Records of famed Troy architect Yamasaki get a last-minute reprieve

http://www.freep.com/article/2010031...inute-reprieve
A piece of Michigan's architectural history was saved from the scrap heap this month. But a lot more of that history remains endangered.

Interesting and thankful that his work is being preserved. We can't say the same for most of Detroit's other great architects. Albert Kahn's work, for the most part, is preserved along with Leondard Willeke's and Smith, Hinchman and Grylls. However, Robert O. Derrick's designs were pretty much binned after he died and Louis Kamper's family destroyed his work. I havent found much about Richard Marr or Marcus Burrowes. Donaldson and Meier's work, partially, is in the Burton. Basically it is their ledger and some other books.

Some of George Mason's work is at UM and some is at Burton as well. The Leonard Willeke archive was donated to UM about 7 months ago but I am not sure what they did with it or even got around to cataloging it yet.

Thanks for the thread Patrick!!

Wow, after reading that Eero Saarinen's work was trashed in the early 60s... how sad...

It doesn't give one much hope about C. Howard Crane's extensive output [[from Olympia to Orchestra hall to the Opera House and the Fox.... and Lafayette) from 1910-30. Although C. Howard Crane died in 1952... he moved to London England in 1930 when his American commissions dried up. I venture to guess that much of his USA work went into the trash heap :[[ when he packed up and left Detroit for London in 1930 to spend the last 22 years of his life there [[he's also buried in London). Someone please tell me I'm wrong!

I know that some midlevel employees who work for Oakland County read this forum..... so what the hell was someone at the county level thinking!!!!! :eek:

^ I'm surprised they wanted it shredded.. It's not like the AEC industry has ever had much concern when drawings of "sensitive buildings" get pitched in the recyling bin. What' the big deal to have them destroyed, or is someone in Oakland Co, just confused?

Somehow, it seems fitting that Modernism, which helped usher in the age of the bulldozer, should find itself about to fall into a scrap heap. :p

Seriously, though, those records should be preserved somehow.

What is sad is that we will never be able to put together a complete list for architects like Richard Marr, Louis Kamper or J. Ivan Dise. Sure, you can find nibbles here and there with Google Books but not a whole listing like what you will find with yamasaki, Kahn or Willelke. Kamper did a number of out of state works too and who knows where some of the others designed homes and buildings.