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The Peacock Room
Also known as: Newhauser Milgrom, Julie's
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Photo by Andrew Petrov
From Wikipedia
The Charles Lang Freer House is located at 71 East Ferry Avenue in Detroit, Michigan, USA. The house was originally built for the industrialist and art collector Charles Lang Freer, whose gift of the Freer Gallery of Art began the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, DC. The structure currently hosts the Merrill Palmer Skillman Institute of Child & Family Development of Wayne State University. It was designated a Michigan State Historic Site in 1970 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1971.
History Charles Lang Freer, in partnership with Col. Frank J. Hecker, made his fortune from the Peninsular Car Company. Freer travelled widely, with one of his favorite spots being Newport, Rhode Island. There, he was favorably impressed by the shingle style summer cottages built by the wealthy. Desiring a similar home, in 1890 Freer contracted with Wilson Eyre to design a home in Detroit. The house, on Ferry Street next door to Hecker's home, was completed in 1892.
Architecture For the exterior, Eyre used coursed hard blue limestone (now discolored) from New York for the first floor. Dark, closely spaced shingles of Michigan oak cover most of the rest of the façade. On the third story, a triangular gable and various dormers interrupt the roofline. Chimneys dominate the east and west ends of the home, underneath which are porches. These porches were originally open-air, but are currently closed stucco.
On the interior, Eyre designed the home with Freer's art collection in mind. (This collection is now in the Smithsonian Institution's Freer Gallery of Art.) There are 22 rooms and 12 fireplaces in the house, as well as an elevator, and numerous balconies, bay windows, enclosed porches, and skylights. In 1906, Eyre designed an art gallery, added above the stable. In 1904, Frederick Leyland's widow sold Freer The Peacock Room, designed by James Whistler, and Freer had Eyre design another room in the carriage house in which to install it.
Current use In 1916, Lizzie Pitts Merrill Palmer left a bequest of three million dollars to found a school centering on home and family development. In 1923, the Institute purchased the house, and have remained there since. In 1980, this Institute (currently Merrill Palmer Skillman Institute) was incorporated into Wayne State University. The Institute runs the Early Childhood Center, a preschool for area children age 2 1/2 to 5, and has a research faculty of 12 studying children from infancy to adulthood.
References
Further reading Hill, Eric J. and John Gallagher (2002). AIA Detroit: The American Institute of Architects Guide to Detroit Architecture. Wayne State University Press. ISBN 0-8143-3120-3. Meyer, Katherine Mattingly and Martin C.P. McElroy with Introduction by W. Hawkins Ferry, Hon A.I.A. (1980). Detroit Architecture A.I.A. Guide Revised Edition. Wayne State University Press. ISBN 0-8143-1651-4.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
External links
MPSI, Freer House Main Page
Content available under CC BY-SA 4.0
Photographer's Notes
The Peacock Room is a boutique located in the Fisher Building, a historic skyscraper at 3011 W Grand Blvd, Detroit, MI 48202. Designed by Albert Kahn and completed in 1928, the Fisher Building is an Art Deco landmark known for its marble-lined interiors, vaulted ceilings, and detailed frescoes. Often referred to as “Detroit’s largest art object,” the building was commissioned by the Fisher brothers, who made their fortune in the automobile industry. It originally housed office spaces, retail stores, and the Fisher Theatre, which remains a significant venue for performing arts in the city. The space currently occupied by the Peacock Room was originally home to Newhauser Milgrom, a high-end women’s dress shop that later became known as Julie’s. It was a destination for Detroit’s upper class, offering custom-made dresses for major social events such as weddings and the North American International Auto Show. Customers would first enter the showroom on the main floor, where they selected designs and fabrics. They would then proceed to the second floor, where a sales associate took their measurements and finalized the details of the dress. Garments were constructed on the third floor, where seamstresses worked on custom orders. An elevator, transported dresses between floors. The fourth floor is believed to have housed the shop’s administrative offices. The boutique was a prominent part of Detroit’s retail landscape, particularly during the 1930s, 40s, and 50s. According to current owner Rachel Lutz, many women who shopped there decades ago have returned to the location and recalled purchasing their wedding dresses at the store. In 2017, Lutz opened the The Peacock Room, which specializes in vintage-inspired clothing and accessories, in the space after careful restoration. The attached historical photos show one of the upper stories as it appeared in the 1920s or 30s, as well as how it looked before Lutz's restoration.
Building Details
- Style
- Beaux-Arts
