River Terrace Apartments facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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River Terrace Apartments
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 Location in Michigan
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| Location | 7700 East Jefferson Avenue Detroit, Michigan |
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| Area | 5.5 acres (2.2 ha) |
| Built | 1939 |
| Architect | Robert O. Derrick, Derrick & Gamber |
| Architectural style | Colonial Revival |
| NRHP reference No. | 09000204 |
| Added to NRHP | April 15, 2009 |
The River Terrace Apartments is a large apartment building located at 7700 East Jefferson Avenue in Detroit, Michigan. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2009. This list includes important historical places in the United States.
The River Terrace Apartments was one of the first "garden apartment" complexes built in Michigan. A garden apartment complex has buildings spread out around a central garden or lawn. It was also one of the first to use special loan help from the Federal Housing Administration. This government program helped people get loans to build new homes and apartments. The other similar complex built around the same time was Hillcrest Village in East Lansing.
Building History
By the late 1800s, the area along East Jefferson Avenue was a very popular place to live. Many wealthy families had homes there. As cars became popular in the 1900s, Detroit grew very fast. This led to many large, fancy apartment buildings being built along the avenue.
However, this building boom stopped when the Great Depression began. The Great Depression was a time in the 1930s when many people lost their jobs and money. Building new things became very difficult.
But in 1939, Wesson Seyburn and Leonard P. Reaume decided to build a new apartment complex. They worked for a company that managed properties. This was the first new apartment complex built along the Detroit River since the late 1920s.
They hired the company Derrick & Gamber to design the building. The River Terrace Apartments were finished in late 1939. The total cost was about $1,250,000. These apartments were first rented to middle-class families. They are still used as apartments today.
Apartment Design
The River Terrace Apartments are a "garden court" style complex. It has four separate buildings. These buildings are built around a large garden and lawn area. The garden slopes down towards the Detroit River. This design gives many apartments great views of the river. It also allows easy access to the riverfront.
Each of the four buildings has a slightly different shape. However, they all share similar design features. These features are part of the Georgian Revival architectural style. For example, all buildings have a limestone band between the second and third floors. The corners of each building also have special raised brick designs called quoining. The overall style of the complex followed the building standards set by the FHA at that time.
All four buildings are between 2-1/2 and four stories tall. They are built with strong steel frames. Their walls are made of cinder blocks covered with red brick. They also have flat roofs. The complex has 178 apartments in total. These apartments range from small studio apartments to larger five-room apartments.
Building number one is shaped like the letter "U." The open part of the "U" faces Jefferson Avenue. This building is 3-1/2 stories tall, with a basement level. The main entrance is in the center of the building. It sticks out a little from the rest of the building. The entrance has a special wooden frame with columns.
Building two is a long, wavy building. It is located behind the southwest corner of building one. It stretches almost all the way to the river. Buildings three and four are separated from building two by a long courtyard. They zigzag towards the river from the southeast corner of building one.
