  Lmichigan Member Username: Lmichigan Post Number: 4871 Registered: 10-2003 |
I know this may not interest many, but I was wondering a few things about each one of the three demolished silo towers brought down in 2005. My questions: 1. What was the name of each of them, and on which site was each located? 2. Does anyone know when each of these were constructed and who they belonged to? I know they weren't all that special, but I hate to see signficant structures brought down with little documentation of their histories. | ||
Milwaukee Member Username: Milwaukee Post Number: 374 Registered: 08-2006 |
They were built by the LaFarge Cement Company. The company replaced those three with the largest cement silo in North America. They were 175 feet tall. I believe all three were built in 1943, but I wouldn't trust that number. | ||
Busterwmu Member Username: Busterwmu Post Number: 319 Registered: 09-2004 |
The closest one to the Ren Cen was the old Huron Cement Silo, which later went to LaFarge Cement Co. They received loads from ships of the LaFarge Cement fleet and Inland Lakes Management. The next one away from the RenCen was the old Medusa Cement Silo (located between Chene Park and Tricentennial Park), which in its last years was owned by successor Southdown Inc and then then Cemex. Boats of the Southdown Cement fleet called there, today this company has been purchased by St. Mary's Cement. The farthest Silo, which was just west of the parking lot on the west side of Stroh River Place and just east of Chene Park and I;m not sure who it was owned by. It was a truck only facility by 2004, and was closed during 2005. Ships did call there at one point but it must have been sometime prior to 2004. Take a Diamond Jacks River Tour sometime in the summer of 2007 and you'll see where they once were, and the progress of the new RiverWalk East. LaFarge built a new silo just upriver from Zug Island and it is served by trucks, trains, and lakers. St Mary's already has a facility on the Rouge River between the I-75 bridge and Conrail bridge, so they did not build a replacement. Not sure about the third one. | ||
Lmichigan Member Username: Lmichigan Post Number: 4872 Registered: 10-2003 |
Thanks for the additional info, Buster. I know where each use to be, I just wasn't aware the the history behind any of them. | ||
Spiritofdetroit Member Username: Spiritofdetroit Post Number: 107 Registered: 11-2006 |
well you did ask for the location....  | ||
Lmichigan Member Username: Lmichigan Post Number: 4873 Registered: 10-2003 |
Well, I should have reworded it. I was really wanting someone to name them from east to west or west to east, that's all. | ||
Charlottepaul Member Username: Charlottepaul Post Number: 121 Registered: 10-2006 |
Too bad they weren't kept and converted into something more useful along with the riverfront walk. Such a waste to build a building and then just tear it down several decades later. | ||
Milwaukee Member Username: Milwaukee Post Number: 377 Registered: 08-2006 |
There really isn't too much you can do with an old cement silo. It's not really a waste, it wasn't meant to be a grand building, it served its function and became out of date. It's not sad, the building served it's purpose and was torn down when it had nothing else to do. Sad would be the GAR being torn down. Plus Cement silos are pretty ugly and I don't know too many people who would want to live in one. The Detroit riverfront is much better off. | ||
Charlottepaul Member Username: Charlottepaul Post Number: 122 Registered: 10-2006 |
Well the GAR isn't used by the Grand Army Republic anymore, shouldn't it be torn down? PS-Grain silos turned into a Crowne Point plaza hotel http://www.emporis.com/en/wm/b u/?id=crowneplazaquakersquare- akron-oh-usa. | ||
Eric Member Username: Eric Post Number: 634 Registered: 11-2004 |
That's a damn ugly hotel and whatever could've been carved out those silos would have been just as hideous. Not every building is worth saving. | ||
Viziondetroit Member Username: Viziondetroit Post Number: 980 Registered: 11-2003 |
Hmmm I don't think the 3 or 4 towers we had would do much. Like it was said above, not everything is worth saving. | ||
Viziondetroit Member Username: Viziondetroit Post Number: 981 Registered: 11-2003 |
Yeah man... that shits ugly lol | ||
Detroitplanner Member Username: Detroitplanner Post Number: 523 Registered: 04-2006 |
I've visited quaker square, it is a strange place. I would ot go so far as saying it is ugly; but it is a re-use of an existing structure that is interesting in itself. It would never work for cement silos though as there are typically not as many of them; cost benefits ratios would take years to show any benefits. By that time you have probably sunk another several million in building upgrades anyways. | ||
Dabirch Member Username: Dabirch Post Number: 1976 Registered: 06-2004 |
Are you people actually trying to have a serious conversation about why or why not the cement silos should have been torn down? Really? | ||
Busterwmu Member Username: Busterwmu Post Number: 320 Registered: 09-2004 |
I wish they would have saved the big light-up letters from the top of the MEDUSA CEMENT silos, because that is just what they said. Big and red, like a smaller version of GENERAL MOTORS on their old New Center HQ. I don't know if they could spell something different or just put them back up somewhere, but I thought they were neat and one of the last big signboards left in the city. | ||
Burnsie Member Username: Burnsie Post Number: 798 Registered: 11-2003 |
As I recall, the lettering style of the Medusa sign was really neat-- kind of a flowing look that evoked the mythological origin of the name. | ||
Flybydon Member Username: Flybydon Post Number: 66 Registered: 01-2005 |
