U-Matic

Historic Sweet Home & Detroit Neighborhoods
Nadyne Edison

U-Matic S tape containing footage shot out of the windows of a car as it drives first around the eastside neighborhood surrounding the Dr. Ossian Sweet house on Garland Street, and then around the LaSalle Gardens neighborhood.

The driver and the camera operator's interactions are captured by the camera's microphone, and one of them provides a running narration of what blocks and addresses the car is passing. For much of the tape, the camera operator keeps the camera pointed out of the passenger side window, although she occasionally pans to the other side, and begins each block with a view straight down the street through the windshield.

The recording begins with the car headed northwest along the 2900 block of Bewich Street, north of Charlevoix Street toward Goethe Street. The recording briefly cuts away, then resumes as they turn right from Goethe onto the 3000 block of Garland Street. At the end of the block, on the west corner of Garland and Charlevoix they reach 2905 Garland, the former home of Dr. Ossian Sweet. They make several passes of the house, pulling into the alley behind it, backing up along Charlevoix for a wider view.

After another cut, the pair heads northwest along Cadillac Boulevard's 2900 block, from north of Charlevoix toward Goethe. This segment ends with a view from outside the car southeast along Cadillac Boulevard from just northwest of Goethe.

After another cut, the recording resumes in a new area--LaSalle Gardens. The car first heads southwest along Lamothe Avenue from 14th Street. They then turn right onto LaSalle Boulevard, and then make another right onto South LaSalle Gardens, which they take northeast back to 14th Street.

The recording then cuts, and resumes with the card heading southwest along Lothrop Street from 14th Street, across LaSalle Boulevard, and to Linwood Street, where the Lee Plaza comes into view.

After another cut, the recording resumes with the car now slightly to the north on Virginia Park Street. They pair take Virginia Park northeast from Linwood Street, across LaSalle Boulevard, to 14th Street.

The tape ends while the pair drives southwest along LaSalle Gardens North, from 14th Street.

The video is on a red 3M SP20s U-Matic S tape with a handwritten 3M label on its top. The tape is housed within a latching black plastic case with a label on its back cover.