West Canfield Historic District

The West Canfield Historic District is significant as an intact area of substantial Late Victorian single family homes with neighborhood serving businesses which reflect, as few other inner city neighborhoods do, the early residential development of the streetcar suburb days of the 1870 and 1880s. In fact, West Canfield is one of the few intact streets of High Victorian, single-family houses left in Detroit. The West Canfield Historic District is located approximately one and one-half to two miles north of the Detroit River and was one of the places where the first wave of self-made, wealthy Detroiters built their homes outside of the city and neighborhood serving businesses located along streetcar lines to serve the new residents. The district also includes the Sheridan Court Apartment Building, an important example of the larger-scale apartment buildings constructed throughout the Cass Farm Survey Area.

The West Canfield Historic District covers approximately 50 acres and includes twenty-five properties located on West Canfield- a National Register historic district- Second Avenue, and Third Avenue in Detroit, Michigan. West Canfield, paved with granite bricks, is lined with mature trees and late 19th and early 20th century brick and frame residential buildings; some with rear carriage houses. Second Avenue includes a multi-family building and a commercial building. Third Avenue includes a mix of residences and commercial buildings. The primary architectural styles represented within the historic district are Late Victorian styles. The character of the streetscapes is that of a streetcar suburb; houses and buildings tend to outscale the size of the lots. Along West Canfield, the houses are consistently set back from the street with individually landscaped front yards. The remaining buildings along Second and Third Avenues extend to the sidewalk. The buildings display a variety of architectural styles and materials as well as a high degree of stylistic decoration and craftsmanship.