The Boston–Edison Historic District is a

neighborhood A neighbourhood (Commonwealth English) or neighborhood (American English) is a geographically localized community within a larger town, city, suburb or rural area, sometimes consisting of a single street and the buildings lining it. Neigh ...

located in

Detroit, Michigan Detroit ( , ) is the List of municipalities in Michigan, most populous city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is situated on the bank of the Detroit River across from Windsor, Ontario. It had a population of 639,111 at the 2020 United State ...

. It consists of over 900 homes built on four east-west streets: West Boston Boulevard, Chicago Boulevard, Longfellow Avenue and Edison Avenue, stretching from

Woodward Avenue A woodward is a Game warden, warden of a wood. Woodward may also refer to: Places ;United States * Woodward, Iowa * Woodward, Oklahoma * Woodward, Pennsylvania, a census-designated place * Woodward Avenue, a street in Tallahassee, Florida, which b ...

in the east to Linwood Avenue in the west.Sarah Klein,
Neighborhood Museum
" ''Metro Times'', 6/5/2002. It is one of the largest residential historic districts in the nation. It is surrounded by

Sacred Heart Major Seminary Sacred Heart Major Seminary is a private Roman Catholic seminary in Detroit, Michigan. It is affiliated with the Archdiocese of Detroit. In 2016–2017, 107 seminarians, representing eleven dioceses and two religious orders were enrolled in cla ...

to the west, the Arden Park-East Boston Historic District and the

Cathedral of the Most Blessed Sacrament The Cathedral of the Most Blessed Sacrament is a Neo-Gothic style Roman Catholic cathedral church in the United States. It is the seat of the archbishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Detroit. The metropolitan archdiocese for the Roman Ca ...

to the east, and the Atkinson Avenue Historic District to the south. The district was designated a Michigan State Historic Site in 1973 and listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

in 1975.

Description

A substantial number of prominent Detroiters have lived in the neighborhood. Notable residents have included labor leader Walter P. Reuther, Rabbi Morris Adler, Detroit Tigers

Harry Heilmann Harry Edwin Heilmann (August 3, 1894 – July 9, 1951), nicknamed "Slug", was an American baseball player and radio announcer. He played professional baseball for 19 years between 1913 and 1932, including 17 seasons in Major League Baseball wit ...

Dizzy Trout Paul Howard "Dizzy" Trout (June 29, 1915 – February 28, 1972) was an American professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a right-handed pitcher from to , most notably as a member of the Detroit Tigers team that finishe ...

, Michigan Supreme Court justices Franz C. Kuhn and Henry Butzel, U.S. Representative Vincent M. Brennan, Michigan governor Harry Kelly, boxer

Joe Louis Joseph Louis Barrow (May 13, 1914 – April 12, 1981) was an American professional boxer who competed from 1934 to 1951. Nicknamed "the Brown Bomber", Louis is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential boxers of all time. He r ...

, druggist Sidney Barthwell, Congressman Charles C. Diggs Jr., Congressman George D. O'Brien,

Motown Motown is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. Founded by Berry Gordy, Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on January 12, 1959, it was incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau ...

record label founder

Berry Gordy Berry Gordy III (born November 28, 1929), also known as Berry Gordy Jr., is an American retired record executive, record producer, songwriter, film producer and television producer. He is best known as the founder of the Motown record label and i ...

, Detroit Tiger

Willie Horton William R. Horton (born August 12, 1951), commonly referred to as "Willie Horton", is an American convicted murderer who was the subject of a major political controversy in the 1988 presidential election. Horton had committed violent crimes whi ...

