Brush Park Historic District - History

History

Beginning in the 1850s, entrepreneur Edmund Brush, son of Elijah Brush, the city's second mayor from its first incorporation, began developing his family's property, located conveniently close to downtown, into a neighborhood for Detroit's elite citizens. Homes were built in Brush Park beginning in the 1850s and peaking in the 1870s and 1880s; one of the last homes built was constructed in 1906 by architect Albert Kahn for his personal use. Kahn lived in this home until his death in 1942, after which it was obtained by the Detroit Urban League, which still uses it today. Other early residents of Brush Park included lumber baron David Whitney Jr., his daughter Grace Whitney Evans, Joseph L. Hudson, founder of the eponymous department store, lumber baron Lucien Moore, banker Frederick Butler, merchant John P. Fiske, Dime Savings Bank founder William Livingstone, and dry goods manufacturer Ransom Gillis. In the late 19th century, the Brush Park neighborhood became known as the "Little Paris of the Midwest."

Architects who designed these mansions included Henry T. Brush, George D. Mason, George W. Nettleton, and Albert Kahn. The French Renaissance style William Livingstone House (1892–93) on Eliot St. was Albert Kahn's first commission. Livingstone was the founder of the Dime Savings Bank. Originally built about one block to the west of its final resting place to the west of John R, the Red Cross intended to demolish the Livingstone House for their new building. Preservationists succeeded in successfully moving the Livingstone Home about one block to the east. Nevertheless, after this change of position some serious structural problems concerning the house's foundations caused the gradual collapse of the building. Artist Lowell Bioleau commemorated the William Livingstone House in a painting entitled Open House which he unveiled the day of its demolition September 15, 2007, underscoring preservationist efforts.

As of 2001, about 154 original structures remained in the area. During the 19th century, around 300 homes were built in Brush Park, including 70 Victorian mansions. However, the neighborhood began to decline in the late 19th and early 20th century, when the advent of streetcars and then automobiles allowed prosperous citizens to live farther from downtown. Early residents moved out, notably to up-and-coming neighborhoods such as Indian Village and Boston-Edison, and the neighborhood became less fashionable. During the Great Depression, many of the older mansions were subdivided into apartments and, as houses aged in the post-World War II era, some became unoccupied and fell into disrepair.

Brush Park's revival began in the 1990s and has accelerated recently. A number of the older mansions have been restored, and more have been stabilized. In addition, new condominiums have been built in the southern part of Brush Park, near the Fisher Freeway.