List of Registered Historic Places in Detroit, Michigan
Encyclopedia
This is intended to be a complete list of the properties and districts on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
in Detroit, Michigan
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Latitude and longitude coordinates are provided for many National Register properties and districts; these locations may be seen together in Google Maps
Google Maps
Google Maps is a web mapping service application and technology provided by Google, free , that powers many map-based services, including the Google Maps website, Google Ride Finder, Google Transit, and maps embedded on third-party websites via the Google Maps API...
.
There are 240 properties and districts listed on the National Register in the city proper, including eight National Historic Landmark
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...
s and one property straddling the border with River Rouge, Michigan
River Rouge, Michigan
As of the census of 2000, there were 9,917 people, 3,640 households, and 2,504 families residing in the city. The population density was 3,713.9 per square mile . There were 4,080 housing units at an average density of 1,528.0 per square mile...
. Nine additional properties and districts, including one National Historic Landmark, are located in the Detroit enclave of Highland Park
Highland Park, Michigan
- Geography :According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all land.- Demographics :As of the census of 2000, there were 16,746 people, 6,199 households, and 3,521 families residing in the city. The population density was 5,622.9 per square mile . There were 7,249...
. One property is located in the Detroit enclave of Hamtramck
Hamtramck, Michigan
Hamtramck is a city in Wayne County of the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 22,423. Hamtramck is surrounded by the city of Detroit except for a small portion of the western border that touches the similarly surrounded city of Highland Park...
.
The properties and districts in these two Detroit enclaves, plus 63 others, are listed in this list of non-Detroit NRHP listings in Wayne County.
Beginnings
Augustus B. Woodward
Augustus Brevoort Woodward was the first Chief Justice of the Michigan Territory. In that position, he played a prominent role in the planning and reconstruction of Detroit following a devastating fire.Woodward never married. His biographer, Arthur M...
designed a plan of evenly spaced public parks with interconnecting semi-circular and diagonal streets. Although Woodward's plan was not fully implemented, the basic outline in still in place today in the heart of the city. Main thoroughfares radiate outward from the center of the city like spokes in a wheel, with Jefferson Avenue
Jefferson Avenue (Detroit)
Jefferson Avenue is a scenic road along the eastern part of the Detroit metropolitan area in the U.S. state of Michigan. It travels alongside Lake Erie, the Detroit River, and Lake Saint Clair. This road also provides access to many recreational facilities in the area...
running parallel to the river, Woodward Avenue running perpendicular to it, and Gratiot
M-3 (Michigan highway)
M-3 is a north–south state highway in the US state of Michigan in the Detroit metropolitan area. For most of its length, M-3 is known as Gratiot Avenue...
, Michigan, and Grand River
Grand River Avenue
US Highway 16 , also called Grand River Avenue for much of its length, is one of the principal pre-Interstate roads in the state of Michigan. Before the creation of the United States Numbered Highway System in 1926, the highway had been designated M-16...
Avenues interspersed. A sixth main street, Fort
M-85 (Michigan highway)
M-85, also known as Fort Street or Fort Road for its entire length, is a state highway route in the U.S. state of Michigan.In Detroit proper, M-85 consists of West Fort street and South Fort street...
, wanders downriver from the center of the city.
After Detroit rebuilt in the early 19th century, a thriving community soon sprang up, and by the Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
, over 45,000 people were living in the city, primarily spread along Jefferson Avenue to the east and Fort Street to the west. As in many major American cities, subsequent redevelopment of the central city through the next 150 years has eliminated all but a handful of the antebellum structures in Detroit. The oldest remaining structures are those built as private residences, including a group in the Corktown neighborhood and another set of houses strung along Jefferson Avenue — notably the Charles Trowbridge House
Charles Trowbridge House
The Charles C. Trowbridge House is located at 1380 E. Jefferson Avenue in Detroit, Michigan. It is the oldest building in the city of Detroit, and was designated a Michigan State Historic Site in 1974 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1976.- History :Charles Christopher...
(1826, the oldest known structure in the city), the Joseph Campau House
Joseph Campau House
The Joseph Campau House is a private residence located at 2910 East Jefferson Avenue in Detroit, Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1985...
(1835), the Sibley House (1848), the Beaubien House
Beaubien House
The Charles Trombly House is located at 553 E. Jefferson Avenue in Detroit, Michigan. It is more commonly known as the Beaubien House, and is currently the headquarters of the Michigan Architectural Foundation...
(1851), and the Moross House
Moross House
The Moross House is a house located at 1460 East Jefferson Avenue in Detroit, Michigan. It is the oldest surviving brick house in the city, and was designated a Michigan State Historic Site in 1971 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1972....
(1855). Other extant pre-1860 structures include Fort Wayne
Fort Wayne (Detroit)
Fort Wayne is located in the city of Detroit, Michigan, at the foot of Livernois Avenue in the Delray neighborhood. The fort is situated on the Detroit River at a point where it is about a mile to the Canadian shore. The original 1848 limestone barracks still stands, as does the 1845 star...
(1849); Saints Peter and Paul Church
Saints Peter and Paul Church, Detroit, Michigan
The Saints Peter And Paul Church is a Roman Catholic church located at 629 East Jefferson Ave in Detroit, Michigan. It is the oldest existing church in the city of Detroit, and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places and was designated a Michigan State Historic Site in 1971.-...