, and dentist and pioneering

WCHB WCHB (1340 kHz) is a commercial AM radio station licensed to Royal Oak, Michigan, and serving the Detroit metropolitan area. It broadcasts an urban gospel radio format and is owned by Crawford Broadcasting. The station is a reporter to Billboar ...

radio station owner Wendell F. Cox.Arden Park-East Boston
from Detroit 1701. The District boasts the city's oldest continuous neighborhood association, the Historic Boston–Edison Association, which was founded in 1921. The District received historic designation from the Michigan State Historic Preservation Office in 1973, the Detroit Historic District Commission in 1974, and the

in 1975. According to the 2000Census Tract 5323, Wayne County, Michigan
from US Census BureauCensus Tract 5312, Wayne County, Michigan
from US Census Bureau Census data (which includes the surrounding streets of Atkinson, Clairmount, and Glynn Court) show Boston–Edison has both

Black Black is a color that results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without chroma, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness.Eva Heller, ''P ...

and

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no chroma). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully (or almost fully) reflect and scatter all the visible wa ...

residents. The homes are owned by people from diverse occupations and professions.

Architecture

History

The land now within the boundaries of Boston–Edison was first owned by John R. Williams (who was granted a single parcel in 1822) and Thomas Palmer (who was granted three parcels in 1828 and 1832)."history" page
of the Historic Boston–Edison Association. These original four grants were transferred from owner to owner over the next fifty years until they were obtained by the Joy family, the Newberry family, and Edward W. Voigt. In 1891, Voigt, foreseeing the growth of Detroit northward, platted the Voigt Park subdivision, consisting of seven east–west streets from Woodward and Hamilton:Plat map of Voigt Park subdivision
from the State of Michigan. Calvert Avenue, Glynn Court, Schiller Esplanade, Shakespeare Esplanade, Longfellow Avenue, Edison Avenue, and Atkinson Avenue. Four of these streets—Schiller Esplanade (now Boston Boulevard), Shakespeare Esplanade (now Chicago Boulevard), Edison Avenue and Longfellow Avenue—formed the Boston–Edison neighborhood. The original location of the neighborhood park was originally to have been between Chicago and Boston Boulevards, but was later changed to be situated between Longfellow and Edison Avenues. The Voigt Park subdivision was immediately incorporated into the City of Detroit. Voigt platted spacious lots and set building restrictions that established the unique character of the neighborhood. His vision was followed by Truman and John Newberry, who platted the West Boston Boulevard Subdivision between Hamilton and 12th Street (now known as "Rosa Parks Boulevard") in 1913. The subdivision included lots on West Boston, Chicago, Longfellow, and Edison, as well as on Atkinson to the south.Plat map of Boston Boulevard subdivision
from the State of Michigan. In 1915, Henry B. Joy platted the Joy Farms Subdivision between 12th Street and Linwood. This subdivision included lots on the same seven streets originally platted by Voigt.Plat map of Joy Farm subdivision
from the State of Michigan. Both of these subdivisions were annexed by the City of Detroit by 1915. The first homes built in the Boston–Edison Historic District were occupied starting in 1905,"History" page
from the Historic Boston–Edison Association. with the majority of the homes built between 1905 and 1925.Boston–Edison Historic District
from the City of Detroit Planning and Development Department. Each of the homes in the neighborhood is unique. Architectural styles represented include English Tudor revival, Roman and

Greek Revival Greek Revival architecture is a architectural style, style that began in the middle of the 18th century but which particularly flourished in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, predominantly in northern Europe, the United States, and Canada, ...

, French Provincial,

Colonial Revival The Colonial Revival architectural style seeks to revive elements of American colonial architecture. The beginnings of the Colonial Revival style are often attributed to the Centennial Exhibition of 1876, which reawakened Americans to the arch ...

, Italian Renaissance,

Prairie Style Prairie School is a late 19th and early 20th-century architectural style, most common in the Midwestern United States. The style is usually marked by horizontal lines, flat or hipped roofs with broad overhanging eaves, windows grouped i ...

, and

Vernacular Vernacular is the ordinary, informal, spoken language, spoken form of language, particularly when perceptual dialectology, perceived as having lower social status or less Prestige (sociolinguistics), prestige than standard language, which is mor ...

