Thearchitecture of metropolitan Detroit continues to attract the attention of architects and preservationists alike.[1][2] With one of the world's recognizable skylines,Detroit's waterfront panorama shows a variety of architectural styles. Thepost-modern neogothicspires ofOne Detroit Center refer to designs of the city's historicArt Deco skyscrapers.[3] Together with theRenaissance Center, they form the city's distinctive skyline.
Detroit's architecture is recognized as being among the finest in the U.S. Detroit has one of the largest surviving collections of late-19th- and early-20th-century buildings in the U.S.[3] Because of the city's economic difficulties, theNational Trust for Historic Preservation has listed many ofDetroit's skyscrapers and buildings as some of America's most endangered landmarks.[4]
The suburbs contain some significantcontemporary architecture and several historic estates.[5][6]
In the 1880s,Gilded Age architects such asWilson Eyre[7]Gordon Lloyd,Harry J. Rill,Henry T Brush,Julius Hess,John V Smith,Elijah E Myers,Alamon C Varney,Mortimer L Smith,Peter Dederich,Joseph e MiIls and the firmsDonaldson & Meier,Malcomson & Higginbotham andMason & Rice who had designed churches and residences in the most exclusives neighborhoods (Woodward Avenue,Brush Park,Jefferson Avenue andW Fort Street), turned their attention to office and commercial buildings. They designed some of Detroit's ornately stone-carved 19th-century tall buildings, many of which are still standing. Eyre[8] was commissioned to designThe Detroit Club at 712 Cass Ave (1891) Lloyd'sRomanesque six-story iron-framedWright-Kay (1891) at 1500 Woodward Ave and his R. H. Traver Building (1889) at 1211 Woodward are prime examples.[3] The Wright-Kay, or Schwankovsky Building, was among the first to have an electric elevator.[3] Rill designed the ornateBeaux-Arts facade ofDetroit Cornice and Slate (1897) at 733 Antoine.[3] The six-storyRomanesqueGlobe Tobacco Building (1888) at 407 E. Fort, built by Alexander Chapoton, is another of the city's early surviving commercial buildings. Detroit's Victorian-styledRandolph Street Historic District contains some of the city's oldest surviving commercial buildings. The commercial building at 1244 Randolph Street dates from the 1840s, a rare survivor from theAntebellum period. Most of Detroit's expansion and development took place later.[9]
At 12 stories, the steel-framedUnited Way Community Services Building (1895), at 1212 Griswold, originally known as the Chamber of Commerce Building, qualifies as Detroit's oldest existing skyscraper.[6][10] The 10-storyHammond Building (1889), now demolished, is considered the city's first historic skyscraper.[11]The Qube in theDetroit Financial District was developed on the Hammond Building site.[12]
The city has numerous architecturally significant late-19th- and early-20th-century buildings and skyscrapers.[3]Daniel Burnham,Louis Kamper, and theSmith Hinchman & Grylls firm are among the architects who designed some of the city's other important skyscrapers at the turn of the century which endure today. Burnham's three remaining Detroit skyscraper designs are theNeo-Classical styledChrysler House (1912) — renovated in 2002, and theNeo-RenaissanceWhitney (1915) andFord (1909) buildings. Among their early projects, Smith Hinchman & Grylls designed theNeo-GothicR.H. Fyfe Building (1919) at Woodward and Adams, now converted to a residential high-rise.[13]
Detroit has preserved numerous historic buildings that are listed on theNational Register of Historic Places. The city has many historic structures needing restoration. The most significant of these is theMichigan Central Station (1913) byWarren & Wetmore andReed & Stem; it was bought by Ford in 2018 and is to be the center of a major multi-use development.
During theRoaring Twenties, Detroit's historic skyline arose.[14]Louis Kamper designed the ornateNeo-Renaissance styledBook-Cadillac Hotel (1924), which was the world's tallest hotel when it opened.
