 
Detourdetroit
Member
Username: Detourdetroit
Post Number: 412
Registered: 10-2003
| | Posted on Wednesday, October 15, 2008 - 9:35 pm: |    |
...demolition!!! |
Detroitrise
Member
Username: Detroitrise
Post Number: 3774
Registered: 09-2007
| | Posted on Wednesday, October 15, 2008 - 9:38 pm: | |
quote:demolition!!!
They tore that schitt down!!!
Now our downtown looks like shit... |
Mortalman
Member
Username: Mortalman
Post Number: 419
Registered: 03-2007
| | Posted on Wednesday, October 15, 2008 - 10:46 pm: | |
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Kensingtony
Member
Username: Kensingtony
Post Number: 19
Registered: 09-2008
| | Posted on Thursday, October 16, 2008 - 12:03 am: | |
That photo of the Kern Block from the 1920s appears to actually be more recent than that.There's a bus there that's definitely more modern and the few cars I can see are not shaped like cars from the twenties. |
1kielsondrive
Member
Username: 1kielsondrive
Post Number: 349
Registered: 08-2008
| | Posted on Thursday, October 16, 2008 - 1:14 am: | |
Thank you for posting these wonderful photos. |
Mikeg
Member
Username: Mikeg
Post Number: 1976
Registered: 12-2005
| | Posted on Saturday, October 18, 2008 - 1:00 pm: | |
Here are the last photos in this series. Note the two photos showing Kennedy Square under construction in the background.
July 1966
August 1966
|
Bulletmagnet
Member
Username: Bulletmagnet
Post Number: 1594
Registered: 01-2007
| | Posted on Saturday, October 18, 2008 - 3:49 pm: | |
Nice work on this Kern's Block series, Mikeg. One can almost taste the dust (asbestos) as it lofts into the air. Oftentimes, the past slips away unnoticed, and all too quickly. How wonderful it is for us to be presented with these vivid Kodachrome reminders. Thanks again Mikeg, for all of your hard (unpaid) work in posting these photos, allowing us once again to step into the Detroit of our past. |
Rickinatlanta
Member
Username: Rickinatlanta
Post Number: 195
Registered: 07-2006
| | Posted on Saturday, October 18, 2008 - 5:47 pm: | |
These many threads are incredible!! I grew up during that time in SW Detroit and this brings back many memories of my adventures into downtown as a teenager!
THANKS Mikeg!! |
Bulletmagnet
Member
Username: Bulletmagnet
Post Number: 1596
Registered: 01-2007
| | Posted on Saturday, October 18, 2008 - 11:25 pm: | |
BTW, Rickinatlanta: please let us know how the research for your dad's boxing days go. Detroit has a rich history in boxing, and a story to tell here too. |
Rickinatlanta
Member
Username: Rickinatlanta
Post Number: 196
Registered: 07-2006
| | Posted on Sunday, October 19, 2008 - 2:03 am: | |
In addition to an old scrapbook of clippings, I've had microfilm of the News and Free Press sent down here for the past five years and have verified that Dad won 62 fights and lost just 2! He was ranked fourth in the world as a Bantamweight in 1933/34 and PROUDLY represented Detroit. He quit school in the sixth grade to fight and support their family after his dad died in 1920.
My Dad's sister and new husband in the 1930's gave room to Joe Louis to stay in as he couldn't stay in any hotels while he started his pro boxing career.
It was amazing that my Dad would draw a crowd of 2,200 to the Armory for a total gate of less than $1,200!
I appreciate your interest and don't want to sound like I'm bragging but I'm very proud of how he was a big part in bringing boxing back to prominence in Detroit during those tough times. |
Reddog289
Member
Username: Reddog289
Post Number: 645
Registered: 08-2007
| | Posted on Sunday, October 19, 2008 - 2:27 am: | |
Great photos, Thanks Mikeg and everyone else who have posted pix. |
Bc_n_dtown
Member
Username: Bc_n_dtown
Post Number: 82
Registered: 09-2006
| | Posted on Sunday, October 19, 2008 - 6:33 am: | |
Mikeg, I definitely agree with everyone else here, those vintage Detroit Kodachrome photos (along with the ones on the other threads) are great! Thanks!!
I guess I was too young to remember the Kern Block buildings before they were demolished. I understand that Kern's closed two days before Christmas, 1959. Since demolition didn't begin until 1966, I'm wondering what was the state of that block during those six years or more? Did Kern's stand abandoned? What about the other businesses, such as Sam's, Bond Clothes, Crawford Clothes, etc., were they still in business 'til the end? It appears that there were numerous buildings on that block, even Kern's itself was composed of two buildings.
So why demolish an entire block because one business on that block (albeit a major one) closed up? BTW—Anybody have any memories of the other businesses on that block along Gratiot (across from Hudson's) or Farmer (across from Crowley's), which I've never see photos of?