. These homes range in size from modest two-story vernaculars to massive mansions set on sprawling grounds.Detroit Historic Districts
from Cityscape Detroit Although the homes are unique in style, homes along the streetscape are generally exhibit uniformity in roofline, scale, setback from the street, and the materials used, including stone, brick or wood construction. This uniformity creates a gracious suburban ambiance.

Original residents

One of the earliest residents of the Boston-Edison neighborhood,

Henry Ford Henry Ford (July 30, 1863 – April 7, 1947) was an American Technological and industrial history of the United States, industrialist and business magnate. As the founder of the Ford Motor Company, he is credited as a pioneer in making automob ...

, was also one of the most well-known. In 1907, Ford had a brick and limestone Italian Renaissance Revival residence built at the corner of Edison and Second at a cost of $483,253.Information on Henry Ford is fro
The Henry Ford House historical marker
, text available from Historic Sites Online, State of Michigan Historic Preservation Office. Ford and his wife, Clara, moved in the next year, residing in the neighborhood until 1915, when they moved to

Fair Lane Fair Lane was the estate of Ford Motor Company founder Henry Ford and his wife, Clara Ford, in Dearborn, Michigan, United States. It was named after an area in Cork, Ireland, where Ford's adoptive grandfather, Patrick Ahern, was born. The ...

, their estate in Dearborn. During the time that Ford lived in Boston–Edison, his introduction of the

Model T The Ford Model T is an automobile that was produced by the Ford Motor Company from October 1, 1908, to May 26, 1927. It is generally regarded as the first mass-affordable automobile, which made car travel available to middle-class Americans. Th ...

mass production Mass production, also known as mass production, series production, series manufacture, or continuous production, is the production of substantial amounts of standardized products in a constant flow, including and especially on assembly lines ...

methods, and wage-price theories revolutionized American industry. Henry Ford built a machine shop above the garage, situated behind the house for his son

Edsel Edsel is a discontinued division and brand of automobiles that was produced by the Ford Motor Company in the 1958 to 1960 model years. Deriving its name from Edsel Ford, son of company founder Henry Ford, Edsels were developed in an effort to ...

to support and encourage Edsel's interest in automobile design. A historical marker issued by the State of Michigan, describing the history and significance of the home, is located on the front lawn. Henry Ford was only the first of many automotive pioneers to live in the Boston–Edison neighborhood. Ford's early business partners and

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

stockholders

James Couzens James Joseph 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 ...

and

Horace Rackham Horace Hatcher Rackham (June 27, 1858 – June 12, 1933) was one of the original stockholders in the Ford Motor Company and a noted philanthropist. Early life Rackham was born in Harrison Township, Michigan. He graduated from high school in Les ...

also built homes near Ford's in Boston–Edison. (Two other Ford stockholders, John Dodge,Arden Park-East Boston Historic District
from the City of Detroit Planning and Development Department. and Alexander Y. Malcomson,Albert Nelson Marquis
''The Book of Detroiters''
1908, A. N. Marquis & Co., p. 312 lived in the adjoining Arden Park-East Boston neighborhood.) They were followed by other early and important Ford collaborators such as Peter E. Martin, C. Harold Wills, and Clarence W. Avery."Historic Residents"
from the Historic Boston–Edison Association In addition, other pioneers in the early automobile industry such as Walter Briggs Sr. of Briggs Manufacturing Co, four of the Fisher brothers (of

Fisher Body Fisher Body was an automobile coachbuilder founded as the Fisher Body Company by Frederic and Charles Fisher in 1908 in Detroit, Michigan when they absorbed a fledgling autobody maker. By 1916 the concern had grown into one of the world's large ...

), Charles Lambert of Regal Motor Car Co., John W. Drake from Hupp Motor Car Co., and William E. Metzger from

Cadillac Cadillac Motor Car Division, or simply Cadillac (), is the luxury vehicle division (business), division of the American automobile manufacturer General Motors (GM). Its major markets are the United States, Canada and China; Cadillac models are ...

and E-M-F. likewise built homes in Boston–Edison. Other prominent Detroit businessmen lived in Boston–Edison neighborhood during the early years of the neighborhood, including

Sebastian S. Kresge Sebastian Spering Kresge (July 31, 1867 – October 18, 1966) was an American businessman. He created and owned two chains of department stores: the S. S. Kresge Company, one of the 20th century's largest discount retail organizations, and the ...