The city's architectural legacy is rich inArt Deco style, with buildings constructed during the boom years of the 1920s.Joseph L. Hudson, the department store magnate, had commissioned architectHugh Ferriss to produce a series of renderings depicting new buildings for the city skyline.[15]Hudson's Department Store window displayed the Ferriss drawings to commemorate its fiftieth anniversary, and to celebrate the opening in 1927 of a new building for theDetroit Institute of Arts, aBeaux-Arts,Italian Renaissance-styled structure.[15] Other architects created designs inspired by theHugh Ferriss concepts, which included theGuardian Building, theDavid Stott Building, the J.L Hudson Building, and others.[13][15]
Albert Kahn Associates designed what is nowCadillac Place (1923) forGeneral Motors, featuringNeo-Classical architecture. Kahn, sometimes called the "architect of Detroit", originally worked for John Scott, who designed theWayne County Building (1897). It opened as the second-largest office building in the world.[6]
The sevenFisher brothers, who owned the automotive companyFisher Body, essentially gave architect Kahn a blank check to design and build the "most beautiful building in the world."[16] This was theFisher Building (1927) which, with its detailed work, has been called the city's "largest art object." Its opulent three-story, barrel-vaulted lobby is constructed with forty different kinds of marble.[16][17][18] Albert Kahn Associates chief architect for the Fisher Building wasJoseph Nathaniel French.[19] The Fisher Building and Cadillac Place are among theNational Historic Landmarks inDetroit anchoring the city's historicNew Center.
ArchitectWirt C. Rowland played an integral role in crafting the city's historic skyline with his designs for theBuhl,Penobscot, andGuardian buildings. Rowland's design for theBuhl Building (1925) included aGothic Revival design, with a blend ofRomanesque accents. RenownedArt Deco skyscrapers includeRowland'sPenobscot (1928) andGuardian (1929),[14] andJohn M. Donaldson'sDavid Stott Building (1929). Architecturaltiles made fromPewabic Pottery by AmericanceramistMary Chase Perry Stratton are a prominent feature in the Guardian Building's facade and decor.[14]
| Rank | Building | Height | Stories | Built | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Detroit Marriott at the Renaissance Center | 727 feet (222 m) | 73 | 1977 | [20] | |
| 2 | One Detroit Center | 619 feet (189 m) | 43 | 1993 | [21] | |
| 3 | Penobscot Building | 565 feet (172 m) | 47 | 1928 | [22] | |
| T-4 | Renaissance Center Tower 100 | 522 feet (159 m) | 39 | 1977 | [23] | |
| T-4 | Renaissance Center Tower 200 | 522 feet (159 m) | 39 | 1977 | [24] | |
| T-4 | Renaissance Center Tower 300 | 522 feet (159 m) | 39 | 1977 | [25] | |
| T-4 | Renaissance Center Tower 400 | 522 feet (159 m) | 39 | 1977 | [26] | |
| 8 | Guardian Building | 496 feet (151 m) | 40 | 1929 | [27] | |
| 9 | Book Tower | 475 feet (145 m) | 38 | 1926 | [28] | |
| 10 | 150 West Jefferson | 455 feet (139 m) | 26 | 1989 | [29] |
The Detroit area also contains prominent skycrapers designed in theModern,Postmodern, andContemporary Modern architectural styles.[3][6] With the notable exception of the1001 Woodward (1965) building, Detroit's skyscrapers show less influence by theChicago school of architecture and are more eastern in character.[3]Minoru Yamasaki designed Detroit'sOne Woodward Avenue (1962) in the Modern architectural style, following it with his similar, award-winning design for New York City'sWorld Trade Center towers (1973-2001).[30] Today, the city's contemporary skyscrapers stand beside restored historic ones.One Detroit Center (1993) and its neogothicspires is considered a fine example ofpost modern architecture by architectsPhilip Johnson andJohn Burgee, referring toWirt Rowland's historicPenobscot Building (1928), both located in the heart of theFinancial District's wireless Internet zone.[3]
The office market inMetro Detroit is one of the nation's largest. with 147.88 million square feet (13,739,000 m2).[31] TheRenaissance Center, with 5.552 million square feet (515,800 m2), and theSouthfield Town Center, with 2.2 million square feet (204,400 m2), are large-scale examples of Contemporary Modern skyscraper complexes. Each mixed-use complex is an interconnected group of skyscrapers termed a "city within a city."