(Message edited by bc_n_dtown on October 19, 2008) |
Gnome
Member
Username: Gnome
Post Number: 1992
Registered: 08-2007
| | Posted on Sunday, October 19, 2008 - 8:01 am: | |
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/K ern%27s
quote:In 1929, the store was demolished and a new store was erected. In 1957 the family decided to sell Ernst Kern Co., Detroit’s Third largest department store, to Sattler’s Inc. of Buffalo, New York. Following numerous corporate problems and changes in management, the store closed its doors for the final time on December 23, 1959.
The block was torn down in 1962, along with Detroit's old city hall, and the paradise building across the street as part of Detroit's downtown urban renewal. The site remained an undeveloped park until 1999
According to wikipedia, Kerns was torn down in 1962 ... it was only 33 years old. Even if Wikipedia has it wrong and the year for demolition was 1966 as Mikeg says, the Kerns Building was only 36 years old ... or about the same age as today's RenCen.
yikes... |
Mikeg
Member
Username: Mikeg
Post Number: 1983
Registered: 12-2005
| | Posted on Sunday, October 19, 2008 - 8:52 am: | |
The camera doesn't lie, while Wikipedia is full of them. The Kern's store and the other buildings on that block were torn down during the summer of 1966, at the same time that Kennedy Square was being constructed. In 1962, Kennedy was still President and nothing had yet been named for him.
Also, these slides have the month and year of development stamped on the frame and they match the photographer's handwritten date and description which is also on the frame. Our photographer took many, many photos in this area over the years 1955-1977 and he would never have forgotten which year the Kern Block was torn down, much less leave a roll of film in his camera for four years.
Even the Detroit News agrees that the year was 1966. |
Gnome
Member
Username: Gnome
Post Number: 1994
Registered: 08-2007
| | Posted on Sunday, October 19, 2008 - 9:05 am: | |
MikeG, forgive me if my typing came off as an attack on you. I meant it to be a lesson on all of us who have come to rely on Wikipedia as a viable source of correct information.
In short, wikipedia is full of mis-information. Sorry if I worded things incorrectly.
...
MikeG, do you know if that other information about The Kern building was true or not? Was it only 36 years old when they tore it down? |
Mikeg
Member
Username: Mikeg
Post Number: 1984
Registered: 12-2005
| | Posted on Sunday, October 19, 2008 - 9:29 am: | |
That's OK, I didn't take your comment personally, and I'm sorry if it came off that way. I was taking aim (clumsily) at the supposedly collective wisdom of the authors at Wikipedia. IMHO, any "encyclopedia" that would have me as an author is not to be trusted.
As far as the other information about the Kern Building, I cannot say. From the photos, it appears that the Kern's store occupied more than one building and they appear to be of different construction, so perhaps only the tallest portion of their store at the corner of Woodward and Gratiot dated from the circa 1929 demolition and rebuild. |
Bulletmagnet
Member
Username: Bulletmagnet
Post Number: 1598
Registered: 01-2007
| | Posted on Sunday, October 19, 2008 - 9:34 am: | |
Rickinatlanta, you have every right to be proud (AND brag!) of your dad, who was a part of one of the most fascinating periods of history in Detroit. I must say, I have not seen anything on this topic (boxing) posted here from the perspectives of the surviving family members. I think your story would be VERY worthy of a thread of its own. Please continue the research you have already begun, and if you would be so generous, share the results here at DetroitYes. Sorry we got off on the wrong foot earlier: it happens here often 
Bullet |
Rickinatlanta
Member
Username: Rickinatlanta
Post Number: 197
Registered: 07-2006
| | Posted on Sunday, October 19, 2008 - 11:35 am: | |
also taking a deep breath before popping back with a reply is something I I need to work on
I'd love to post some of the great stories I've found in both the News & Free Press from the early 30's as it relates to boxing while hopefully keeping it interesting to those here on DetroitYes. It's also very interesting that many of the issues we face today were also in play back then. |
Bc_n_dtown
Member
Username: Bc_n_dtown
Post Number: 83
Registered: 09-2006
| | Posted on Sunday, October 19, 2008 - 12:39 pm: | |
After a little research I think I have it. I ran across a few photos on the DPL Burton Historical Collection site that might prove helpful here as well. Although my conclusions seem to be based on the Wikipedia info, I only used what was also supported by other sources.
First, the following WSU/Virtual Motor City 1957 photo does show a few other buildings next to Kern's along Gratiot, which seems to support my suspicions in my previous post. The adjoining nine-story Weber Building mentioned in the Wikipedia article appears to still be standing in this photo.
(You can also click HERE to see a larger more detailed version of this image)
Here are a few photos I was able to dig up.....
