Oldest building still in use in CBD

[GPCharles]

I'm defining CBD as River to Fisher Freeway, Lodge Freeway to Chrysler Freeway. I realize there are other definitions out there, this just seems simple.

I know of one from 1902.

[casscorridor]

Several buildings in The Randolph Street Commercial Buildings Historic District date to the 1840s, just after the start of the Victorian era.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Randol...toric_District

[iheartthed]

Mariners' Church dates to 1849.

[iheartthed]

According to Google, the Charles Trowbridge House is the oldest documented building in the city of Detroit. It sits just outside of your boundaries: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Trowbridge_House

It was built in 1826. If this is indeed the oldest building, it's sad that a city that's existed since 1702 doesn't have anything older.

[ndavies]

According to Google, the Charles Trowbridge House is the oldest documented building in the city of Detroit. It sits just outside of your boundaries: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Trowbridge_House

It was built in 1826. If this is indeed the oldest building, it's sad that a city that's existed since 1702 doesn't have anything older.

You do know the entire city burned to the ground in 1805? Only one building remained standing. Hence the cities motto. "

Speramus Meliora; Resurget Cineribus[[Latin: We Hope For Better Things; It Shall Rise From the Ashes)"

[Ray1936]

Coincidentally, the Shorpy photo web site today had a great 1908 shot of the Woodward corridor from about the Cadillac Square area north to Grand Circus Park.
http://www.shorpy.com/node/24135

Click on the photo to embiggen. [[Love that non-word!)

[EastsideAl]

The Detroit Savings Bank Building [[later the Chamber of Commerce Building and the United Way Building, now home of the Catholic Archdiocese), 1212 Griswold at the corner of State, completed in 1895 [[and heavily modified in recent years), is the oldest large office building still in use downtown.

Sts. Peter & Paul Roman Catholic Church at E. Jefferson and St. Antoine is the oldest house of worship in the city. Begun in 1844 and completed in 1848.

[EastsideAl]

You do know the entire city burned to the ground in 1805?

And, in the area where the 1805 fire occurred, most of the oldest remaining 19th century buildings downtown disappeared when almost all of the buildings south of Jefferson were torn down in the late '40s and early '50s for the Civic Center project [[a notable exception being Mariners Church, which was moved a couple blocks north to Jefferson).

Several buildings dating from the 1850s were also demolished when the Monroe Block [[between Woodward and Farmer) was finally torn down in 1990, after sitting vacant for more than a decade in a historic preservation fight.

[Detroit Stylin]

And, in the area where the 1805 fire occurred, most of the oldest remaining 19th century buildings downtown disappeared when almost all of the buildings south of Jefferson were torn down in the late '40s and early '50s for the Civic Center project [[a notable exception being Mariners Church, which was moved a couple blocks north to Jefferson).

Several buildings dating from the 1850s were also demolished when the Monroe Block [[between Woodward and Farmer) was finally torn down in 1990, after sitting vacant for more than a decade in a historic preservation fight.

Those were the last of the pre Civil War buildings right?

[Dexlin]

Those were the last of the pre Civil War buildings right?

Go back to the second post of this thread

[NSortzi]

The group of buildings on Woodward between the First National Building and Vinton Building are also pre Civil War. They can be seen on the right side of this photo:


The Russell House was built in 1836 and remodeled in 1857, meaning this photo was taken between those years. I don't know exactly when they were built, though. They are now occupied by Bedrock, Woodward Coney, Grand Trunk Pub and the Whisky Parlor.

The Russell House was torn down for the Pontchartrain Hotel which was demolished for the First National Building.

[Dexlin]

Bedrock is headquartered in 630 Woodward, which was built as the Hotel Metropole in 1898. I imagine the buildings south of it must be older.

[NSortzi]

Bedrock is headquartered in 630 Woodward, which was built as the Hotel Metropole in 1898. I imagine the buildings south of it must be older.

