Ginsburg, Bernard, House

The Bernard Ginsburg house is significant as a very early work of the world-famous architect Albert Kahn, and also as the home of Bernard Ginsburg, an important figure in the late 19th and early 20th century Jewish ethnic community of Detroit. Born in Westphalia in 1869, Albert Kahn became the originator of the concrete-framed factory building. Brought to America by his parents in 1881, Kahn rode the crest of Detroit's auto boom years to world fame for his work in factory design, and local renown for the wide range and high quality of his commercial and residential work. The fame of his factory innovations has tended to obscure on the world scene other milestones -- the Palms Apartments (NR) of 1900, designed by the short-lived firm of Mason & Kahn, is the first residential building in the world to make use of reinforced concrete. Kahn's recognition as an important designer of buildings in the early twentieth century eclectic tradition is demonstrated by the National Historic Landmark status of his Fisher Building in Detroit -- obviously unrelated to his factories or the early reinforced concrete developments -- and numerous other fine buildings, including residences like Cranbrook House and the Edsel Ford House and commercial buildings like the former Kresge headquarters on Cass Park. The modest Ginsburg House is a progenitor of Kahn's later work, and in spite of its small size suggests sources for the style of the Palms Apartments and the development of Kahn's work in the Arts and Crafts and English revival manners.

The Ginsburg House reflects a style which occurs frequently in the work of Albert Kahn in this early period of his career - the English Renaissance. It harks back to late Victorian precedents in its entrance recessed at one side and the arrangement of first floor rooms around a stair hall entered from that recessed entrance, but lacks completely any Victorian character in its appearance. This 2-1/2 story single-family red brick and stone dwelling has an extraordinary carved wood arcade resting on stone walls comprising its full-width front porch; this porch structure is of such character that it alone might qualify this structure for the National Register. The segmental arches of the front porch are carried by herms, human figures from the waist up carved out of the pillars; the wood appears to be dark-stained oak, and appears to be hand carved. There is a hipped roof over the porch. The recessed entrance is reached through a segmental arch leading to the front door, which is also segmentally arched. The recess created by this arrangement is open on the east elevation of the house; its segmental arch is fitted into a squarish frame which carries a triangular pediment with an oculus in the apex and a molded cornice above. A pair of windows sharing a stone-trimmed opening lies to the west of the entrance on the front facade. Above the porch is another pair of windows and a smaller rectangular window to its west. At attic level, emerging from the steep slop of the gable roof, is a dormer which has a highly ornamental cornice with egg and dart and modillion moldings supported by herms. Within is a carved arch and a mullion separating the two vertical panes of windows. The western side of the front facade is set forward a few feet and is capped by a steep gable at attic level; projecting out from that is a two-story bay. The gable has stone cresting and block-like finials at its corners and apex. Window and door openings have frames and quoins of stone in the English Renaissance tradition.