Wayne Hotel

**Lowell** · September-12-10, 08:30 AM

This question arrived in the email bag this morning. Any insight from our resident sleuths?

"Hi,I've just recently come on to this site while searching family ancestry. My great-grandfather settled from England to Detroit and I have located in the U.S. Cities Directory for Detroit that he lived at 146 and later at 172 Porter [[7th at 135). In addition, he worked as a cook at the Wayne Hotel [[known dates from 1893-1895. I was searching for images of this hotel, but as of yet no luck. Would you be able to provide any guidance on where I can view 172 Porter and also the Wayne Hotel?

I live in the UK now, and at some point want to come to Detroit to do some more records search. Any help you can provide would be great.

Thank you."

**Hornwrecker** · September-12-10, 08:54 AM

Wayne Hotel, 3rd St at the river, across the street from the Michigan Central station.

Photos from http://rs6.loc.gov/detroit/dethome.html

**Lowell** · September-12-10, 08:56 AM

24 minutes... What took you so long Hornwrecker?? LOL

Charming hotel. Any idea what the interesting open-air pavilion in the top picture was about?

**Hornwrecker** · September-12-10, 09:09 AM

The pavilion was attached to the hotel, used for warm weather dining and roller skating, I believe. There are photos of it on the Burton site and at the LOC. Also browsing Detroit River photos will yield some different angles.

The Wayne Hotel was also home to the first Detroit Auto Show, photo somewhere on this site, maybe the OCF thread.

**canuck** · September-12-10, 09:14 AM

Yes, 24 minutes does sound a bit long, let's ask the concierge if we can hire better staff, Lowell.

**dspeight** · September-12-10, 10:24 AM

Thanks Hornwrecker for posting those photos. It means a lot to our family. We always knew that we had a Detroit connection [[my Nana was born there in 1899 as well), but didn't think too much of it because after my great-grandmother died of tuberculosis in 1901, my GGfather took the family to Philadelphia, which is what we considered our connection. But after seeing these photos, I am determined to learn more.

We saw a documentary here on BBC 3 called "Requiem for Detroit," which was sad, but very well done. Also, there was a good article in the Guardian newspaper, which you may find of interest.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2010/...-urban-decline

**Hornwrecker** · September-12-10, 10:52 AM

172 Porter [[now 1318 since renumbering) was a single story wood house in the 1889 and 1921 Sanborn maps. It now is a vacant lot.

Googgle Maps 1318 Porter

1910? Auto Show, Wayne Hotel
Attachment 7362

**dspeight** · September-12-10, 11:25 AM

Wow, still amazed at all these visuals--thanks. Is the Wayne Hotel still standing or has it alas, been demolished like so many other icons?

**Hornwrecker** · September-12-10, 11:44 AM

I'm not sure when the Wayne Hotel was demolished. Looking over some old photos, it was gone by the time the Civic Center/Cobo Hall constructions started in the late 1950s. Joe Louis Arena now stands over the area where the hotel once stood.

**dspeight** · September-12-10, 01:01 PM

Can't thank you enough for all the info. Are you native to Detroit? When we come back to the US on one of our visits, we are definitely gonna have to come and see this for ourselves. Where is the vital statistics office located these days. Does Wayne County have a new county building where these are kept? Apparently, my great grandfather had a brother who came over and worked for Ford. Where would I have to go for employment records? If memory serves me correctly, they have their own archive library.

**lalynch** · September-28-10, 08:28 PM

Originally Posted by dspeight

Can't thank you enough for all the info. Are you native to Detroit? When we come back to the US on one of our visits, we are definitely gonna have to come and see this for ourselves. Where is the vital statistics office located these days. Does Wayne County have a new county building where these are kept? Apparently, my great grandfather had a brother who came over and worked for Ford. Where would I have to go for employment records? If memory serves me correctly, they have their own archive library.

Send an email to the Benson Ford Research Center to see if they have any employment records for Ford Motor Company.

**Whitehouse** · September-12-10, 03:31 PM

Did the photographer picture his camera on the bottom?

Christ! I love Google. check this out.

Better view of the waterside pavillion. This is a location worth investigating.

And there you have it. Razed in 1931.\ I suppose the hotel stood where the railyard east of the Ambassador Bridge is now.

Originally Posted by Hornwrecker

Wayne Hotel, 3rd St at the river, across the street from the Michigan Central station.

That can't be right. That about where the Joe Lewis Arena is located.