The construction of theRenaissance Center in DowntownDetroit marked a new era for the city's architecture. In the 1970s, Detroit Renaissance, chaired byHenry Ford II, commissioned highly regarded architectJohn Portman to design an enormous skyscraper complex called theRenaissance Center in hopes of increasing the attraction of city living for middle and upper-class residents. Some left because of court-ordered busing to integrate schools that werede facto segregated based on residential patterns. Portman had hoped to halt the exodus.
Portman expanded on his earlier design for thePeachtree Plaza Hotel inAtlanta when designing theRenaissance Center inDetroit. He contributed to the popularity of the skyscraper hotel.[3] (See Portman'sBonaventure Hotel inLos Angeles). In the ensuing decades, the Renaissance Center expanded to join the city's restored historic art deco skyscrapers in forming the current skyline.
In 1924, Detroit'sBook-Cadillac opened as the world's tallest hotel (it is now a re-developedWestin Book-Cadillac Hotel). Completion of the first phase of theRenaissance Center in 1977 restored this distinction to the city. The Renaissance Center's central tower opened with a flagship hotel, the tallest in the world,[32] and a conference center with the world's largest rooftop restaurant. As of 2012 the hotel isMarriott International's largest in the United States, with 1,298 rooms. Though it is no longer the world's tallest hotel, it remains thetallest all-hotel skyscraper in theWestern Hemisphere.[32] TheWestin hotel and conference center at theSouthfield Town Center is across fromLawrence Technological University.
Stemming the flight of capital from the city proved difficult, however, as the suburban office market continued to grow, notably in Southfield and Troy. TheSouthfield Town Center, constructed from 1975 to 1989, became easy to recognize with its marque of five golden glass skyscrapers. It attracted tenants in competition with theRenaissance Center asMetro Detroit's office market continued its suburban expansion.
Portman designed the Renaissance Center with interior spaces, yet secure. It quickly became a symbol of the city of Detroit. In 1996, theRenaissance Center's design changed whenGeneral Motors purchased the entire complex for its new headquarters. The $500-million makeover of the complex included a $100-million renovation of the hotel.[33] A new front door Wintergarden (2003) provides waterfront views and expanded retail space. Prior to completion of its renovation in 2003, some had criticized its circular corridors as confusing. Construction of a lighted glass walkway now facilitates ease of navigation encircling the interiormezzanine. A pedestrian-friendly glass entry way has replaced the former concrete berms along Jefferson Avenue.
The city, together with the Riverfront Conservancy, undertook another major project planned at $559-million along the Detroit International Riverfront to construct a three-mile (5 km) riverfront promenade park along the east river fromHart Plaza and theRenaissance Center to theBelle Isle bridge.[34] Detroit Wayne County Port Authority added the Dock of Detroit (2005), a state of the art cruise ship dock on Hart Plaza near the Renaissance Center. A two-mile (3 km) extension along the west river will take the riverfront promenade park from Hart Plaza to theAmbassador Bridge (1929) for a total of five miles (8 km) of parkway from bridge to bridge.Michigan constructed its first urban state park, theWilliam G. Milliken State Park and Harbor (2003). Three contemporary high-rise casino resort hotels in Detroit include theMGM Grand Detroit (2007) bySmithGroup,Motor City Casino (2007), and the 30-storyHollywood Casino (2009). A fourth contemporary high-rise casino resort hotel,Caesars Windsor (1998/2008), is visible from the International Riverfront.
Besides theTown Center skyscrapers,Southfield'smodern towers include the 26-storyAmerican Center (1975) by theSmithGroup and One Towne Square (1992) byRossetti with 21-stories. Other notable centers of commerce in the area areDearborn,Troy, andAuburn Hills. Dearborn contains the world headquarters of theFord Motor Company. Dearborn's 14-story luxuryAdoba Hotel (1976) with its contemporary arced design byCharles Luckman is among the region's conference centers, with 772 rooms.Rossetti designed Dearborn's modern Ritz-Carlton Hotel (1988) along with the complementary Fairlane Plaza North and South (1990) as well as theParklane Towers (1973). Troy has a large number of office buildings, many of which are situated along the corridor of Big Beaver Road. The tallest of these is theTop of Troy (1975) building, a 27-story triangular tower. Troy also contains what is generally considered to be the most upscale shopping center in the region, theSomerset Collection.
