In 1959 Berry Gordy Jr., a local African-American songwriter, purchased this brick house and named it "Hitsville USA" in hopes that his record company, the Motown Record Corp., would make a dent in the charts. By 1966 Motown's offices occupied eight dwellings on the block and boasted performers such as the Temptations, the Supremes, Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder, Smokey Robinson, Gladys Knight and the Pips, the Jackson Five and others who merged gospel, pop, and rhythm-and-blues to create what became known as the Motown sound. Today the house contains a gallery charting Motown's success, and the tiny recording studio where dozens of hits were made.