Originally Posted by dspeight

We saw a documentary here on BBC 3 called "Requiem for Detroit," which was sad, but very well done. Also, there was a good article in the Guardian newspaper, which you may find of interest.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2010/...-urban-decline

Boy! Did you land in the right place. "Requiem for Detroit" was discussed here.

**buildingsofdetroit** · September-12-10, 06:27 PM

It was on Third Street, just south of Fort, across from the old Michigan Central Railroad Depot [[http://buildingsofdetroit.com/places/mcrr) that was replaced by the abandoned Michigan Central Station we all know and love today.
MOST of the hotel came down in 1931, but I have newspaper clippings talking about the last of the hotel coming down for Cobo.
I wrote a little about the Wayne, its pavilion and the D&C steamers in my history of the City of Detroit III [[http://buildingsofdetroit.com/places/diii). Just search for "Wayne."

**dspeight** · September-13-10, 02:54 PM

Good article. I am curious to know if ships of immigrants came into port. Or would it be more likely if migration from England would the ship come into New York, and then by land to Detroit. I'm trying to figure out how my ancestor went from England in 1884 to Detroit. Still working on that one.

**dspeight** · September-13-10, 03:00 PM

Better view of the waterside pavillion. This is a location worth investigating.

How so??

**Whitehouse** · September-17-10, 09:37 AM

Originally Posted by dspeight

Better view of the waterside pavillion. This is a location worth investigating.

How so??

I didin't mean the pavillion in itself but the hotel as a whole. I've been here for a while and sometimes I see multiple threads about buildings of interest. And this building I've never seen in this forum before, that's why I found it interesting.

I stink at lay-out

**buildingsofdetroit** · September-12-10, 06:29 PM

Some more postcards and fotos from the BuildingsofDetroit.com archives:
Postcards:
http://i215.photobucket.com/albums/c...nepavilion.jpg
http://i215.photobucket.com/albums/c...ards/wayne.jpg
http://i215.photobucket.com/albums/c...s/waynepav.jpg

Photos:
http://i215.photobucket.com/albums/c...ngs/wayne3.jpg [[from Library of Congress)
http://i215.photobucket.com/albums/c...ings/wayne.jpg [[demolition)

**Magnatomicflux** · September-13-10, 02:47 AM

So, this is it here with the large D&C steamer [[CODIII ?) docked on an angle?

Attachment 7365

Seems like only the dock and pavillion exist in this photo....or that "new mineral bathouse" in in the process of being dismantled.
Would that be right?

**dspeight** · September-13-10, 02:48 PM

Originally Posted by buildingsofdetroit

Some more postcards and fotos from the BuildingsofDetroit.com archives:
Postcards:
http://i215.photobucket.com/albums/c...nepavilion.jpg
http://i215.photobucket.com/albums/c...ards/wayne.jpg
http://i215.photobucket.com/albums/c...s/waynepav.jpg

Photos:
http://i215.photobucket.com/albums/c...ngs/wayne3.jpg [[from Library of Congress)
http://i215.photobucket.com/albums/c...ings/wayne.jpg [[demolition)

Those images are amazing--it is only recently that I've learned about my great-grandfather's life in Detroit. This part of my family has always been a mystery and now it has come to life.

**Hornwrecker** · September-13-10, 10:38 AM

The 1921 Sanborn map shows the Hotel closed and now called the Railway Exchange Bldg. The Detroit and Cleveland Navigation Co occupies the whole of the pavilion. The Wayne Bath House is still standing, but occupancy unknown, so far.

Attachment 7367

The 1884 Sanborn shows a 4 story Cass Hotel at 3rd and W Woodbridge [[Jefferson on 1921 map).

Detroit in History and Commerce, Wayne Hotel pages 91-92 [[Google Books)

**Hornwrecker** · September-13-10, 03:01 PM

Attachment 7391

1909 The Detroit Pathfinder ad

**Mikeg** · September-13-10, 03:26 PM

1913 Detroit City Directory advertisement:

Attachment 7392

**dspeight** · September-13-10, 05:48 PM

Mikeg, where did you find this. I too, am mightily impressed!

**Mikeg** · September-13-10, 08:19 PM

Originally Posted by dspeight

Mikeg, where did you find this. I too, am mightily impressed!

I have a subscription to Footnote.com. Their collections of searchable document images include the pages of the Detroit City Directories from 1861 through 1923. While some of their collections are free to non-subscribers, the City Directories are not. Non-subscribers can browse or search the City Directories and look at thumbnail page images but a subscription is required to download a page image.

Send me an e-mail if you need a page image.