Palmer Park Boulevard Apartments District facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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Palmer Park Boulevard Apartments District
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 Location in Michigan
Location in the United States
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| Location | 1981, 2003 and 2025 West McNichols Road, Highland Park, Michigan |
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| Architect | Richard H. Marr |
| Architectural style | Late 19th And 20th Century Revivals, Classical Revival |
| NRHP reference No. | 91001983 |
| Added to NRHP | January 22, 1992 |
The Palmer Park Boulevard Apartments District is a group of three old apartment buildings. They are located in Highland Park, Michigan. These buildings were added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1992. This means they are important historical places worth protecting.
Contents
History of the Apartments
In the early 1920s, a time when the area was growing fast, an architect named Richard H. Marr teamed up with a businessman named R.B. Oberteuffer. They formed a company called The Fairway Company. Their goal was to build fancy apartment buildings.
Building the First Apartments
Their first project was an upscale apartment building called The Fairway. It was built in 1923. This area was popular because it was close to Palmer Park and the Detroit Golf Club. Soon after, another company, Young Construction Company, hired Marr. He designed four more apartment buildings nearby. These were The Southcourse (built in 1924), and the Douglas, Northcourse, and Georgian Apartments (all built in 1925).
When all five buildings were finished, they looked like a planned group. The buildings at each end were designed to look very similar.
Who Lived There?
The first people to live in these apartments were often professionals. This included doctors, lawyers, and small business owners. Also, managers from bigger companies lived there. Because of their great location, these apartments became some of the most desired places to live in Highland Park.
Sadly, two of the original five buildings, The Fairway and The Douglas, were badly damaged by fire. They were taken down in the 1990s.
About the Remaining Buildings
The three apartment buildings that are still standing are right next to each other. They look very similar in their design. They also have the same height and are set back from the road by the same distance.
Georgian Apartments
The Georgian Apartments are at 1981 W. McNichols. This building used to be the center of the original five apartments. It is a three-story building with a special "E" shape. Its style is called Georgian Revival. It is larger and shaped differently from the other original buildings.
The outside of the building is made of red brick with light-colored stone trim. The top of the building has a decorative border called a dentil cornice. A low wall in front connects the "arms" of the "E" shape. This wall creates a raised entrance area. Three doors lead into the building from this area.
The front of each "arm" has three sections. The middle section sticks out a little and has a triangle shape at the top. Windows on the first floor are set inside arches. Windows on the upper floors have flat tops. The main entrance in the middle "arm" is the most noticeable. It has rough-looking stone on the first floor and a stone section with a deep doorway.
When it was built, the Georgian Apartments had very nice features. Each apartment had a large living room, a kitchen with a special pantry, three bedrooms, and two bathrooms. There was even a separate bedroom and bathroom for a maid. There were five apartments on each floor, and each was very large, about 2,750 square feet.
Southcourse Apartments
The Southcourse Apartments are located at 2003 W. McNichols. This building is shaped like the letter "C." It is built with light brown and brown bricks and has light-colored stone trim. A raised entrance area is between the "arms" of the "C." This leads to two entrances inside the "C." Each entrance has a fancy wooden door set inside a stone arch.
The two ends of the "C" shape have round sections in the middle. These sections go up the entire height of the building and have flat roofs. On the first floor, windows next to these round sections have stone balconies. On the third floor, there are pairs of arched windows.
Inside, the entrances lead to tiled hallways. These hallways lead to stairways. Each stairway serves two apartments on each floor, making four apartments per floor. These apartments are large, with three bedrooms and two bathrooms. They are about 2,000 square feet in size.
Northcourse Apartments
The Northcourse Apartments are at 2025 W. McNichols. This building is also shaped like a "C." It is made of light brown and brown bricks with light-colored stone trim. It has a similar raised entrance area with two entryways. The two ends of the "C" shape have round sections in the middle. These sections go up the entire height of the building and have tiled roofs. On each floor, French doors next to these round sections open onto stone balconies.
Inside, the entrances lead to hallways lined with marble. These hallways lead to stairways. Each stairway serves three apartments on each floor, making six apartments per floor. Some of these apartments are larger, with two bedrooms and about 2,000 square feet. The other four apartments are smaller, with one bedroom and about 1,200 square feet.
