QLINE / Stop 8 of 12
QLINE stopWarren Avenue
Southbound just south of Warren Avenue · northbound just north of it
Wayne State University’s stop in Midtown: the Maccabees Building, the Cathedral Church of St. Paul, the Detroit Institute of Arts, the Detroit Public Library and the Michigan Science Center within walking distance.
Live GPS positions
- Platforms
- two curbside platforms
- District
- Midtown, Wayne State
- From Congress Street
- 18 min
- From Grand Boulevard
- 6 min
- Sponsor in 2017
- Wayne State University
01 / Story
The stop’s story
Warren Avenue is Wayne State University’s front door: the university itself sponsored the stop in 2017. To the west stand the campus buildings, among them Old Main, begun in 1894 as Detroit’s Central High School before it became the university’s main building. To the east the Cultural Center’s museums begin: the Michigan Science Center and the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History, home to the world’s largest permanent collection of African American culture.
The Maccabees Building went up in 1926 and 1927 for the Knights of the Maccabees, a fraternal society, and its tower carried the antenna of WXYZ radio and television until 1959. Wayne State owns it today. In July 1942 Arthur S. Siegel photographed Woodward looking north from the Maccabees Building, with the Fisher Building in the distance; streetcars still ran on it then.
DDOT’s route 8 runs along Warren Avenue, crossing the city east to west around the clock. The two platforms sit on opposite sides of the intersection: southbound you board on the west side just south of Warren, northbound on the east side just north of it.
- The gateway to Wayne State University
- The Maccabees Building and the Cathedral Church of St. Paul
- The Detroit Institute of Arts and the Main Library three minutes away
- Transfer to the round-the-clock Warren Avenue bus
02 / From the window
What you see from here
On your left, the university: the Maccabees Building’s tower, and a block west on Cass Avenue the clock tower of Old Main. On your right, the Cathedral Church of St. Paul, designed by Ralph Adams Cram and built in 1907; its congregation, formed in 1824, was the first Protestant church in the Michigan Territory. Ahead, the Detroit Institute of Arts faces the marble palace of the Detroit Public Library.
03 / Timeline
The stop’s timeline
Michigan’s first Protestant congregation
St. Paul’s congregation is formed.
Central High School rises
Construction of today’s Old Main begins.
The Cathedral Church of St. Paul
Ralph Adams Cram’s church on Woodward.
The Maccabees Building
The tower later used by WXYZ for broadcasting is finished.
Streetcars from above
Arthur S. Siegel photographs Woodward from the Maccabees Building.
The stop opens
The stop is sponsored by Wayne State University.
The streetcar stops here every fifteen minutes, free of charge.
04 / Did you know?
Did you know?
Wayne State was founded in 1868; today it is Michigan’s third-largest university, with nearly 24,000 students.
Old Main was built of brick and limestone quarried from the land directly in front of it.
A 701-meter wired section runs from Hancock Street to Ferry Street, and the Warren Avenue stop falls within it.
A closer look
Sources & fact check · Checked: 2026-09-26
Every fact is sourced. Where sources disagree (the number of stops, the weight of the cars or the construction cost, for example) we follow the primary, official source and say so in the text. The timetable comes from the QLINE’s official GTFS data and live positions from the RTA’s feed.
- QLINE – On the Line ↗
- City of Detroit Open Data – QLine Stops ↗
- QLINE – Plan your ride (archived 2017) ↗
- QLINE Transfer Guide 2022 (PDF) ↗
- City of Detroit Open Data – QLine M1 OnWire ↗
- Wikipedia – Maccabees Building ↗
- Wikipedia – Old Main (Wayne State University) ↗
- Wikipedia – Cathedral Church of St. Paul ↗
- Wikipedia – Wayne State University ↗
- Wikipedia – Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History ↗
- Wikipedia – Michigan Science Center ↗
05 / Nearby
Places within walking distance
Quarter Detroit places around the stop, with straight-line distances.
4 min walk · 240 mDetroit Public Library — Main LibraryReading rooms, murals, and marble stairs make Detroit’s Main Library an architectural destination.
4 min walk · 244 mMichigan Science CenterHands-on experiments, live demonstrations, and scientific discovery make this a rewarding family stop.
4 min walk · 252 mDetroit Institute of ArtsDiego Rivera’s monumental murals, celebrated artists, and a museum where Detroit’s own story comes into view.
6 min walk · 357 mDetroit Historical MuseumOld streets, factory stories, and musical memories bring Detroit’s past within reach.
6 min walk · 358 mCharles H. Wright Museum of African American HistoryAfrican American history, art, and community memory in Detroit’s cultural district.
6 min walk · 358 mGeneral Motors Theater at the Charles H. Wright Museum (The Wright Performances)The theater inside the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History in Midtown, home of The Wright Performances. The 2026–27 series brings PHILADANCO!, jessica Care moore, Meshell Ndegeocello and David Rousseve.
6 min walk · 369 mHilberry Gateway (Wayne State University Theatre and Dance)Wayne State's $65 million performing arts complex at Cass and Forest: a proscenium STAGE and a black box STUDIO with about 20 shows a year. The 2026–27 season brings The Crucible, Blood at the Root, Scrooge! and HAIR.
7 min walk · 442 mCommon Pub DetroitPub and restaurant on Wayne State's campus that doubles as a queer-friendly Midtown hangout, with Drag Race watch parties and drag brunches.- 8 min walk · 484 mRainbow Movie Night – Wayne State UniversityQueer film nights run by Wayne State's Center for Gender and Sexuality at the campus Community Arts Auditorium, sometimes with a drag show.
Around the stop, from the official QLINE list and the map
- Cathedral Church of St. Paul 1 min
The cathedral of the Episcopal Diocese of Michigan, Ralph Adams Cram’s church of 1907.
- Maccabees Building 1 min
A 1927 tower, once WXYZ’s transmitter, now owned by Wayne State.
- Detroit Institute of Arts 3 min
One of the country’s great art museums, with Diego Rivera’s Detroit Industry frescoes.
- Detroit Public Library 3 min
Cass Gilbert’s Italian Renaissance marble palace, the city’s Main Library.
- Michigan Science Center 4 min
A science museum with an IMAX dome and a planetarium.
- Old Main 4 min
Wayne State’s clock-towered landmark, once Central High School.
- Charles H. Wright Museum 5 min
One of the world’s oldest and largest independent African American museums.
06 / Events
Events near the stop
Upcoming events at venues around the stop.
Sep 26, 2026, 2:00 PMHola Frida: an animated tale of young Frida Kahlo at the Detroit Film Theatre
Detroit Institute of Arts · 4 min walkThe Detroit Film Theatre screens Hola Frida on Saturday, September 26, 2026, at 2 p.m., a colorful animated film about Frida Kahlo's childhood in Coyoacán. Stuck in bed with polio, young Frida finds her way out through imagination and art. It runs 82 minutes, in English and Spanish, and it's made for all ages, so bring the kids. Find it at 5200 Woodward Avenue, Detroit.
Oct 2, 2026, 7:00 PMThe Samurai and the Prisoner: Kiyoshi Kurosawa's castle mystery at the Detroit Film Theatre
Detroit Institute of Arts · 4 min walkA besieged castle in 16th-century Japan, a string of mysterious crimes and a dangerous prisoner in the dungeon. The Detroit Film Theatre screens Kiyoshi Kurosawa's new drama The Samurai and the Prisoner on Friday, October 2, 2026, at 7 p.m.. It played the 2026 Cannes Film Festival and is a New York Times Critic's Pick. In Japanese with English subtitles, 147 minutes, at 5200 Woodward Avenue, Detroit.