(1848) and Mariner's Church (1849); and scattered commercial buildings (one in Randolph Street Commercial Buildings Historic District
Randolph Street Commercial Buildings Historic District
The Randolph Street Commercial Buildings Historic District is a historic district located in Detroit, Michigan, which includes six buildings along Randolph Street between Monroe and Macomb streets . The district was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980...
, for example); Unfortunately, the demolition of historic structures continues into the present day: multiple structures listed on the Register, including the Alexander Chene House
Alexander Chene House
The Alexander Chêne House was built as a private residence located at 2681 East Jefferson Avenue in Detroit, Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1985 and designated a Michigan State Historic Site in 1986, but subsequently demolished in April 1991.- Description...
(1855), have been demolished in the last decade.
Rise of industry and commerce
As Detroit grew into a thriving hub of commerce and industry, the city spread along Jefferson, with multiple manufacturing firms taking advantage of the transportation resources afforded by the river and a parallel rail line. The shipyard that eventually became the Dry Dock Engine Works-Detroit Dry Dock Company ComplexDry Dock Engine Works-Detroit Dry Dock Company Complex
The Dry Dock Engine Works-Detroit Dry Dock Company Complex consists of a complex of six interconnected buildings located at 1801–1803 Atwater Street in Detroit, Michigan, as well as the remains of a nearby dry dock at 1900 Atwater Street. The 1801-1803 Atwater complex is also known as the Globe...
opened on the Detroit River
Detroit River
The Detroit River is a strait in the Great Lakes system. The name comes from the French Rivière du Détroit, which translates literally as "River of the Strait". The Detroit River has served an important role in the history of Detroit and is one of the busiest waterways in the world. The river...
at the foot of Orleans in 1852; Parke-Davis
Parke-Davis and Company Pharmaceutical Company Plant
The historic River Place is located in Detroit, Michigan, bounded by Joseph Campau Avenue, Wight Street, McDougal Avenue, and the Detroit International Riverfront. It was formerly the Parke-Davis and Company Pharmaceutical Plant...
established a center between East Jefferson Avenue
East Jefferson Avenue Residential TR
The East Jefferson Avenue Residential District in Detroit, Michigan includes the Thematic Resource in the multiple property submission to the National Register of Historic Places which was approved on October 9, 1985. The structures are single-family and multiple-unit residential buildings with...
and the river in the 1870s; another pharmeceutical firm, the Frederick Stearns Company
Frederick Stearns Building
The Frederick Stearns Building is a manufacturing plant located at 6533 East Jefferson Avenue in Detroit, Michigan. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980 and designated a Michigan State Historic Site in 1981...
, built a plant in the same area in the 1890s. Globe Tobacco
Globe Tobacco Building
The Globe Tobacco Building is a manufacturing building located at 407 East Fort Street in Detroit, Michigan. It is the oldest tobacco manufactory extant in Detroit, and is listed by the National Register of Historic Places.- History :...
built a manufacturing facility closer to downtown in 1888.
The rise of manufacturing led to a new class of wealthy industrialists, entrepreneurs, and professionals. Some of these nouveau riche built along East Jefferson, resulting in structures such as the Thomas A. Parker House
Thomas A. Parker House
The Thomas A. Parker House was built as a private residence located at 975 East Jefferson Avenue in Detroit, Michigan. The house was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982. It is currently the law offices of Macuga, Liddle & Dubin, P.C....
(1868), the Croul-Palms House
Croul-Palms House
The Croul-Palms House is a private residence located at 1394 East Jefferson Avenue in Detroit, Michigan. The house is named after its first two owners, Jerome Croul and Francis Palms. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983....
(1881), the William H. Wells House
William H. Wells House
The William H. Wells House is a private residence located at 2931 East Jefferson Avenue in Detroit, Michigan, USA. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1985.- Architecture :...
(1889), the John N. Bagley House
John N. Bagley House
The John N. Bagley House is a private residence located at 2921 East Jefferson Avenue in Detroit, Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1985.- Architecture :...
(1889), and the Frederick K. Stearns House
Frederick K. Stearns House
The Frederick K. Stearns House is a home located at 8109 East Jefferson Avenue in Detroit, Michigan, directly adjacent to the Arthur M. Parker House. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1985.- Description :...
(1902). However, Detroit began increasingly to turn away from the river, and other citizens pushed north of downtown, building houses along Woodward in what was at the time a quiet residential area. Many of these neighborhoods have disappeared under 20th-century commercialization of the Woodward corridor, but some Victorian structures remain, notably the Elisha Taylor House
Elisha Taylor House
The Elisha Taylor House is a private home located at 59 Alfred Street in Detroit, Michigan. The house was designated a Michigan State Historic Site in 1973 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1975. Since 1981, it has served as a center for art and architectural study, known as...
(1870) and the Hudson-Evans House
Hudson-Evans House
The Hudson-Evans House is a private, single-family home located at 79 Alfred Street in Detroit, Michigan. It is also known as the Joseph Lothian Hudson House or the Grace Whitney Evans House, and is currently used as the offices of a law firm...