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Burnsie Member Username: Burnsie Post Number: 799 Registered: 11-2003 |
Hmm, so it wasn't a flowing script. But I could swear that it or another cement sign was at one point. | ||
Flybydon Member Username: Flybydon Post Number: 67 Registered: 01-2005 |
Burnsie: Think the sign was changed shortly after this image was taken. I'm thinking the sign read Medusa Centex Cement Company | ||
Busterwmu Member Username: Busterwmu Post Number: 321 Registered: 09-2004 |
Don, thanks for your great photos Burnsie, when the LaFarge Silo was still owned by Huron, they may have had a signboard or lettering on it for Huron Cement Co. I don't know for sure though. Whoever was unhappy about them being unused - I do sympathize a little. They had sort of been a landmark along that part of the river for decades. When my grandpa lived in Detroit, he painted a great sunset picture from the tip of Belle Isle in the 50s and you can see all the silos and buildings downtown. I always thought they should save one of them (preferably Medusa or the one by Strohs as they were both tall) and build an observation deck on the roof, for the Riverwalk, so people can get an aerial perspective. I doubt it would be hard to put in a stairway and/or elevador in a completely empty cement building. Even if they only left one standing - it would sure look better than that observation tower at Sault Ste. Marie. Well - they did sort of get reused - when at least the LaFarge silo was demolished, they brought in big stone crushers to grind up the parts of the silo and reuse them for underpavement and seawall enhancements to the riverwalk. Made a lot of noise all summer long! These were hard to see from the land side, but easy to see from the River. | ||
Milwaukee Member Username: Milwaukee Post Number: 378 Registered: 08-2006 |
"Well the GAR isn't used by the Grand Army Republic anymore, shouldn't it be torn down?" Please do not compare the GAR to a friging grain silo. One is a great old building, the other is just a crapy grey tube. Old silos don't look good even if they are lighted up. Luckily in Milwaukee we have an upcoming silo demolition. Pabst Brewery silos are being demolished for new shops and offices. They're just big ugly tubes. Two other big breweries in Milwaukee have been converted into condos and offices. Old buildings saved, no sight of any old silos. | ||
Spiritofdetroit Member Username: Spiritofdetroit Post Number: 112 Registered: 11-2006 |
i dont think he is being serious folks.... | ||
Lmichigan Member Username: Lmichigan Post Number: 4877 Registered: 10-2003 |
Does anyone know when they were constructed, for sure? | ||
Charlottepaul Member Username: Charlottepaul Post Number: 124 Registered: 10-2006 |
No not too serious (with the GAR comment). Not saying it would have been easy or beautiful to reuse the cement silos. I was mainly thinking that in an ideal world you would reuse buildings. Takes creativity, but the Quaker Square grain silos I thought were a pretty unique reuse. So main point is that almost anything could be reused! (Message edited by charlottepaul on December 12, 2006) | ||
Digitaldom Member Username: Digitaldom Post Number: 543 Registered: 08-2004 |
are you guys on crack? It's a cement silo.. You can't doing anything with those.. you nut bags.. lol.. | ||
Lmichigan Member Username: Lmichigan Post Number: 4883 Registered: 10-2003 |
You can reconstruct and renovate nearly any structure for modern use, but I don't really care either way, I just wanted some history on the things. | ||
Flybydon Member Username: Flybydon Post Number: 68 Registered: 01-2005 |
The new LaFarge Cement Co., located north of Zug Island.   | ||
Dday Member Username: Dday Post Number: 863 Registered: 10-2003 |
That Medusa Cement neon sign has been the same since I can remember and unless they replaced it after I moved (highly unlikely as the cement companies already knew they would be moving when I did) it was the same until they got torn down. I think the script sign Burnsie is thinking about was the old one that used to be across the river on the Canadian Club distillery. I don't ever remember seeing any other "flowing script" sign along the river, but I could be wrong | ||
Lmichigan Member Username: Lmichigan Post Number: 4887 Registered: 10-2003 |
Flybydon, interesting fact, the new LaFarge cement silo you showed is supposedly one of the largest in the word, and at least the largest in the Western Hemisphere. Yeah, I don't remember ever seeing any flowing script, either, for the Medusa silo. BTW, whatever happened to the old Canadian Club sign? | ||
Burnsie Member Username: Burnsie Post Number: 805 Registered: 11-2003 |
It wasn't the Canadian Club sign. I'm not imagining it, but my memory certainly is vague on this one. | ||
Busterwmu Member Username: Busterwmu Post Number: 322 Registered: 09-2004 |
Yes, the Springwells LaFarge Silo (that's how the boats refer to it, anyways) is supposed to be one of the largest in the world. I don't remember the exact states but they read them on Diamond Jacks tours as this is the bottom end of the Detroit Tour. Lmichigan - I don't know when they were constructed, but the old LaFarge silo looked older than Medusa's or the other one. That doesn't help ya much but maybe just a little. | ||
Milwaukee Member Username: Milwaukee Post Number: 384 Registered: 08-2006 |
http://www.emporis.com/en/wm/b u/?id=lafargedistributionfacil itysilo-detroit-mi-usa | ||
Lmichigan Member Username: Lmichigan Post Number: 4890 Registered: 10-2003 |
Yeah, I made that entry, Milwaukee. | ||
Milwaukee Member Username: Milwaukee Post Number: 385 Registered: 08-2006 |
Sorry Lmichigan, I was just brought it up for Busterwmu to see the stats on the new silo's stats. |
