The Detroit Club is a private social club located in

Downtown ''Downtown'' is a term primarily used in North America by English speakers to refer to a city's sometimes commercial, cultural and often the historical, political and geographic heart. It is often synonymous with its central business district ...

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at t ...

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and t ...

. The building was constructed in 1891 and listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

in 2005.

History

The origin of the Detroit Club dates to 1882, when Detroit attorney Samuel Townsend Douglas and banker/broker James Valentine Campbell, Jr. decided to found a club where local businessmen could meet and mingle."Tradition"
from The Detroit Club With an original membership of 10, they rented a house on Lafayette between Wayne and Cass,"Where Detroit's elite met to eat,"
''The Detroit News,'' August 9, 1996. and hired a chef. They soon convinced 100 more of Detroit's citizens to join. Early members included Russell A. Alger, ex-governor of Michigan, Hugh McMillan, founder of the Michigan Telephone Company, and real estate magnate James B. Book. Within a year, the club had outgrown its first home and moved to larger quarters on Fort Street. Less than a decade later, the club hired architect

Wilson Eyre Wilson Eyre, Jr. (October 30, 1858 – October 23, 1944) was an American architect, teacher and writer who practiced in the Philadelphia area. He is known for his deliberately informal and welcoming country houses, and for being an innovator i ...

to design a new building to serve as their meeting place.

Architecture

The Detroit Club is a four-story brick and stone

Romanesque Revival Romanesque Revival (or Neo-Romanesque) is a style of building employed beginning in the mid-19th century inspired by the 11th- and 12th-century Romanesque architecture. Unlike the historic Romanesque style, Romanesque Revival buildings tended to ...

building. The front door is hidden within an unusual recessed archway with stairs.Eric J. Hill, John Gallagher, and the American Institute of Architects Detroit Chapter
''AIA Detroit: The American Institute of Architects Guide to Detroit Architecture,'' Wayne State University Press, 2002, , p.84 The club features a grill and library on the first floor, a family room on the second floor, and a main dining room with smaller meeting rooms on the third floor.
from the Detroit Club The interior features fine woodwork, a wide main stair, and an enormous fireplace in the main dining hall. The original woodwork was lighter than the current version.

Events

A number of pivotal events in the twentieth century took place within the walls of the Detroit Club. In 1902, the Automobile Club of Detroit was organized at a meeting in the club. In 1922, Michigan governor Alex Groesbeck held strategy sessions to decide whom to tap to fill the open Senate seat which resulted from Truman Newberry's resignation. Groesbeck chose

James Couzens James J. Couzens (August 26, 1872October 22, 1936) was an American businessman, politician and philanthropist. He served as mayor of Detroit (1919–1922) and U.S. Senator from Michigan (1922–1936). Prior to entering politics he served as vice ...

. In 1930, Governor Fred W. Green met with Detroit bank presidents to work out details for closing the city's banks. In 1944–45, after an extensive series of meetings at the club,

Henry Ford II Henry Ford II (September 4, 1917 – September 29, 1987), sometimes known as "Hank the Deuce", was an American businessman in the automotive industry. He was the oldest son of Edsel Ford I and oldest grandson of Henry Ford I. He was president ...

wrested control of

Ford Motor Company Ford Motor Company (commonly known as Ford) is an American multinational automobile manufacturer headquartered in Dearborn, Michigan, United States. It was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. The company sells automobi ...

from

Harry Bennett Harry Herbert Bennett (January 17, 1892 – January 4, 1979), was a boxer, Naval sailor, and businessman. From the 1920s through 1945, he worked for Ford Motor Company and was best known as the head of Ford’s "service department", the company's ...

. Later,

Lee Iacocca Lido Anthony "Lee" Iacocca ( ; October 15, 1924 – July 2, 2019) was an American automobile executive best known for the development of the Ford Mustang, Continental Mark III, and Ford Pinto cars while at the Ford Motor Company in the 1960s, a ...

used the club to launch his campaign to restore the

Statue of Liberty The Statue of Liberty (''Liberty Enlightening the World''; French: ''La Liberté éclairant le monde'') is a colossal neoclassical sculpture on Liberty Island in New York Harbor in New York City, in the United States. The copper statue, ...

and develop

Ellis Island Ellis Island is a federally owned island in New York Harbor, situated within the U.S. states of New York and New Jersey, that was the busiest immigrant inspection and processing station in the United States. From 1892 to 1954, nearly 12 mil ...

into a museum. Dignitaries entertained at the Club include

Harry Truman Harry S. Truman (May 8, 1884December 26, 1972) was the 33rd president of the United States, serving from 1945 to 1953. A leader of the Democratic Party, he previously served as the 34th vice president from January to April 1945 under Franklin ...

Herbert Hoover Herbert Clark Hoover (August 10, 1874 – October 20, 1964) was an American politician who served as the 31st president of the United States from 1929 to 1933 and a member of the Republican Party, holding office during the onset of the Gre ...

Franklin Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...

, Prince William of Sweden,

Empress Zita of Austria Zita of Bourbon-Parma (''Zita Maria delle Grazie Adelgonda Micaela Raffaela Gabriella Giuseppina Antonia Luisa Agnese''; 9 May 1892 – 14 March 1989) was the wife of Charles, the last monarch of Austria-Hungary. As such, she was the last Empres ...

, the

Duke of Windsor Duke of Windsor was a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created on 8 March 1937 for the former monarch Edward VIII, following his abdication on 11 December 1936. The dukedom takes its name from the town where Windsor Castle, ...

Margaret Truman Mary Margaret Truman Daniel (February 17, 1924 – January 29, 2008) was an American classical soprano, actress, journalist, radio and television personality, writer, and New York socialite. She was the only child of President Harry S. Truman a ...

Charles Lindbergh Charles Augustus Lindbergh (February 4, 1902 – August 26, 1974) was an American aviator, military officer, author, inventor, and activist. On May 20–21, 1927, Lindbergh made the first nonstop flight from New York City to Paris, a distance o ...

Gene Tunney James Joseph Tunney (May 25, 1897 – November 7, 1978) was an American professional boxer who competed from 1915 to 1928. He held the world heavyweight title from 1926 to 1928, and the American light heavyweight title twice between 1922 and 1 ...

, Admiral Richard Byrd, John D. Rockefeller and

Edward G. Robinson Edward G. Robinson (born Emanuel Goldenberg; December 12, 1893January 26, 1973) was a Romanian-American actor of stage and screen, who was popular during the Hollywood's Golden Age. He appeared in 30 Broadway plays and more than 100 films duri ...

References

External links

The Detroit Club (official website)
* https://www.facebook.com/therealdetroitclub/ * https://www.clickondetroit.com/uniquely-detroit/go-inside-the-detroit-club-citys-oldest-most-historic-club-reopens-to-public-after-renovations {{National Register of Historic Places in Michigan Clubs and societies in Michigan Buildings and structures in Detroit Buildings and structures completed in 1891 National Register of Historic Places in Detroit Organizations based in Detroit Gentlemen's clubs in the United States Organizations established in 1882 1882 establishments in Michigan

History

Architecture

Events

See also

References

External links