(1872), both near the Woodward East Historic District; and the Col. Frank J. Hecker House
Col. Frank J. Hecker House
The Col. Frank J. Hecker House is located at 5510 Woodward Avenue in Detroit, Michigan. The mansion serves as the Royal Danish Consulate in Detroit. It was designated a Michigan State Historic Site in 1958 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1971.-Col. Hecker:Col. Frank J...
(1888) and the Charles Lang Freer House
Charles Lang Freer House
The Charles Lang Freer House is located at 71 East Ferry Avenue in Detroit, Michigan. Originally built by the industrialist and art collector Charles Lang Freer whose gift of the Freer Gallery of Art began the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC. The house is currently the Merrill Palmer...
(1887) in the East Ferry Avenue Historic District
East Ferry Avenue Historic District
The East Ferry Avenue Historic District is a historic residential district in Detroit, Michigan. The nationally-designated historic district stretches two blocks from Woodward Avenue east to Brush; the locally-designated historic district includes a third block between Brush and Beaubien. The...
. Near the end of the century, apartment living became more acceptable for affluent middle-class families, and upscale apartments, such as the Coronado Apartments
Coronado Apartments
The Coronado Apartments are an apartment building located on 3751-73 Second Avenue in Detroit, Michigan. It was designated a Michigan State Historic Site in 1980 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982.- History :The Coronado Apartments were built in 1894 by George D...
(1894), the Verona Apartments (1894), the Palms Apartments
Palms Apartments
The Palms is an apartment building located at 1001 East Jefferson Avenue in Detroit, Michigan. It was one of the first buildings in the US to use reinforced concrete as one of its major construction materials...
(1903), the Davenport Apartments (1905) in the Cass-Davenport Historic District
Cass-Davenport Historic District
The Cass-Davenport Historic District is a historic district of apartment buildings in Detroit, Michigan, roughly bounded Cass Ave., Davenport, and Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. The district was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1997...
, and the Garden Court Apartments (1915) were constructed to meet the new demand.
These well-to-do late-19th-century residents also funded the construction of a spate of churches, such as the Cass Avenue Methodist Episcopal Church
Cass Avenue Methodist Episcopal Church
The Cass Community United Methodist Church is located at 3901 Cass Avenue in Detroit, Michigan. It was built in 1883 as the Cass Avenue Methodist Episcopal Church, listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982, and designated a Michigan State Historic Site in 1985.- History :The Cass...
(1883), the First Presbyterian Church
First Presbyterian Church (Detroit, Michigan)
The Ecumenical Theological Seminary is located at 2930 Woodward Avenue in Detroit, Michigan. It was built in 1889 as the First Presbyterian Church, and listed on the National Register of Historic Places and designated a Michigan State Historic Site in 1979.- Architecture :George D...
(1889), the Trinity Episcopal Church
Trinity Episcopal Church (Detroit, Michigan)
Trinity Episcopal Church is located at 1519 Martin Luther King Boulevard in the Woodbridge Historic District of Detroit, Michigan. The church was designated a Michigan State Historic Site in 1979 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980...
(1890) (built by James E. Scripps
James E. Scripps
James Edmund Scripps was an American newspaper publisher and philanthropist.Scripps was born in 1835 in London to James Mogg Scripps and Ellen Mary Scripps. His father was a bookbinder who came to America in 1844 with six motherless children. Scripps grew up on a Rushville, Illinois, farm...
), and the First Unitarian Church
First Unitarian Church of Detroit
The First Unitarian Church of Detroit is located at 2870 Woodward Avenue in Detroit, Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982.- History :...
(1890).
Immigration
Detroit has long been a city of immigrants, from the early French and English settlers in the 18th century, through the Irish who settled in the Corktown neighborhood in the 1840s, to the Greeks, who settled in the GreektownGreektown (Detroit, Michigan)
Greektown Historic District, also known as Greektown, is a historic neighborhood, commercial, and entertainment district in Detroit, Michigan, located just northeast of the heart of downtown, along Monroe Avenue between Brush and St. Antoine Streets with a station on the city's elevated downtown...
neighborhood in the early 20th century and the southern whites and African-Americans who came to Detroit in the years before the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
. Detroit's industrial boom in the later 19th century created yet another stream of immigrants into Detroit. Perhaps the most significant contingents during this period were the German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
and Polish
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
immigrants who settled in Detroit in the 1860-1890s. Germans came first, establishing German-speaking churches, primarily on the east side of the city, including Saint John's-St. Luke's Evangelical Church
Saint John's-St. Luke's Evangelical Church
St. John's-St. Luke's Evangelical Church is a congregation of the United Church of Christ located at 2120 Russell Street in Detroit, Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982.- History :...
(1872), St. Joseph Catholic Church
St. Joseph Catholic Church, Detroit
Saint Joseph Roman Catholic Church, founded in 1855, is a historic German Catholic parish with a landmark church located at 1828 Jay Street in the Eastern Market - Lafayette Park neighborhood area just outside of downtown Detroit on the city's central east side...
(1873), and Sacred Heart Roman Catholic Church (1875), as well as social clubs such as the Harmonie Club
Harmonie Club (Detroit, Michigan)
The Harmonie Club is a club located at 267 East Grand River Avenue in Detroit, Michigan. It was designated a Michigan State Historic Site in 1975 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980.- History :...
