email: roadarch@outlook.com

Michigan Mid-Century Modern Buildings (page 1)

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Van Dyke Photographers
Flint, MI
Chelsea Menswear
& Tuxedos
Wyandotte, MI
The Van Dyke Photographers storefront appears to be a 1960s or 1970s addition to the front of a house. [map]

Chelsea Menswear & Tuxedos opened in 1943. The store moved here in 1962 and this facade might be from then. [map]

Niles District Library
Niles, MI
The Niles District Library was designed by Trace Christenson Jr. and built in 1963. [map]

Public Library
Benton Harbor, MI
This Public Library was built from 1966-1968. In 2009, plans to renovate the building were announced. When these photos were taken in 2011, nothing had happened yet. [map]

Lansing Central Public Library
Lansing, MI
The Lansing Central Public Library is now known as the Clarence H. Rosa Public Library. It was designed by Kenneth C. Black and completed in 1964. The building is faced with pre-cast concrete panels featuring book publishers' symbols. [map]

Public Library
Kalamazoo, MI
This Public Library was built in 1959. In 1998, it was adapted and expanded. The round portion of the building is entirely new. [map]

Vegas Party Shoppe
Warren, MI
The Vegas Party Shoppe building appears to be from the 1960s. This photo is from 2011. The building is currently vacant and is now painted gray and black. [map]

Hillside Lanes
Hillsdale, MI
The Hillside Lanes bowling alley was probably built in the 1960s. [map]

former Stanley Hong's Mannia Cafe
Detroit, MI
Stanley Hong's Mannia Cafe, a Chinese restaurant, opened in 1971. It later became a series of churches and a hip hop club. The building has been vacant since 2013. In 2021, plans were announced to turn the building into a music venue. However, nothing has happened. For more, see these websites: 1, 2, and 3. [map]

former Federal Department Store
Detroit, MI
This former Federal Department Store was repurposed as a Mammoth Mart. The building has been abandoned for years now. It was probably built in the 1940s or 1950s. There was a twin building in Ferndale, MI and there may have been others in the Detroit area. I believe the Federal chain closed in the 1970s and Mammoth Mart in the late 1970s. For more, see this website. [map]

Bald Mountain Recreation Area
Lake Orion, MI
The Bald Mountain Recreation Area buildings were designed by Gunnar Birkerts and built in 1964. [map]