The suburb of Auburn Hills is home to the 15-storyChrysler Headquarters and Technology Center with its 5.3 million square feet (490,000 m2) on 504 acres (2.04 km2).[35]CRSS Architects designed the Chrysler Technology Center (1993) in a cross-axial formation where its elongatedatrium topped concourses converge with an octagonal radiant skylight at its center. TheSmithGroup designed the attached contemporary Chrysler Headquarters (1996) tower in golden glass crowned with thepentastar emblem. The nearbyThe Palace of Auburn Hills (1988) by Rosetti was a sports arena that served as a prototype for many others of its kind. The Palace was demolished in 2020 after sitting vacant for nearly 3 years with plans for the 110-acre site to be used for mixed use research and technology park.[36]
Between 1996 and 2006, downtown Detroit attracted more than $15 billion in new investment from private and public sectors.[37] In 2011,Quicken Loans moved its company headquarters to downtown Detroit, consolidating suburban offices, a move considered to be of high importance to city planners to reestablish the historic downtown.[38] Quicken Loans purchased office buildings in downtown Detroit and has considered new sites for new construction at the former Statler onGrand Circus Park and the former Hudson's location.[38] Plans for a major residential and retail development adjacent to theRenaissance Center have been announced. In 2009, DTE unveiled a $50 million transformation of the landscape around its downtown headquarters into an urban oasis with parks, walkways, and a reflecting pool adjacent to theMGM Grand Detroit.[39] Many residentiallofts andhigh rises are under construction in the Detroit area.[37] Renovation of historic buildings is a source of newdevelopment for the city of Detroit. The Inn at Ferry Street in theEast Ferry Avenue Historic District and theInn at 97 Winder in theBrush Park Historic District are examples of a successfulMidtown restoration projects. Other historic restoration projects in Detroit include developments in theMidtown area, theDoubletree Guest Suites Fort Shelby, and theWestin Book-Cadillac Hotel. TheQLine, which opened in 2017, serves as a link between theDetroit People Mover downtown and the futureAnn Arbor–Detroit Regional Rail with access to DDOT and SMART buses.[40]
In January 2008, the City of Detroit unveiled a concept for a newCadillac Centre, a $150 million mixed-use residential entertainment-retail complex attached to theCadillac Tower. Architect Anthony Caradonna designed theCadillac Centre concept in thepostmodern architectural genre known asdeconstructivism similar to theGuggenheim Museum Bilbao. The 24-story steel and glass twin-towers complex to be located onCampus Martius has been placed on indefinite hold.[41] The futuristic Cadillac Centre would be located in Detroit's historicMonroe block, once a collection of eightantebellum commercial buildings cleared in 1990.[42] ThePavilions of Troy, a $380 million mixed-use complex, is concept planned for the suburban city ofTroy.[43] Metro Detroit is second largest source of architectural andengineering job opportunities in the U.S.[44] TheUniversity of Michigan, theUniversity of Detroit Mercy, andLawrence Technological University offer architectural degree programs.