(1894) and west-side churches such as St. Boniface
St. Boniface Roman Catholic Church
St. Boniface Roman Catholic Church was a Roman Catholic church located at 2356 Vermont Avenue in Detroit, Michigan. It was also known as St. Boniface-St. Vincent Roman Catholic Church...
(1882) and Gethsemane Evangelical Lutheran Church
Gethsemane Evangelical Lutheran Church
Gethsemane Evangelical Lutheran Church is a church located at 4461 Twenty-Eighth Street in Detroit, Michigan. It was designated a Michigan State Historic Site in 1980 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982...
(1891). Close behind, a wave of Polish immigrants established east-side Roman Catholic parishes such as St. Albertus
St. Albertus Roman Catholic Church
St. Albertus Roman Catholic Church is a church located at 4231 St. Aubin Street in Detroit, Michigan in the Forest Park neighborhood area on the city's central East side...
(1885), Sweetest Heart Of Mary
Sweetest Heart Of Mary Roman Catholic Church
Sweetest Heart of Mary Roman Catholic Church is located at 4440 Russell Street in Detroit, Michigan in the Forest Park neighborhood on the city's central East side. The Gothic Revival Cathedral styled Church is the largest of the Roman Catholic Churches in the City of Detroit...
(1893), St. Josaphat's
St. Josaphat's Roman Catholic Church
St. Josaphat's Roman Catholic Church is a Roman Catholic church located at 715 E. Canfield Avenue in Detroit, Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982 and designated a Michigan State Historic Site in 1985.- History :...
(1901), St. Stanislaus
St. Stanislaus Bishop and Martyr Roman Catholic Church
The St. Stanislaus Bishop and Martyr Roman Catholic Church is a church located at 5818 Dubois Street in Detroit, Michigan. The church is now used by the Promise Land Missionary Baptist Church and the school is used by the Detroit Academy of Arts and Sciences. The church was listed on the...
(1911), and St. Thomas the Apostle Catholic Church
St. Thomas the Apostle Catholic Church
St. Thomas the Apostle Catholic Church was a church located at 8363 and 8383 Townsend Avenue in Detroit, Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1989, but was subsequently demolished.- History :...
(1923). The Poles also settled on the west side, founding West Side Dom Polski
West Side Dom Polski
The West Side Dom Polski is a meeting hall and social club located at 3426 Junction Avenue in Detroit, Michigan. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2007. It is now the Metro Life International Church.- History :...
(1916).
Birth of the automobile
At the turn of the 20th century, entrepreneurs in the Detroit area—notably Henry FordHenry Ford
Henry Ford was an American industrialist, the founder of the Ford Motor Company, and sponsor of the development of the assembly line technique of mass production. His introduction of the Model T automobile revolutionized transportation and American industry...
--forged into production of the automobile, capitalizing on the already-existing machine tool and coach-building industry in the city. Early automotive production is recognizable by structures such as Ford's Piquette Plant
Piquette Plant
The Ford Piquette Avenue Plant is located at 411 Piquette Avenue in Detroit, Michigan, within the Piquette Avenue Industrial Historic District. It was the second home of Ford Motor Company automobile production...
(1904) (a National Historic Landmark
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...
), and multiple structures in the surrounding Piquette Avenue Industrial Historic District
Piquette Avenue Industrial Historic District
The Piquette Avenue Industrial Historic District is a historic district located along Piquette Street in Detroit, Michigan, from Woodward Avenue on the west to Hastings Street on the east. The district extends approximately one block south of Piquette to Harper, and one block north to the Grand...
(including the now-destroyed E-M-F/Studebaker Plant, 1906) and the New Amsterdam Historic District
New Amsterdam Historic District
The New Amsterdam Historic District is a historic district located in Detroit, Michigan. Buildings in this district are on or near three sequential east-west streets on the two blocks between Woodward Avenue and Second Avenue...
(including the original Cadillac
Cadillac
Cadillac is an American luxury vehicle marque owned by General Motors . Cadillac vehicles are sold in over 50 countries and territories, but mostly in North America. Cadillac is currently the second oldest American automobile manufacturer behind fellow GM marque Buick and is among the oldest...
factory, 1905) and small factories such as the Crescent Brass and Pin Company Building
Crescent Brass and Pin Company Building
The Crescent Brass and Pin Company Building is located at 5766 Trumbull Ave. in Detroit, Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2003. It is currently known as the Research Lofts on Trumbull.- History :...
(1905).
Automobile assembly and associated manufacturing soon dominated Detroit, and the newly minted automotive magnates built commercial and office buildings such as General Motors Building
Cadillac Place
Cadillac Place is an ornate high-rise class-A office complex in the New Center area of Detroit, Michigan constructed of steel, limestone, granite, and marble between 1919 and 1923 and was listed as a National Historic Landmark in 1985. The building houses several agencies of the State of Michigan...
(1919), the General Motors Research Laboratory (1928), and the Fisher Building
Fisher Building
The Fisher Building is an ornate Art Deco skyscraper located on the corner of West Grand Boulevard and Second Avenue in the heart of the New Center area of Detroit, Michigan. It is constructed of limestone, granite, and several types of marble, and was financed by the Fisher family with proceeds...
(1928).
