Samuel L. Smith House

GeotaggedNational Register

National Register of Historic Places Filing

Local SignificanceArchitectureEducationIndustry1889-1917

The Samuel L. Smith House is significant for three reasons. First, it was the residence of William C. Williams (1889-90) and Samuel L. Smith (1890-1917). Williams was a Detroit businessman involved in the retail drug industry. In 1885, he was among a group of private citizens who organized the Detroit College of Medicine. The College over the following decades eventually passed into the hands of Wayne State University. Samuel Smith occupied the house for twenty-seven years. Smith played a major role in the growth of the Michigan economy. In the mid-19th century, he participated in the development of the northern Michigan copper and lumbering industries, and he gave a hand to the promotion of railways and Great Lakes shipping. Investments in the Calumet and Hecla Copper Mining Company made Smith a multimillionaire. In the late 1890s, Smith became the financier to the struggling automobile company owned by Ransom E. Olds of Lansing. Smith's role in the establishment of the early automobile industry was crucial. Due to Smith, Olds in 1899 organized the Olds Motor Works in Detroit, the city's first automobile factory. The second principal reason why the Smith House is important is that it was designed by the architectural firm of Rogers and MacFarlane. The team designed numerous buildings in Detroit, including the National Register residence of Rufus Goodall (223 E. Ferry). Built only a year after the Smith House, the Goodall residence was similarly a Queen Anne structure with Romanesque Revival elements. The Smith House is important, thirdly, because it is an ideal example of the transformation of an upper-class residence of the late 19th century to cultural and educational uses starting around 1920. The different functions of the Smith House reveal the broad social changes that underlay the history of the University-Cultural Center.

Physical Description

Built in 1889 by the firm of Rogers and MacFarlane, this three-story, cross-gabled Queen Anne structure has both Romanesque and Colonial Revival stylistic elements. The house is basically square in shape, made of brick of relatively even texture, and its original red brick has since been painted light grey. The Smith House has a typical Queen Anne round corner tower, a Romanesque front entry arch, and Colonial motifs on the four end gables that partly overhang the body of the house and are supported by carved modillion brackets. Gable ends are decorated with windows, fanlights, and various designs. The interior features oak wainscotting and moldings, and numerous fireplaces on each of the three floors. Circa 1920, a two-story rear addition was constructed that connected the main house to a two-story, red brick, and cross-gabled carriage house. The plainly utilitarian style of the addition does not detract from the design of the main house.

Architect/Builder

James S. Rogers & Walter MacFarlane

NRHP Ref# 86001038 • Data from National Park Service • Content available under CC BY-SA 4.0

From Wikipedia

The Samuel L. Smith House is located at 5035 Woodward Avenue in Midtown Detroit, Michigan. It was also known as the Schools Annex. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1986.The Samuel Smith House (midground) c. 1900, looking north from the corner of Woodward and Warren This house was built in 1889 for $17,000, for William C. Williams by the architectural firm of Rogers and MacFarlane in what was then a quiet neighborhood on the outskirts of Detroit. Williams was a Detroit businessman who was instrumental in organizing the Detroit College of Medicine, later incorporated into Wayne State University.The next year, Williams sold the home to its most famous resident, Samuel L. Smith. Smith was one of the most prominent citizens of Detroit at the time, having made his fortune in lumber, shipping, mining and railroad ventures. In particular, Smith's investments in the Calumet and Hecla Mining Company made him tremendously wealthy. He later financed many automobile ventures, most notably the Olds Motor Works in the late 1890s.Smith lived in the home for 27 years, after which it was purchased by the Detroit Music Conservatory. A few years later, the Conservatory built a two-story rear addition that connected the main house to the original carriage house. In 1960, Wayne State University purchased the building to serve as the home for WDET and WSU's Office of the Center of Instructional Technology. In 1979, the Detroit Public Schools bought the building, using it until 2003 when WSU repurchased it.The Samuel L. Smith House is a three-story, cross-gabled Queen Anne building with Romanesque and Colonial Revival elements. The house is square in plan, and constructed of red brick that has since been painted a light grey. A round corner tower is on one side of the facade, balanced by a Romanesque front entry arch. A bay window is located above the main entrance. The gable ends are decorated with windows, fanlights, and other designs. The center front gable end contains swag motifs and a Colonial style window, the south gable contains a Palladian window, and the north gable a large Colonial window with a fanlight.The interior of the house contains oak wainscoting and moldings, and many fireplaces throughout the building. A leaded glass window in the northers wall contains the coat of arms and the initials of William C. Williams. A two-story rear addition, dating from approximately 1920, connects the main house to the original two-story, red brick, cross-gabled carriage house.Hospitals • Detroit Medical Center Children's Hospital of Michigan• Detroit Receiving Hospital• Harper University Hospital• Hutzel Women's HospitalMuseums • Detroit Historical Museum• Detroit Institute of Arts• Michigan Science Center• Charles H. Wright Museum of African American HistoryClubs • Detroit Masonic Temple• Scarab ClubResidencesReligion • Cass Avenue Methodist Episcopal Church• Cathedral Church of St. Paul• Chapel of St. Theresa-the Little Flower• First Congregational Church• First Presbyterian Church• First Unitarian Church of Detroit• Saint Andrew's Memorial Episcopal Church• Temple Beth-ElUtility buildings • Willis Avenue StationCommercial buildings • Architects Building• Cass Motor Sales• Detroit-Columbia Central Office Building• Graybar Electric Company Building• Russell Industrial CenterPublic facilities • Dunbar Hospital• Majestic Theater• Garden Bowl• Orchestra Hall• Little Caesars ArenaThis list is incomplete.

Content available under CC BY-SA 4.0