Founded in 1701, Detroit contains the second oldestRoman Catholicparish in the United States.[45] Consequently,Metro Detroit's many churches and cathedrals, though too numerous to list, are among its architectural gems and sites in theNational Register of Historic Places. Churches dominated the city's post Civil War era skyline. TheGothic Revival architecture ofSte. Anne de Detroit Catholic Church (1887) by Alert E. French andLeon Coquard includesflying buttresses, displaying the French influence.Ste. Anne's displays the oldest stained glass in the city, located near theAmbassador Bridge.[6] The Gothic styledSt. Joseph Church (1873/1883) in theEastern Market-Lafayette Park neighborhood byFrancis G. Himpler is an authentic German Catholic Parish and an important site listed in theNational Register of Historic Places, noted for its architecture and stained glass.[6] In another German parish, Peter Dederichs designed thePisan Romanesque styledOld St. Mary's Church (1885) inGreektown.[6] TheGothic Revival cathedral styledSweetest Heart of Mary (1893) in the Forest Park neighborhood area bySpier and Rohns is the largest Roman Catholic Church in Detroit.[6][46]
TheGothic Revival styledCathedral of the Most Blessed Sacrament (1915) and theCathedral Church of St. Paul (1911) byRalph Adams Cram are both located along Woodward Avenue. SculptorCorrado Parducci's work adorns many of Detroit's churches including theCathedral of the Most Blessed Sacrament and theSt. Aloysius Church (1930) in theWashington Boulevard Historic District.[47] Among his Detroit projects,Gordon W. Lloyd designed theChrist Church (1863) at 960 E. Jefferson Avenue. Detroit'sFirst Presbyterian Church (1891) is a fine example ofRichardsonian Romanesque style byGeorge D. Mason and Zachariah Rice. TheFort Street Presbyterian Church (1855), designed in aVictorian Gothic style with a steeple that rises 265 ft (81 m), is among thetallest churches in the United States.
The large concentration ofPoles in the metropolitanDetroit resulted in a number of ornate churches in thePolish Cathedral style designed by noted architects. Henry Engelbert designed the Gothic styledSt. Albertus (1885), Detroit's first Polish Catholic parish. Harry J. Rill designed St. Hedwig's (1915) and the Baroque styledSt. Stanislaus (1913).Donaldson and Meier designed St. Hyacinth's (1924).Ralph Adams Cram designed the ornate Gothic styledSt. Florian's Church (1928) at 2626 Poland Street in Hamtramck. Joseph G. Kastler and William B.N. Hunter designed the Victorian styledSt. Josaphat's (1901) which hasspires that line-up with theRenaissance Center towers when approaching the city onInterstate 75. The Historical Society at theDetroit Historical Museum provides information on tours of the area's many historic churches. The historicBeaubien House (c. 1851) at 553 East Jefferson houses theMichigan Society of Architects.
The city and its surrounding area have numerous monuments by noted architects and sculptors along tree-lined boulevards and parks just some of which are noted.[48][49]Campus Martius is a park at the encircled confluence ofWoodward andMichigan Avenues. It serves as one of the city's central gathering places for events. The park disappeared in the 1900s as the downtown reconfigured to accommodate increased vehicular traffic.[50] In 2004, the city restored the park with traffic circle. Granite waterfalls are at the western edge of the north and south sitting gardens. The park has two stages for live entertainment. Greenways and flowering botanical gardens fan out from Woodward Fountain, the centerpiece of Campus Martius, which can jet water over 100 feet (30 m) into the air,[51] while theBagley Memorial Fountain sits nearby onCadillac Square.Grand Circus is on Woodward Avenue, down the street.