Changes wrought by the automobile
The development of the automobile industry led to rising demands for labor, which were filled by huge numbers of newcomers from EuropeEurope
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
and the American South. Between 1900 and 1930, the city's population soared from 265,000 to over 1.5 million, pushing the boundaries of the city outward. The population boom led to the construction of apartment buildings across the city, aimed at the middle-class auto worker. These include the Somerset Apartments
Somerset Apartments
The Somerset Apartments is an apartment building located at 1523 E. Jefferson Avenue in Detroit, Michigan. It is also known as the Parkcrest Apartment Building...
(1922), the Garden Court Apartments (1915), and the Manchester Apartments (1915).
At the same time, new upscale neighborhoods farther from the center of the city sprang up, including Boston-Edison, Indian Village, and Palmer Woods
Palmer Woods Historic District
The Palmer Woods Historic District is a residential historic district bounded by Seven Mile Road, Woodward Avenue, and Strathcona Drive in Detroit, Michigan. There are approximately 289 homes in the district. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1983. The Detroit Golf Club...
. The wealthy moved into these more exclusive neighborhoods as the once-exclusive Woodward Avenue neighborhoods (such as the Warren-Prentis Historic District
Warren-Prentis Historic District
The Warren-Prentis Historic District is a historic district in Detroit, Michigan, including the east-west streets of Prentis, Forest, Hancock, and the south side of Warren, running from Woodward Avenue on the east to Third Avenue on the west...
and the Willis-Selden Historic District
Willis-Selden Historic District
The Willis-Selden Historic District is a historic district located in Detroit, Michigan, consisting of three streets: Willis, Alexandrine, and Selden, Running from Woodward Avenue on the east to Third Avenue on the west...
) became mixed with apartments and commercial buildings. As the population spread outwards, new churches were constructed to serve the newly populated areas, notably the Roman Catholic Cathedral of the Most Blessed Sacrament
Cathedral of the Most Blessed Sacrament
The Cathedral of the Most Blessed Sacrament is a decorated Gothic Revival style Roman Catholic cathedral church in the United States. It is the seat of the archbishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Detroit...
(1913), the Woodward Avenue Presbyterian Church (1908), the Metropolitan United Methodist Church
Metropolitan United Methodist Church
The Metropolitan United Methodist Church is a church in the New Center area of Detroit Michigan, 8000 Woodward Avenue . It was constructed in 1926, listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982, and designated a Michigan State Historic Site in 1986.- History :In 1901, two Detroit...
(1922), and the St. Theresa of Avila Roman Catholic Church
St. Theresa of Avila Roman Catholic Church
The St. Theresa of Avila Roman Catholic Church is a church located at 8666 Quincy Avenue in Detroit, Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1989.- Description :...
(1919).
The rise of the automobile also required rethinking transportation within the city. The Chestnut Street-Grand Trunk Railroad
Chestnut Street-Grand Trunk Railroad
The Chestnut Street Bridge is located where Chestnut Street passes over the Dequindre Cut in Detroit, Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2000.- History :...
bridge (1929) was a result of a grade separation that unsnarled train and automobile traffic. The Fort Street-Pleasant Street and Norfolk & Western Railroad Viaduct
Fort Street-Pleasant Street and Norfolk & Western Railroad Viaduct
The Fort Street—Pleasant Street and Norfolk & Western Railroad Viaduct is a bridge carrying six lanes of Fort Street over both Pleasant Street and four tracks of Norfolk Southern Railway's Michigan Line in Detroit, Michigan, just west of the Rouge River. It was listed on the National Register of...
(1928) was a product of the same program, routing trucking trafficover the train traffic. And the West Jefferson Avenue – Rouge River Bridge (1922) allowed the Rouge River to be expanded for barge traffic.
Automobile wealth led to a boom in downtown Detroit business, and the construction of a collection of early-20th-century skyscrapers. The most notable of these is the Art Deco
Art Deco
Art deco , or deco, is an eclectic artistic and design style that began in Paris in the 1920s and flourished internationally throughout the 1930s, into the World War II era. The style influenced all areas of design, including architecture and interior design, industrial design, fashion and...
National Historic Landmark
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...
Guardian Building
Guardian Building
The Guardian Building is a skyscraper at 500 Griswold Street in the downtown of the city of Detroit, in the state of Michigan, in the United States of America. The Guardian is a class-A office building owned by Wayne County, Michigan and serves as its headquarters...
(1928), but numerous other significant office buildings such as the Vinton Building
Vinton Building
The Vinton Building is a residential high-rise located at 600 Woodward Avenue in Detroit, Michigan. It is located next to the First National Building, and stands across Woodward Avenue from Chase Tower, and across Congress Street from Comerica Tower and the Guardian Building...
(1916), the Barlum Tower (1927), and the Lawyers Building (1922) were also constructed. The building boom was not confined to businesses. Shopping districts sprang up along Park Avenue
Park Avenue Historic District (Detroit, Michigan)
The Park Avenue Historic District is a historic district located in Detroit, Michigan, along Park Avenue between Adams St. and I-75. The district includes the Women's City Club, the Detroit Building, the Park Avenue House, and the Kales Building...
, Broadway
Broadway Avenue Historic District (Detroit, Michigan)
The Broadway Avenue Historic District is a historic district located on a single city block along Broadway Avenue between Gratiot and East Grand River in Downtown Detroit, Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2004...