(founder of the S.S. Kresge Company—later

Kmart Kmart ( ), formerly legally registered as Kmart Corporation, now operated by Transformco, is a department-store chain and online retailer in the United States and Territories of the United States, its territories. It operates four remaining Kma ...

), Benjamin Siegel (founder of a major early clothing store), and J. L. Webber (nephew of J. L. Hudson). Additional notable early residents included conductor

Ossip Gabrilowitsch Ossip Salomonovich Gabrilowitsch (Осип Сoломонович Габрилович, ''Osip Solomonovich Gabrilovich''; he used the German transliteration ''Gabrilowitsch'' in the West) (14 September 1936) was a Russian-American pianist, condu ...

and his wife

Clara Clemens Clara Langhorne Clemens Samossoud (formerly Gabrilowitsch; June 8, 1874 – November 19, 1962), was an American concert singer, and the daughter of Samuel Clemens, who wrote as Mark Twain. She managed his estate and guarded his legacy after ...

Detroit Tigers The Detroit Tigers are an American professional baseball team based in Detroit. The Tigers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central Division. One of the AL's eight chart ...

owner

Frank Navin Francis Joseph Navin (April 18, 1871 – November 13, 1935) was an American businessman and baseball executive who was the president of the Detroit Tigers in Major League Baseball for 27 years, from 1908 to 1935. He was part-owner from 1908 to ...

, Detroit Tigers player

Ty Cobb Tyrus Raymond Cobb (December 18, 1886 – July 17, 1961), nicknamed "the Georgia Peach", was an American professional baseball center fielder. A native of rural Narrows, Georgia, Cobb played 24 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). He spent ...

(who lived on nearby Atkinson Avenue at Third), historian Clarence M. Burton, and Rabbi Leo M. Franklin. In the early history of Boston–Edison, three factors influenced the character of the community. The first factor was the tendency for employees and business associates to live in a cluster, similar to early associates of Henry Ford did. In addition, six employees of S.S. Kresge lived in the neighborhood. The second factor was the tendency of several family members to live in close range. In addition to the four Fisher brothers (a fifth brother, Frederic, lived in the adjacent Arden Park-East Boston neighborhood), a number of Benjamin Siegel's relatives lived in the neighborhood, as did a number of Wagner family members (owners of Wagner's bakery). The third factor was the construction of

Henry Ford Hospital Henry Ford Hospital (HFH) is an 877-bed tertiary care hospital, education and research complex at the western edge of the New Center, Detroit, New Center area in Detroit, Michigan. The flagship facility for the Henry Ford Health System, it wa ...

in 1915, only a mile south of the neighborhood. Twenty-three physicians built homes in Boston–Edison.

Education

Residents are zoned to schools in the

Detroit Public Schools Detroit Public Schools Community District (DPSCD) is a school district that serves Detroit, Detroit, Michigan, and high school students in Highland Park, Michigan. The district, which replaced the original Detroit Public Schools (DPS) in 2016, ...

district. Durfee K-8, Loving and Thirkell elementary schools serve separate sections of the neighborhood. All of Boston–Edison is zoned to Durfee K-8 for middle school. All residents are zoned to Central High School. In the past, portions of Boston–Edison were served by Hutchins Middle School.Middle School Boundary Map
" ''

''. Retrieved on October 20, 2009.

References

External links

Historic Boston–Edison Association
neighborhood website

from Detroit Rising

from National Scenic Byways {{DEFAULTSORT:Boston-Edison Historic District Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Michigan Neighborhoods in Detroit Michigan State Historic Sites in Wayne County, Michigan National Register of Historic Places in Detroit Historic district contributing properties in Michigan Culture of Detroit