Hart Plaza, along the riverfront, was designed to replace Campus Martius as a focal point. Yet Hart Plaza is a primarily hard-surfaced area, many residents came to lament the lack of true park space in the city's downtown area. This led to calls to rebuild Campus Martius.Compuware World Headquarters overlooks the reconstructed traffic circle surrounding Campus Martius Park with the historicMichigan Soldiers' and Sailors' Monument of theAmerican Civil War byRandolph Rogers.[48] The oldDetroit City Hall (1861) was demolished in 1961. It was built by Alexander Chapoton of one of the city's oldest French families. The Queen Anne styleAlexander Chapoton House (c. 1870) stands at 511 Beaubien.[5][6]
In 1805, Detroit experienced a devastating fire, which destroyed most of the city'sFrench colonial architecture. Shortly afterward, FatherGabriel Richard said,Speramus meliora; resurget cineribus, meaning,We hope for better things; it will arise from the ashes, which became the city's official motto.[45] ForDetroit, JusticeAugustus B. Woodward devised a plan similar toPierre Charles L'Enfant's design forWashington, D.C.Detroit's monumental avenues and traffic circles fan out in aBaroque styled radial fashion fromGrand Circus Park in the heart of thecity's theater district.[52]
Detroit'sperformance centers and theatres emanate from theGrand Circus Park Historic District and continue alongWoodward Avenue toward theFisher Theatre in the city'sNew Center. The ornateFox Theatre (1928), byC. Howard Crane, near the Grand Circus is aNational Historic Landmark which was fully restored in 1988.[53] Crane also designed theOrchestra Hall along Woodward which is home to theDetroit Symphony Orchestra. InGothic revival design,St. John's Episcopal Church (1861) stands across from theFox Theatre and besideComerica Park along withWoodward Avenue's vintage street lights. Restored in 1996, theDetroit Opera House (1922), by Crane, faces Grand Circus Park.[54] The grounds include antique statuary and old-fashioned water fountains. ArchitectHenry Bacon designed theRussell Alger Memorial Fountain (1921) in Grand Circus Park. TheRussell Alger Memorial Fountain contains a classic Roman figure symbolizing Michigan by renowned American sculptorDaniel French.[48]
In the late 19th century, Detroit was called theParis of the West for its architecture and open public spaces,[45] in keeping with theCity Beautiful movement.[55] Architects John and Arthur Scott designed theWayne County Building (1897) in downtown Detroit. Expense was not a factor in construction of its lavish design. Topped with bronzequadrigas byJ. Massey Rhind and anAnthony Waynepediment byEdward Wagner, it may be America's finest surviving example of RomanBaroque architecture with a blend ofBeaux-Arts.[5]Stanford White, architect of Newport, Rhode Island'sRosecliff mansion, designed Detroit'sNeoclassicalSavoyard Centre (1900) at 151 Fort St.Belle Isle Park provides panoramic views of city skyline along theDetroit International Riverfront.
The French-American architectPaul Philippe Cret designed theDetroit Institute of Arts which includes a 1,150-seat theatre in the Detroit'sCultural Center Historic District. Cret was educated at theÉcole des Beaux-Arts in Lyon then in Paris, and came to the United States in 1903 to teach at theUniversity of Pennsylvania. Cret was also the architect of theFolger Shakespeare Library in Washington, D.C.Michael Graves designed the 2007 renovation and expansion of the Detroit Institute of Arts with its exterior covered in white marble.Harley, Ellington and Day designed the marbleNeoclassicalHorace Rackham Education Memorial Building (1941) also within theCultural Center Historic District.
The Detroit area is home to light houses,[56] yacht clubs, and many unique monuments.[48] Examples include theGrosse Pointe Yacht Club (1929) and theBeaux-ArtsHurlbut Memorial Gate (1894) at Waterworks Park.[57] The Detroit Historical Society has compiled an incomplete list with more than 122 public sculptures and monuments just near the downtown area,[49] while Detroit1701 lists many additional downtown monuments.[58] Architects such asCass Gilbert who designed theUnited States Supreme Court inWashington, D.C. also designed the marbleDetroit Public Library (1921) in theCultural Center Historic District andBelle Isle's exquisite marble James Scott Memorial Fountain.[59]Frederick Olmsted, landscape architect of New York City's Central Park, designed Detroit's 982-acre (3.97 km2)Belle Isle park.Marshall Fredericks' sculptures, which include theSpirit of Detroit, may be seen throughout the metropolitan area.[60] SculptorCorrado Parducci's work adorns many notableMetro Detroit buildings such as theMeadowbrook Hall mansion, theGuardian Building, theBuhl Building (1925), thePenobscot Building, theFisher Building and theDavid Stott Building.