, and Woodward
Lower Woodward Avenue Historic District
The Lower Woodward Avenue Historic District, also known as Merchant's Row, is a mixed-use retail, commercial, and residential district in downtown Detroit, Michigan, located between Campus Martius Park and Grand Circus Park Historic District at 1201 through 1449 Woodward Avenue and 1400 through...
. Multiple hotels were constructed, including the Fort Shelby Hotel
Fort Shelby Hotel
The DoubleTree Guest Suites Fort Shelby/Detroit Downtown is a restored historic high-rise hotel, located at 525 West Lafayette Boulevard in downtown Detroit, Michigan, United States. It was originally named the "Fort Shelby Hotel" when it opened its doors in 1916. In 1951 it was renamed the "Pick...
(1916), the Detroit-Leland Hotel
Detroit-Leland Hotel
The Detroit-Leland Hotel is a renovated historic hotel located at 400 Bagley Street in Detroit, Michigan, United States. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2005. The ballroom of the Detroit-Leland has hosted a nightclub, the City Club, since 1983...
(1927), the Royal Palm Hotel
Royal Palm Hotel (Detroit, Michigan)
The Park Avenue House is a high rise residential building located at 2305 Park Avenue in Detroit, Michigan. The Park Avenue House was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1996.- Significance :...
(1924), and many others. Extravagant movie theaters such as the Fox
Fox Theatre (Detroit)
The Fox Theatre is an ornate performing arts center located at 2211 Woodward Avenue in downtown Detroit, Michigan, near Grand Circus Park. It was originally completed in 1928 as the first movie palace in the world to have sound systems for films. It was listed on the National Register of Historic...
(1928) and the Palms
The Fillmore Detroit
The Fillmore Detroit is a mixed-use entertainment venue operated by Live Nation. The Detroit Music Awards are held annually at The Fillmore Detroit in April. Built in 1925, the Fillmore Detroit was known for most of its history as the State Theatre, and prior to that as the Palms Theatre...
(1925) were constructed. And public buildings, such as Orchestra Hall
Orchestra Hall, Detroit
Orchestra Hall is a concert hall located at 3711 Woodward Avenue in midtown Detroit, Michigan. The hall is renowned for its superior acoustic properties and serves as the home of the internationally known Detroit Symphony Orchestra , the fourth oldest orchestra in the United States...
(1919), the Detroit Public Library
Detroit Public Library
The Detroit Public Library is the second largest library system in Michigan by volumes held , and is the 20th largest library system in the United States. It is composed of a Main Library on Woodward Avenue, which houses DPL administration offices, and twenty-three branch locations across the city...
(1921), and the Detroit Institute of Arts
Detroit Institute of Arts
The Detroit Institute of Arts is a renowned art museum in the city of Detroit. In 2003, the DIA ranked as the second largest municipally owned museum in the United States, with an art collection valued at more than one billion dollars...
(1923).
African-Americans
During the early years of Detroit, the African-American population was relatively small. However, the Second Baptist Church (1857; rebuilt 1914) was founded with an African-American congregation in the 1830s; the church played an instrumental role in the Underground RailroadUnderground Railroad
The Underground Railroad was an informal network of secret routes and safe houses used by 19th-century black slaves in the United States to escape to free states and Canada with the aid of abolitionists and allies who were sympathetic to their cause. The term is also applied to the abolitionists,...
, due to Detroit's proximity to Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. The auto boom of the 20th century changed the population, and in the years following World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, the black population of Detroit soared. In 1910, fewer than 6000 blacks called the city home; in 1917 more than 30,000 blacks lived in Detroit. Significant African-American structures in Detroit are related to the struggle with segregation: Dunbar Hospital
Dunbar Hospital
Dunbar Hospital was the first hospital in Detroit, Michigan for the black community. It is located at 580 Frederick Street, and is currently the administrative headquarters of the Detroit Medical Society. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979.- Building construction...
(founded 1914), the Ossian H. Sweet House
Ossian H. Sweet House
The Ossian H. Sweet House is a privately owned house located at 2905 Garland Street in Detroit, Michigan. Designed by Maurice Herman Finkel, the residence's second owner was physician Ossian Sweet, an African-American, and the site of a confrontation in 1925 between the Sweet family and a mob...
(1925), and the Sugar Hill neighborhood. However, other structures, such as the Breitmeyer-Tobin Building (1905) are tributes to the slow integration in the latter half of the 20th century.
Architecture
A number of notable architects worked in Detroit, including D. H. Burnham & CompanyD. H. Burnham & Company
D.H. Burnham and Company of was an architecture firm based in Chicago, Illinois. As successor to Burnham and Root, the name was changed once John Root died in 1891. Root was the chief consulting architect for the World's Columbian Exposition. After Root's death, Daniel Burnham took that title...
; Donaldson and Meier
Donaldson and Meier
Donaldson and Meier was an architectural firm based in Detroit, Michigan. Founded in 1880 by John Donaldson and Henry J. Meier the firm produced a large and varied number of commissions in Detroit and southeastern Michigan...
