Belle Isle Police Station

No photos yet

National Register of Historic Places Filing

National SignificanceHistoricArchitectureLandscape Architecture1920-1940

Known as Wah-na-be-zee (Swan Island or White Swan) to its original owners, the Chippewa and Ottawa tribes, Belle Isle first interested European settlers when Antoine De la Mothe Cadillac granted the island as a commons to the inhabitants of the village of Detroit. These first inhabitants used the island as grazing land for livestock, principally hogs, and it was for this reason renamed Ile au Cochons (Hog Island). France surrendered Detroit to Great Britain in 1760, and in 1762, a part of the island was claimed by Lt. George McDougall, an officer attached to the Detroit garrison. McDougall built a house on the island, cleared a parcel of land, and shared the island with a family named Fisher. The entire Fisher family was murdered by Indians in the reign of terror following the unsuccessful attack upon the Fort of Detroit by Chief Pontiac in 1763. McDougall escaped the massacre and later the same year he married Marie Navarre, the daughter of a prominent French inhabitant and royal notary. Encouraged by his new family connections, he applied to the King of England for a grant of the entire island. He met the council of Chippewa and Ottawa chiefs and in return for 5 barrels of rum, 3 rolls of tobacco, 3 pounds of vermilion paint, and 1 belt of wampum received a conveyance from them. The deed was signed in 1769 by the chiefs in the presence of Captain George Turnbull, commander of the fort, and a body of officers. On obtaining final possession of the island, McDougall paid the chiefs an additional 3 barrels of rum and 3 pounds of vermilion paint. The McDougall family retained possession of the island until 1793 when it was purchased by William Macomb. The island was next acquired by Barnabus Campau who bought it from one of Macomb's sons in 1817.

Physical Description

POLICE HEADQUARTERS - A small police station designed by Mason and Rice is one of Belle Isles-most attractive buildings. The charm of its shingled surfaces and rough fieldstone, suggesting a Norman farmhouse, suited its natural setting perfectly. Its continuous use as a police station is testimony to the soundness of the original design.

Architect/Builder

Frederick Law Olmsted

NRHP Ref# 74000999 • Data from National Park Service • Content available under CC BY-SA 4.0

From Wikipedia

George DeWitt Mason (July 4, 1856 – June 3, 1948) was an American architect who practiced in Detroit, Michigan, in the latter part of the 19th and early decades of the 20th centuries.George Mason was born in Syracuse, New York, the son of James H. and Zelda E. Mason. In 1870 the family moved to Detroit, where Mason received his early education.Mason in stone, Masonic Temple Mason began his architectural career working for Detroit architect Hugh Smith in 1875, but this only lasted a summer. After this he moved to the firm of Henry T. Brush, where he worked for the first nine months without pay. Mason started out assigned to some specific detailing work on the George O. Robinson House and the Detroit Public Library. One of the first buildings in which Mason received equal billing for the design was the Ransom Gillis House. In 1878 he joined with Zachariah Rice to form the firm Mason & Rice. This partnership lasted until 1898, after which time Mason continued his practice alone.Mason married Ida Whitaker in 1882, and they had one daughter. From 1884 until 1896 Albert Kahn worked with Mason and Rice, and he returned to partner with Mason for a few years early in the 20th century. A number of Mason's works, either by himself or as part of Mason & Rice, are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.Mason died on June 3, 1948, at his home in the Wilshire Apartments building, at the age of 91. He was buried at Evergreen Cemetery in Detroit.Cass Avenue Methodist Episcopal Church (1883) Detroit Masonic Temple (1926) • Ransom Gillis House 205 Alfred Street (with Henry T Brush) (1876 or 1878)• Michigan Central Railroad Chelsea Depot (with Rice), Chelsea, Michigan (1880)• Cass Avenue Methodist Episcopal Church (with Rice) (1883) (chapel only; while the building stands, it has been totally refaced) 901 Cass Avenue.• Marine City City Hall (with Rice) (1884) (300 Broadway Marine City, MI) (Richardson Romanesque)• Thompson Home (with Rice) 4756 Cass Avenue (1884)• George and Martha Hitchcock House (with Rice), Farwell, Michigan (1885)• Grand Hotel (with Rice), Mackinac Island (1887)• Starkweather Memorial Chapel at Highland Cemetery, Ypsilanti, MIchigan (1888)• First Presbyterian Church (with Rice) 2930 Woodward Avenue (1889)• Trinity Episcopal Church (with Rice) 1519 Martin Luther King Boulevard (1890)• Engine House No. 18 (with Rice) (1892)• Belle Isle Police Station (with Rice) (1893)• Franklin H. Walker House (with Rice) 2730 East Jefferson (1896). Demolished in 1990s• Century Theatre (1903)• Palms Apartments (with Kahn) (1903)• Belle Isle Aquarium (with Kahn) (1904)• Trinity United Methodist Church (1922), 13100 Woodward Avenue, Highland Park, Michigan.• Detroit Yacht Club (1923) 1 Riverbank Road.• Detroit Masonic Temple (1926) 500 Temple.• Gem Theatre (1927) Moved from 62 Columbia to 353 Madison in 1997.• Central Woodward Christian Church (1928) 9000 Woodward Avenue.• Detroit College of Law Building (1937) 130 East Elizabeth. Demolished in 1990s• Architecture of metropolitan Detroit• Eckhert, Katheryn Bishop (1993). Buildings of Michigan (Society of Architectural Historians). New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-506149-7.• Kvaran, Einar Einarsson, Architectural Sculpture in America, unpublished manuscript.• Masonic Temple, Detroit, Michigan A.D. 1926, A.L. 5926 dedication booklette, no date, copyright or publishing information.• Parducci, Corrado, Work Records of Corrado J. Parducci, unpublished manuscript.• University of Michigan Architecture: Albert Khan at the Wayback Machine (archived March 16, 2012)Wikimedia Commons has media related to George DeWitt Mason.• Historic Detroit — George D. Mason• George D. Mason at Find a Grave

Content available under CC BY-SA 4.0