Click HERE to view a 1919 Burton Collection photo showing the original Woodward and Gratiot "Kern Store" that was purchased in 1900 and later demolished in 1929 to make way for the larger 10-story corner building seen in the above photo.
Click HERE to view a 1922 Burton photo showing the adjoining nine-story (former Weber) building the Kern's purchased after WW-I to provide the additional space needed to expand their store. Evidently, this building remained a part of the business until the very end.
You might also want to click HERE to view a 1909 photo of Campus Martius which shows that "Henry C. Weber & Co. Hardware" building in the distant background, proving that the building did exist prior to WW-I.
In conclusion, the Wikipedia article seems to be correct regarding the original Woodward-Gratiot store, and the purchase of the adjoining Weber Building after WW-I. Although the original store was later demolished to make way for the larger store, the 9-story building remained. So even though the Wikipedia info as pointed out by Gnome and Mikeg appears to be incorrect, the rest of the article seems to be on target. |
Jerrybear
Member
Username: Jerrybear
Post Number: 1
Registered: 10-2008
| | Posted on Sunday, October 19, 2008 - 2:42 pm: | |
These old pictures are great!!!!!! i believe the Kern's clock is still somewhere near its original location, correct??? |
Bulletmagnet
Member
Username: Bulletmagnet
Post Number: 1603
Registered: 01-2007
| | Posted on Sunday, October 19, 2008 - 3:00 pm: | |
Welcome to DY, Jerrybear. I am not sure where the clock is these days, but I am sure we will soon find out. |
Bearinabox
Member
Username: Bearinabox
Post Number: 962
Registered: 04-2006
| | Posted on Sunday, October 19, 2008 - 3:02 pm: | |
0%2C1.9614147909967825,http:// maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en &geocode=&q=woodward+and+grati ot&sll=42.330165,-83.045913&ss pn=0.286298,0.727844&ie=UTF8&l l=42.336881,-83.047864&spn=0.0 08946,0.022745&t=h&z=16&layer= c&cbll=42.33298,-83.047857&pan oid=k64ovu2kiQXvsaeyHG_mNQ&cbp =1,116.76848874598079,,0,1.961 4147909967825 |
Jerrybear
Member
Username: Jerrybear
Post Number: 5
Registered: 10-2008
| | Posted on Sunday, October 19, 2008 - 3:04 pm: | |
yep, that is about where i heard it is now. Strange how it is still there long after the store it symbolized is gone. Kind of like the Uniroyal tire that is still there by I-94 even though the tire factory it symbolized is also long gone. |
Bc_n_dtown
Member
Username: Bc_n_dtown
Post Number: 84
Registered: 09-2006
| | Posted on Sunday, October 19, 2008 - 3:05 pm: | |
Correct!
When the clock first returned in 1980 under the Young Administration it was suspended on a pole near its actually spot. However, because the Compuware Building was constructed on that site the clock now sits on a platform base near that location on the sidewalk along Woodward at Gratiot.
  |
Reddog289
Member
Username: Reddog289
Post Number: 648
Registered: 08-2007
| | Posted on Monday, October 20, 2008 - 12:37 am: | |
Having never been to Kerns, seeing it makes me think that it and Crowleys were massive. But having been to downtown Hudsons they still don,t compare to the size of that place.But then again i remember the last time i was at the Hudsons store downtown and i left thinking " Why such a big store ,when all the other stores are only 3 floors?" Why were the stores downtown so big?. |
Detroitrise
Member
Username: Detroitrise
Post Number: 3811
Registered: 09-2007
| | Posted on Monday, October 20, 2008 - 12:46 am: | |
quote:Why were the stores downtown so big?
The same reason New York, Chicago, and (back then) even Detroit built massive skyscrapers.
It lets the world know you're a huge & unique city filled with tons of history & culture.
(Message edited by DetroitRise on October 20, 2008) |
Reddog289
Member
Username: Reddog289
Post Number: 649
Registered: 08-2007
| | Posted on Monday, October 20, 2008 - 1:12 am: | |
Now i can sleep more the wiser, Thanks Detroitrise. |
Burnsie
Member
Username: Burnsie
Post Number: 1527
Registered: 11-2003
| | Posted on Friday, October 24, 2008 - 9:46 pm: | |
Reddog289-- Hudson's, Crowley's and Kern's downtown were so big because all the department store shopping was concentrated in one spot, before the malls. It's as if 20 branch stores were combined into one huge building. |
Mikeg
Member
Username: Mikeg
Post Number: 2046
Registered: 12-2005
| | Posted on Saturday, October 25, 2008 - 11:42 pm: | |
Sam's Cut Rate Store on the Kern Block was formerly the Detroit Opera House. The Burton Collection has this circa 1890 photo of workmen installing telephone wires in front of the Detroit Opera House. |
Burnsie
Member
Username: Burnsie
Post Number: 1528
Registered: 11-2003
| | Posted on Sunday, October 26, 2008 - 12:48 pm: | |
Mikeg-- That circa 1890 photo is actually of the Opera House that burned down on Oct. 7, 1897 (and the location of Hudson's first Detroit store); Sam's was in the replacement Opera House.