; McKim, Mead, and White
McKim, Mead, and White
McKim, Mead & White was a prominent American architectural firm at the turn of the twentieth century and in the history of American architecture. The firm's founding partners were Charles Follen McKim , William Rutherford Mead and Stanford White...
; Smith, Hinchman, and Grylls (and Wirt C. Rowland
Wirt C. Rowland
Wirt Clinton Rowland was an American architect best known for his work in Detroit, Michigan.-Biography:...
); and Minoru Yamasaki
Minoru Yamasaki
was a Japanese-American architect, best known for his design of the twin towers of the World Trade Center, buildings 1 and 2. Yamasaki was one of the most prominent architects of the 20th century...
. However, Albert Kahn deserves special recognition for the scope and variety of his work in the city, and the number of Kahn-buildings buildings listed in the National Register. Kahn designed large industrial buildings such as the Highland Park Ford Plant
Highland Park Ford Plant
The Highland Park Ford Plant is a former factory located in Highland Park, Michigan at 91 Manchester Avenue . The second production facility for the Model T automobile, it became a National Historic Landmark in 1978.-Description:...
(1908) in nearby Highland Park
Highland Park, Michigan
- Geography :According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all land.- Demographics :As of the census of 2000, there were 16,746 people, 6,199 households, and 3,521 families residing in the city. The population density was 5,622.9 per square mile . There were 7,249...
(a National Historic Landmark
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...
), Fisher Body Plant 21 (1921) in the Piquette Avenue Industrial Historic District
Piquette Avenue Industrial Historic District
The Piquette Avenue Industrial Historic District is a historic district located along Piquette Street in Detroit, Michigan, from Woodward Avenue on the west to Hastings Street on the east. The district extends approximately one block south of Piquette to Harper, and one block north to the Grand...
, and his addition to the Frederick Stearns Building
Frederick Stearns Building
The Frederick Stearns Building is a manufacturing plant located at 6533 East Jefferson Avenue in Detroit, Michigan. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980 and designated a Michigan State Historic Site in 1981...
(1906).
Kahn's output extended to a range of building types, notably office buildings such as the General Motors Building
Cadillac Place
Cadillac Place is an ornate high-rise class-A office complex in the New Center area of Detroit, Michigan constructed of steel, limestone, granite, and marble between 1919 and 1923 and was listed as a National Historic Landmark in 1985. The building houses several agencies of the State of Michigan...
(1919) and the Fisher Building
Fisher Building
The Fisher Building is an ornate Art Deco skyscraper located on the corner of West Grand Boulevard and Second Avenue in the heart of the New Center area of Detroit, Michigan. It is constructed of limestone, granite, and several types of marble, and was financed by the Fisher family with proceeds...
(1928) — both National Historic Landmarks — as well as the Edwin S. George Building
Edwin S. George Building
The Edwin S. George Building, built in 1908, is located at 4612 Woodward Avenue in Detroit, Michigan, at the corner of Woodward and Garfield. In 1914, the name was changed to the Garfield Building. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1993.- History :Edwin S. George was an...
(1908), the Vinton Building
Vinton Building
The Vinton Building is a residential high-rise located at 600 Woodward Avenue in Detroit, Michigan. It is located next to the First National Building, and stands across Woodward Avenue from Chase Tower, and across Congress Street from Comerica Tower and the Guardian Building...
(1916), the S. S. Kresge World Headquarters
S. S. Kresge World Headquarters
The Metropolitan Center for High Technology, formerly S. S. Kresge World Headquarters, is an office building located at 2727 2nd Avenue in Detroit, Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places and designated a Michigan State Historic Site in 1979. The office building is now...
(1928), the Griswold Building (1929), and a string of banks and highrises in the Detroit Financial District
Detroit Financial District
The Detroit Financial District is a historic district in downtown Detroit, Michigan. The district was listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places on December 14, 2009, and was announced as the featured listing in the National Park Service's weekly list of December 24, 2009.It includes...
. Kahn also designed private homes (the Bernard Ginsburg House
Bernard Ginsburg House
The Bernard Ginsburg House is a single family private residence located at 236 Adelaide Street in Detroit, Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1991.- Significance :...
, 1898; the Albert Kahn House
Albert Kahn House
The Albert Kahn House is located at 208 Mack Ave. in Detroit, Michigan. It is currently the headquarters of the Detroit Urban League. The house was designated a Michigan State Historic Site in 1971 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1972....
, 1906; and homes in Boston-Edison, Rosedale Park, and Indian Village), apartment and hotel buildings (the Palms Apartments
Palms Apartments
The Palms is an apartment building located at 1001 East Jefferson Avenue in Detroit, Michigan. It was one of the first buildings in the US to use reinforced concrete as one of its major construction materials...
, 1903; the Addison Hotel in the Midtown Woodward Historic District
Midtown Woodward Historic District
The Midtown Woodward Historic District is a historic district located along Woodward Avenue in Detroit, Michigan. Structures in the district are located between 2951 and 3424 Woodward Avenue, and include structures on the corner of Charlotte Street and Peterboro Street...
, 1905, Garden Court Apartments, 1915; and 1001 Covington in the Palmer Park Apartment Building Historic District
Palmer Park Apartment Building Historic District
The Palmer Park Apartment Building Historic District is a historic district located in Detroit, Michigan. It is roughly bounded by Pontchartrain Boulevard on the west, McNichols Road on the south, and Covington Drive on the northeast. A boundary increase pushed the eastern boundary to Woodward...