Metro Detroit's many architecturally significant landmarks extend beyond the city and include theFrench GothicSt. Paul on the Lake Catholic Church (1899) by Harry J. Rill in Grosse Pointe Farms,Kirk in the Hills Presbyterian (1958) in Bloomfield Hills byWirt C. Rowland, andChrist Church Cranbrook (1928) byBertram Goodhue inBloomfield Hills.[6]
Eliel Saarinen was the architect for theCranbrook Educational Community in theMetro Detroit suburb ofBloomfield Hills.[6] Eliel's son, the famed modernistEero Saarinen, designed a complex of buildings in the suburb of Warren, Michigan for General Motors known as theGM Technical Center.[6] SculptorCarl Milles' numerous works in Metro Detroit include those atCranbrook Educational Community inBloomfield Hills, Michigan such asMermaids & Tritons Fountain (1930),Sven Hedin on a Camel (1932),Jonah and the Whale Fountain (1932),Orpheus Fountain (1936), and theSpirit of Transportation (1952) at the Detroit Civic Center.[61]
Downtown and New Center areas contain high-rise buildings, while the majority of the surrounding city consists of low-rise structures and single-family homes. The city's neighborhoods constructed prior to World War II feature the architecture of the times with wood frame and brick houses, larger brick homes in middle-class neighborhoods, and ornate mansions throughout the city's many historic districts and nearby suburbs such asGrosse Pointe. The oldest city neighborhoods are along the Woodward and Jefferson corridors, while newer city neighborhoods are found in the west and northeast.
High-rise residential buildings are found in neighborhoods along theInternational Riverfront andEast Jefferson Avenue residential area extending towardGrosse Pointe and thePalmer Park neighborhood West of Woodward on the city's North end.Ludwig Mies van der Rohe designed a residential development for Detroit's East sideLafayette Park (1958–1965), including three high-rise residential buildings and over 200 townhouses. A successful 78-acre (320,000 m2) urban renewal project, this development is the largest concentration of buildings designed by Mies van der Rohe in the world.[63] Lafayette Park is near the architecturally significantSt. Joseph's Catholic Church and theEastern Market Historic District. The East side contains many architecturally distinctive homes such as those in theIndian Village andEast Jefferson Avenue.
Some of the oldest extant working-class neighborhoods include those in the Southwest such asCorktown, established by Irish immigrants and those in the middle-classWest Vernor-Junction area. The Southwest is seeing redevelopment and construction of new homes and condos due in part to the city's expanding Mexicantown area surroundingClark Park, which is near the architecturally significantMost Holy Redeemer Church andSte. Anne de Detroit Catholic Church.
Detroit neighborhood historic districts contain notable residential architecture from theGilded Age.[64] Many architecturally significant late-19th- and early-20th-century mansions have been restored, such as those inMidtown'sBrush Park neighborhood. TheWest Canfield,Woodbridge, andEast Ferry Avenue neighborhoods are examples ofMidtown's restoredFrench Renaissance Revival,Second Empire,Romanesque, andQueen Anne architecture. Noted architectGordon W. Lloyd designed theDavid Whitney House (1894) constructed with a jasper stone exterior.[65] The Whitney House is now a fine restaurant at 4421 Woodward Avenue in Midtown. The East Canfield area nearby contains theGothic Revival styledSweetest Heart of Mary Catholic Church.
Arden Park-East Boston (a National Historic district comprising Arden Park Boulevard and East Boston Boulevard, running for three blocks east of Woodward near theNew Center Area) is noted for mansions built by the industrial giants of the 1910s and 1920s.[66] Residents included the Dodge Brothers,J. L. Hudson, and Fred Fisher, the founder of Fisher Body.[67] Fisher's residence on Arden Park (George D. Mason, 1918, with additions in 1923) is constructed of Indiana limestone in the Italian Villa style. It features elaborate stone carvings and intricate ironwork and was the subject of a 1926 "Fortune Magazine" discussion of "the harmony of materials and proportion in residential architecture." The nearbyBoston-Edison neighborhood (comprising four residential blocks west of Woodward) features several Kahn residences, including the Benjamin Siegal residence (1915), theJames Couzens house (1910), and one of Kahn's rare stucco residences, the Ernest Venn house (1908). Additional architecturally significant homes in the neighborhood include theSebastian S. Kresge house, theBerry Gordy house, and one of theHenry Ford houses.[62] Many architecturally distinctive homes are also located near theUniversity of Detroit Mercy on the city's North end such as those inPalmer Woods andSherwood Forest historic districts. TheCathedral of the Most Blessed Sacrament is located near this corridor alongWoodward Avenue.