630 Woodward is actually newer then the other buildings, but it dates to 1876-1880 according to this link. That link also gives similar years of completion for the rest of the buildings down the block to the Vinton Building, but I suspect they're older and those dates are the years of major reconstructions. They look identical to the ones in the photo I posted, and it doesn't make sense for them to tear those down to build the exact same building in its place.

[gnome]

The Trombly/Beaubien house on Jefferson is pretty old, as is whatever the Sweetwater Tavern use to be called. Likewise there’s a old home on Beaubien a half block from Nikki’s that’s gotta be from the 1870’s.

The Globe Building

Tom’s Oyster Bar, now Briggs is long in the tooth even if it’s been remodeled a million times since it was constructed.

[Lowell]

FYI the oldest building in the metro is the James Baby House aka the Duff Baby House in Sandwich. Here's a pic I took from a few years back...



Per its Wiki:
Built between 1792 and 1798, the Duff Baby House is considered to be the oldest building in Ontario. The house was built by Alexander Duff as a fur trade post. In 1807 the building was bought by James Baby and it is alleged to have been used as the headquarters of U.S. General Harrison, Colonel Henry Proctor, and General Isaac Brock until it was ravaged by the British during the War of 1812.

The two-and-a-half-story timber structure was refinished as Baby's residence in 1816. It is located at 221 Mill Street in Old Sandwich Town, which is the oldest part of Windsor, Ontario, where settlements date back to the mid 18th century. The Duff Baby House is also one of the best-preserved and oldest Georgian-style houses in Ontario. Today the building is owned by the Ontario Heritage Trust and houses government offices.

[iheartthed]

You do know the entire city burned to the ground in 1805? Only one building remained standing. Hence the cities motto. "

Speramus Meliora; Resurget Cineribus[[Latin: We Hope For Better Things; It Shall Rise From the Ashes)"

Does that make it less sad?

[detroitbob]

Bedrock is headquartered in 630 Woodward, which was built as the Hotel Metropole in 1898. I imagine the buildings south of it must be older.

The building that houses Bedrock Headquarters history is attached...The Mabley Bros. & Company store dates from 1876-1880 the Metropole Hotel replaced the Mabley store which moved to the new Majestic Building. It was to be named Mabley Bldg but the recession forced Mabley to sell the structure and become a tenant.
http://detroit1701.org/Mabley%20Comp...Buildings.html

[NSortzi]

The building that houses Bedrock Headquarters history is attached...The Mabley Bros. & Company store dates from 1876-1880 the Metropole Hotel replaced the Mabley store which moved to the new Majestic Building. It was to be named Mabley Bldg but the recession forced Mabley to sell the structure and become a tenant.
http://detroit1701.org/Mabley%20Comp...Buildings.html

The Metropole Hotel/Mabley & Company store and Bedrock Headquarters are all the same building.

I've never heard that reasoning to why it was renamed the Majestic Building. According to the building's Wikipedia page:

Unfortunately, C. R. Mabley died before the building's completion and new owners used it solely as an office block. It was purportedly renamed the Majestic building to conform with the letter "M" [[for Mabley) carved in numerous places in its façade.^[3]

[EastsideAl]

Oddly, the oldest extant Detroit house has been standing in Amherstburg Ontario for over 200 years. The Park House Museum is in a house that was originally built near the Rouge River on the Detroit side of the river. The owners, unhappy with the incoming US authorities, disassembled their house in 1796 and moved it across the river back into British territory.

[EastsideAl]

The Trombly/Beaubien house on Jefferson is pretty old.

It was reportedly built in 1851, making it one of the very few pre-Civil War structures in the CBD [[as defined by GPCharles at the top of the thread), along with Sts. Peter & Paul, Mariners Church, and the remaining 1840s commercial buildings on Randolph. I believe that to be the total list of confirmable pre-1860 buildings in that area, but I'm interested if anyone has any additions.

That house is also one of several pre-Civil War houses on E. Jefferson, along with the aforementioned Trowbridge House, the Sibley House, the Campau House, and the Moross House [[these 4 houses are outside of the CBD as defined here). Of course, we lost one of these a few years back when the 1850 Chene House [[Little Harry's) was demolished to clear the way for IHOP.