, 1925), churches (the 1903 Temple Beth-El
Temple Beth-El (Bonstelle Theatre)
The Bonstelle Theatre is a theater operated by Wayne State University, and is located at 3424 Woodward Avenue . It was originally built in 1902 as the Temple Beth-El, and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982.-Construction:When Rabbi Leo M...
; the 1923 Temple Beth-El
Temple Beth-El (Lighthouse Cathedral)
The church building at 8801 Woodward Avenue in Detroit, Michigan is a historic building. It was built in 1921 as Temple Beth-El. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982.-Architecture:...
; and additions on the First Congregational Church
First Congregational Church (Detroit, Michigan)
The First Congregational Church is located at 33 E. Forest in Detroit, Michigan. It was designated a Michigan State Historic Site in 1974 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979....
, 1921), and theatres (the National Theatre
Monroe Avenue Commercial Buildings
The Monroe Avenue Commercial Buildings, also known as the Monroe Block, is a historic district located along a block-and-a-half stretch at 16-118 Monroe Avenue in Detroit, Michigan, just off Woodward Avenue at the northern end of Campus Martius. The district was designated a Michigan State Historic...
, 1911).
Listings
|}
Former listings
| Landmark name | Image | Date declared | Locality | Present Status | Comment | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lincoln Motor Company Plant Lincoln Motor Company Plant The Lincoln Motor Company Plant was an automotive plant located at 6200 West Warren Avenue in Detroit, Michigan, later known as the Detroit Edison Warren Service Center. The complex was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1978, due to its historic association with World War I Liberty... |
6200 West Warren Avenue | Withdrawn from the NRHP in 2005 | Henry M. Leland Henry M. Leland Henry Martyn Leland was a machinist, inventor, engineer and automotive entrepreneur who founded the two premier American luxury marques, Cadillac and Lincoln. Retrieved December 30, 2008.... acquired a factory Factory A factory or manufacturing plant is an industrial building where laborers manufacture goods or supervise machines processing one product into another. Most modern factories have large warehouses or warehouse-like facilities that contain heavy equipment used for assembly line production... here in 1917 and greatly expanded it in order to produce Liberty Engines Lincoln Liberty engine Henry Leland's Lincoln Motor Company was formed with the sole purpose of building the Liberty engine.As the United States entered World War I, the Cadillac division of General Motors was asked to produce the new Liberty aircraft engine, but William C. Durant was a pacifist who did not want General... as part of the World War I World War I World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918... war effort War effort In politics and military planning, a war effort refers to a coordinated mobilization of society's resources—both industrial and human—towards the support of a military force... . After the war, Leland used his long and prominent experience with Cadillac Cadillac Cadillac is an American luxury vehicle marque owned by General Motors . Cadillac vehicles are sold in over 50 countries and territories, but mostly in North America. Cadillac is currently the second oldest American automobile manufacturer behind fellow GM marque Buick and is among the oldest... to inaugurate the Lincoln Lincoln (automobile) Lincoln is an American luxury vehicle brand of the Ford Motor Company. Lincoln vehicles are sold mostly in North America.-History:The company was founded in August 1915 by Henry M. Leland, one of the founders of Cadillac . During World War I, he left Cadillac which was sold to General Motors... line of automobile Automobile An automobile, autocar, motor car or car is a wheeled motor vehicle used for transporting passengers, which also carries its own engine or motor... s. Leland sold his company to Henry Ford Henry Ford Henry Ford was an American industrialist, the founder of the Ford Motor Company, and sponsor of the development of the assembly line technique of mass production. His introduction of the Model T automobile revolutionized transportation and American industry... in 1922; by 1952 this original Lincoln plant was retired from automotive production. Most of the complex was demolished Demolition Demolition is the tearing-down of buildings and other structures, the opposite of construction. Demolition contrasts with deconstruction, which involves taking a building apart while carefully preserving valuable elements for re-use.... in 2002/03, leading to withdrawal of its landmark designation. |
||
| 2 | STE. CLAIRE (steamer) Ste. Claire (passenger steamboat) SS Ste. Claire is a steamship located in River Rouge, Michigan that was formerly located in Detroit, Michigan. It was declared a U.S. National Historic Landmark in 1992.The ship was designed by Frank E. Kirby, who also designed the SS Columbia.... |
 |
661 Civic Center Dr. (formerly) | Moved to Toledo, Ohio Toledo, Ohio Toledo is the fourth most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Lucas County. Toledo is in northwest Ohio, on the western end of Lake Erie, and borders the State of Michigan... |
The Ste. Claire was launched in 1910, and for 81 years carried passengers to Bois Blanc (Bob-Lo) Island, a record of service on a single run unequalled in U.S. maritime history. The Ste. Claire's sister ship, the Columbia, is also on the Register. Declared a National Historic Landmark in 1979, it is now located in Toledo, Ohio Toledo, Ohio Toledo is the fourth most populous city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Lucas County. Toledo is in northwest Ohio, on the western end of Lake Erie, and borders the State of Michigan... . |
See also
- National Register of Historic Places listings in Wayne County, Michigan
- National Register of Historic Places listings in Michigan