The New York Times archive has a free article about it. |
Mikeg
Member
Username: Mikeg
Post Number: 2048
Registered: 12-2005
| | Posted on Sunday, October 26, 2008 - 12:59 pm: | |
Burnsie, thanks for the clarification. Looking back now I can see the difference. |
Sean_of_detroit
Member
Username: Sean_of_detroit
Post Number: 2063
Registered: 03-2008
| | Posted on Sunday, October 26, 2008 - 1:55 pm: | |
But aren't branch stores all the same? Were the departments all that much bigger (better selection). |
Burnsie
Member
Username: Burnsie
Post Number: 1529
Registered: 11-2003
| | Posted on Sunday, October 26, 2008 - 2:08 pm: | |
Sean_of_detroit, Hudson's earliest branch stores had certain departments that the later ones didn't. But certainly, there were departments at the downtown store that the branch stores never had. |
Pkbroch
Member
Username: Pkbroch
Post Number: 163
Registered: 02-2008
| | Posted on Sunday, October 26, 2008 - 2:43 pm: | |
Sean and all;
Imagine a Borders, Best Buys, Bed Bath & Beyond, Art Vans, ABC appliance, Joanns fabrics, Kitchen remodeling,4-5 dining rooms, Michigan Chandelier, plus clothing for Men, women, and children, hats,shoes,toys and two floor of discount clothing. Now put this in twelve vertical floors and you have Hudson's downtown.
You could have a new kitchen with cabinets custom made, buy all appliances, shop for clothes or buy the fabric. Buy a record, piano, book, art supplies,schoolbag, fresh baked chicken pot pie, or imported jams in Hudson's pantry shops.
And the best of all is you could have your purchases delivered. You could shop all day and never have to carry a package. The dark green Hudson's truck would deliver to your home.
My grandfather used to say that the truck could find it's way to our house without a driver. |
Otter
Member
Username: Otter
Post Number: 328
Registered: 12-2007
| | Posted on Sunday, October 26, 2008 - 3:14 pm: | |
...and at Sears you could even buy the house itself! |
Dianeinaustin
Member
Username: Dianeinaustin
Post Number: 121
Registered: 02-2008
| | Posted on Sunday, October 26, 2008 - 4:30 pm: | |
In the 1919 picture check out the way the windows in the buildings opened. Neat. |
Douglasm
Member
Username: Douglasm
Post Number: 1148
Registered: 10-2003
| | Posted on Sunday, October 26, 2008 - 8:22 pm: | |
bump |
Eastsideal
Member
Username: Eastsideal
Post Number: 16
Registered: 10-2007
| | Posted on Sunday, October 26, 2008 - 11:29 pm: | |
That picture of Kern's above is very interesting. I don't really remember the building, but I do remember very clearly being in Sam's in the Opera House during its closing sale, and the demolition of the block itself (which was definitely in '66, because I wouldn't have been able to remember it from '62). We used to pass by it on the way to my Dad's office, which was then in the Penobscot Building, and I was fascinated by the big machines.
Anyway, it occurs to me from looking at that picture that Kern's was really the most aesthetically pleasing of Detroit's department stores. In that picture it looks something like a newer miniature version of Sullivan's famous Carson Pirie Scott store in Chicago, and the clock itself is wonderfully moderne (which is one reason why its been preserved). I now wonder what the place looked like inside. |
Eastsideal
Member
Username: Eastsideal
Post Number: 17
Registered: 10-2007
| | Posted on Sunday, October 26, 2008 - 11:54 pm: | |
Re: why were Hudson's and other department stores so big.
You have to remember that until 1954, when Northland opened, there were no branch stores of Hudson's. So "Hudson's" meant downtown Hudson's, and if you wanted to shop at a really big department store you went downtown. And downtown was where most of the bus and streetcars went, before most people owned cars and drove to work and shop.
The department stores were in some way an outgrowth of the old general store, and the emphasis was on being able to fill all of your needs in one place. As indicated above, Hudson's carried all kinds of things in those days that its successor mall stores (now Macy's) don't carry. Even when I started going there in the '60s (my grandmother worked there, so we went a lot), Hudson's carried books, records, toys, fabrics, furniture, appliances, electronics, and a whole array of fine foods. They had restaurants in the store, barber and beauty shops, shoe repair, a ticket outlet, and even an art gallery. |
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