Just west of downtown, Most Holy Trinity dates from 1855, and the nearby worker's rowhouse is about the same age. There may be some other houses in Corktown of similar vintage.

[Burnsie]

As often happens, Wikipedia is wrong. C.R. Mabley died on 6/30/1885. Mabley Bldg. construction didn't start until 1895. Before it was even finished in 1896, a different developer took over and renamed it the Majestic. Mabley & Co. had financial problems, and was bought & renamed Mabley & Goodfellow before the end of 1896. The store operated from the Majestic Bldg. until about 1898, replaced by Partridge & Blackwell.

The above info is from the Free Press, via newspapers.com.

[EastsideAl]

As often happens, Wikipedia is wrong. C.R. Mabley died on 6/30/1885. Mabley Bldg. construction didn't start until 1895. Before it was even finished in 1896, a different developer took over and renamed it the Majestic. Mabley & Co. had financial problems, and was bought & renamed Mabley & Goodfellow before the end of 1896. The store operated from the Majestic Bldg. until about 1898, replaced by Partridge & Blackwell.

Pardridge & Blackwell [[correct spelling) would go on in 1906 to build the store that would soon thereafter become Crowley's.

[EastsideAl]

It was reportedly built in 1851, making it one of the very few pre-Civil War structures in the CBD [[as defined by GPCharles at the top of the thread), along with Sts. Peter & Paul, Mariners Church, and the remaining 1840s commercial buildings on Randolph. I believe that to be the total list of confirmable pre-1860 buildings in that area, but I'm interested if anyone has any additions.

There is also the odd case of St. John's Episcopal Church on Woodward. A small chapel was completed and opened in 1859, but the larger church wasn't completed and opened until Dec. 1861, 8 months after the attack on Ft. Sumpter. The original chapel was disassembled and moved further back when the church was expanded in the 1890s, and the whole church was moved back when Woodward was widened in 1936.

Fort Street Presbyterian is another odd case. The first church was completed in 1855, but it was almost totally destroyed by fire in 1876. In 1877 the church was rebuilt to the original plans. It was heavily damaged by fire again in 1914, and again rebuilt according to the original plans.

Tommy Burelle, who runs Tommy's Bar directly behind Fort St. Presbyterian, claims his building was built in the 1840s, but I have never seen any documentation of that.

[Onthe405]

There is also the odd case of St. John's Episcopal Church on Woodward. A small chapel was completed and opened in 1859, but the larger church wasn't completed and opened until Dec. 1861, 8 months after the attack on Ft. Sumpter. The original chapel was disassembled and moved further back when the church was expanded in the 1890s, and the whole church was moved back when Woodward was widened in 1936.

St John's & Christ Church [[also Episcopal) overlapped in construction, and are very close in age---the latter completed in 1864. The aforementioned Sibley House [[c1848), next door, was purchased in the 1940s by Christ Church as a residence for its Rector & family.

When the tradition of Rectors living on the parish property became less common, Sibley House became the Christ Church parish office [[the house still serves that purpose today). At Rivard and Jefferson, CCD is literally on the border of GPCharles original parameters.

https://goo.gl/maps/tTatH1d54Jx

[p69rrh51]

St John's & Christ Church [[also Episcopal) overlapped in construction, and are very close in age---the latter completed in 1864. The aforementioned Sibley House [[c1848), next door, was purchased in the 1940s by Christ Church as a residence for its Rector & family.

When the tradition of Rectors living on the parish property became less common, Sibley House became the Christ Church parish office [[the house still serves that purpose today). At Rivard and Jefferson, CCD is literally on the border of GPCharles original parameters.

https://goo.gl/maps/tTatH1d54Jx

Christ Church placed their cornerstone July 16, 1861, while St. Johns was consecrated on December 19, 1861. St. John's had completed construction before December so there was a miniscule amount of overlaping construction. Christ Church would be consecrated on April 9, 1863.