Detroit's heritage includes works byFrank Lloyd Wright who had participated in the initial design forHenry Ford'sFair Lane Estate,[68] aNational Historic Landmark in Dearborn. Frank Lloyd Wright also designed theDorothy H. Turkel House at 2760 West Seven Mile Rd.,[69] theGregor S. and Elizabeth B. Affleck House at 1925 N. Woodward Ave., theMelvyn Maxwell and Sara Stein Smith House at 5045 Ponvalley Rd., and theCarlton D. Wall House at 12305 Beck Rd. in Plymouth Township.
The mansions of metropolitan Detroit are among the nation's grandest estates.Meadow Brook Hall (1929), the 110-room 88,000 sq ft (8,200 m2) mansion of Matilda Dodge Wilson at 480 South Adams Rd. in the suburb ofRochester Hills, is the fourth largest in the United States.[68] Listed in the National Register of Historic Places, the mansion is open to the public. The suburbs ofGrosse Pointe andBloomfield Hills are replete with grandiose mansions.Albert Kahn designed theEdsel and Eleanor Ford House (1927) at 1100 Lakeshore Dr. inGrosse Pointe which is open to the public.[68] Rose Terrace (1934–1976), the mansion of Anna Dodge, once stood at 12 Lakeshore Dr. inGrosse Pointe. Designed byHorace Trumbauer as aLouis XV styledchâteau, Rose Terrace was an enlarged version of the firm's Miramar inNewport, Rhode Island.[71] A developer, the highest bidder for Rose Terrace, demolished it in 1976 to create an upscale neighborhood. This gave a renewed sense of urgency to preservationists.[71] The Dodge Collection from Rose Terrace may be viewed at theDetroit Institute of Arts. TheItalian Renaissance styledRussell A. Alger Jr. House (1910), at 32 Lakeshore Dr., by architectCharles A. Platt serves as theGrosse PointeWar Memorial.[72] The fiveGrosse Pointe communities feature a variety of newer and early-twentieth-century mansions which flank the shores ofLake St. Clair, one of the finest examples beingWoodley Green (the Benson Ford House, 1934) byHugh T. Keyes (considered "one of the most prolific and versatile architects of the period").[13]Bloomfield Hills also contains vast estates from the early to mid 20th century, such as Albert Kahn-designedCranbrook House on Saarinen's Cranbrook campus (called byThe New York Times "one of the greatest campuses ever created anywhere in the world"[73]). Next door on Vaughan Rd. is Keyes-designedWoodland, the estate ofJohn Bugas.
There have also been some newer redeveloped upscalesubdivisions in the Grosse Pointe, Bloomfield Hills, and Turtle Lake areas.[5][6][74]
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A graduate of theMassachusetts Institute of Technology, he came to Detroit in 1913 to work as an architect on Henry Ford's home, Fairlane. He joined the architectural firm of Albert Kahn Associates in 1914 and retired from that company in 1967. In the meantime he had served as chief architect for theFisher Building, taught methods of industrial construction in Russia and during World War II, designed installations for the Army and Navy throughout the world.
![University of Michigan Law School: Lawyers Club (1924) by York and Sawyer — Quadrangle (1933) by Gunnar Birkerts — Library addition (1982) by Quinn Evans[75]](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=https%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aLawyers_Club.jpg)
![Westin Book Cadillac Hotel[76]](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=https%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aBook_Cadillac_stone_sculpture_2.jpg)
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Religious landmarks inmetropolitanDetroit | ||
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This includes houses of worship, but does not include schools. | ||
| Religious landmarks along Woodward Ave. (address #) |
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| City (alsoHamtramck) |
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| Suburban |
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See also:Architecture of metropolitan Detroit | ||
Industrial landmarks inmetropolitan Detroit | ||
|---|---|---|
| City |
|  |
| Suburban | ||
.svg) | ||
| Topics | .jpg) | |
|---|---|---|
| Detroit | ||
| Municipalities over 80,000 | ||
| Municipalities 40,000 to 80,000 | ||
| Cultural enclaves | ||
| Satellite cities | ||
| Counties in MSA | ||
| Counties in CSA | ||
