Women's City Club - Detroit, MI - U.S. National Register of Historic Places on Waymarking.com

From the State of Michigan Historic Preservation Office website:

Narrative Description:
The Women's City Club of Detroit ccupies an entire city block and is rectangular with walls of pink and beige tapestry brick. The design of this severely plain, flat-roofed, six-story structure consciously reflects its dual function as a social club and residential facility. The first three floors are clearly demarcated from the upper three residential floors. The upper stories are treated visually as if they were an entirely separate structure placed atop the lower floors. The massing, the fenestration, the arrangement of bays, and the detailing are entirely unrelated to the lower portion of the building. To further accentuate the division, a brick soldier course above the third story signals a subtle change in coloration with the upper floors being faced in lighter shades of brick. The main entrance of the club is centered at street level with in a series of receding brick arches. The fully glazed double doors with sidelights and fanlights are enframed by a ceramic tile band of stylized leaves made at the locally famous Pewabic Pottery. Flanking the door on each side are two rectangular, fully glazed, store fronts.

Statement of Significance:
The Women's City Club is significant for its sophisticated architectural design as well as for its important role in the social and cultural life of Detroit. The club was established in 1919 and commissioned Detroit architect William Buck Stratton to design the building, built in 1924. The Arts and Crafts influence in the building is evident in the Pewabic tile ornament by club chairwoman Mary Chase Stratton. Over the years many nationally prominent women have visited the club, including suffragette Lillian Russell, activist Jane Addams, and women from other prominent organizations. In 1978 the building was converted into a health spa, lounge, restaurant, and apartment hotel. Though the function of the structure has changed, the building retains most of its original elements. The important role of the Women's City Club in the social, architectural, and cultural life of Detroit has made it a landmark.

From the Michigan Historical Marker on-site:
William B. Stratton designed this building for the Women's City Club of Detroit--founded in 1919 "to promote a broad acquaintance among women" and to further civic and cultural activities. The club, which grew to be one of the largest women's clubs in the world with a membership of over eight thousand in the 1950s, occupied this building from 1924 to 1975. Mary Chase Perry Stratton's Pewabic tile is featured throughout.

Street address: 2110 Park Avenue Detroit, MI U.S.A. 48201-3466 County / Borough / Parish: Wayne County Year listed: 1979 Historic (Areas of) Significance: Architecture/Engineering, Event Periods of significance: 1900-1924 Historic function: Social Current function: Domestic, Health Care Privately owned?: yes Primary Web Site: [Web Link] Secondary Website 1: [Web Link] Season start / Season finish: Not listed Hours of operation: Not listed Secondary Website 2: Not listed National Historic Landmark Link: Not listed

Visit Instructions:
Please give the date and brief account of your visit. Include any additional observations or information that you may have, particularly about the current condition of the site. Additional photos are highly encouraged, but not mandatory.

Recent Visits/Logs:

Date Logged Log User Rating   05/03/2021 bobfrapples8 visited it 06/04/2013 The D Zone visited it 04/19/2013 Vante & Sammy Pants visited it

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