraph cable: iron, copper, gutta percha, and hemp. This cable was laid successfully by the SS Great Eastern in 1866, opening new worlds of communication. Pictured here in an old photograph taken in the museum, this hulking machine required special rigging movers to place it safely in MSB. -- Kristen Gallerneaux, Curator of Communications & Information Technology

Proof that anything can be design inspiration, this mako shark cast, now housed in MSB, was taken from a shark caught by designer Bill Mitchell, eventually serving as the styling inspiration for the 1961 Mako Shark concept Corvette. Car elements derived from the shark included the streamlining, the pointed snout, and the vehicle's blue-to-white paint scheme. --Janice Unger, Processing Archivist

The Model A put Ford back in front when it replaced the outdated Model T in 1927. It was the first production car developed in the Ford Engineering Laboratory (FEL), which means that Henry Ford's personal Model A is right at home in MSB--formerly FEL. --Matt Anderson, Curator of Transportation

This ten-seater bicycle is the only one of its kind that still exists. At nearly 24 feet long, it's not an easy artifact to store! MSB allows it to have the space it needs for safe preservation. --Ellice Engdahl, Digital Collections & Content Manager

This meter is one of the more interesting in the collection. It appears to be a prototype made from three distinct meter parts: Thomson-Houston and Thomson Recording Wattmeters with a Caryl Davis Haskins Anti-Creeping device on top. MSB, a former laboratory, is the most fitting home for this experimental artifact. --Laura Myles, Collections Specialist

A unique wagon that currently lives in MSB, “The Busy World” Automaton Wagon is an “automated” wagon that depicts different scenes that move. Though not powered by electricity, I’m sure it was a sight to see in motion--it was operational when it was on display in Henry Ford Museum many years ago. Thanks to the space in MSB, it can stay safe perhaps to go out on exhibit again one day! --Jillian Ferraiuolo, Digital Imaging Specialist

Fifty years ago, this 3,000-pound Unimate became the first industrial robot ever installed on an assembly line. It probably isn't planning to escape the MSB and overthrow its human masters. Probably. --Jim Orr, Image Services Specialist

At the far end of a room filled with all types of automobiles, a group of advertising signs hang on the back wall. Once hoisted high in the sky, they beckoned travelers to stop & refuel—a red star (Texaco), scalloped shell (Shell Oil), & flying horse (Mobil) were recognizable symbols. Today, displayed like the artwork they are, their gleaming enamel beckons visitors to explore deeper into MSB. --Katherine White, Associate Curator, Digital Content

A small artifact stored in MSB is this lovely mechanical magic lantern slide featuring a painted image of a waterwheel. Magic lantern shows were popular entertainment before motion pictures, and mechanical lantern slides allowed for movement of the image. Seeing an image move for the first time would have been quite an experience! --Shannon Rossi, Collections Specialist

Dangling in a baggie, tied to a hatch that opens up to reveal the guts of an amplifier used by W8XWJ in the 1930s, there's an old cigarette butt that was found inside the storm-cloud grey, early tech obelisk. Tied to the baggie: a photo of the station engineer standing next to the amp, smoking. Sometimes extraordinary objects tell stories of their everyday lives that are so mundane it's almost profound. --Bernie Brooks, Collections Specialist

The Owens Magnetic may look like cars around its era, but it features some unique and quirky mechanicals. Its engine spins rotational power to a horseshoe magnet that turns the drive shaft to power the rear wheels. There is also an “electric” brake that adds resistance to the motor that not only slows down the car but recharges the batteries. --Cuong Nguyen, Conservator

When working with the artifacts in MSB, sometimes you encounter an artifact that’s delightfully strange. Stored in the collapsed position, this portable bathtub from the early 20th century looks mechanical and hygienic, and is oddly gravity defying. --Kathleen Ochmanski, Assistant Collections Manager