Charles Trowbridge House

Charles Trowbridge House
Location 1380 East Jefferson Avenue
Detroit, Michigan
Coordinates 42°20′1″N 83°1′58″W / 42.33361°N 83.03278°WCoordinates: 42°20′1″N 83°1′58″W / 42.33361°N 83.03278°W
Built 1826
Architect Unknown
Architectural style Late Victorian, Federal
Governing body Private
NRHP Reference # 76001042[1]
Significant dates
Added to NRHP May 28, 1976
Designated MSHS July 26, 1974[2]

The Charles C. Trowbridge House is located at 1380 East Jefferson Avenue in Detroit, Michigan. It is the oldest building in the city of Detroit;[3] it was designated a Michigan State Historic Site in 1974[2] and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1976.[1]

History

Charles Christopher Trowbridge built this house in 1826 at a cost of $2500[4] on what was then farmland, far from the heart of Detroit.[5] At the time, the River Road (now East Jefferson) ran behind the house; the original access to the house may have been from what is now the rear.[4] Houses of this type often had similar front and rear layouts, with entrances at both ends of a central hallway.[4]

Trowbridge lived in the house for 56 years until his death in 1883.[5] The house, originally built in a Greek Revival style, was updated with Victorian elements such as the bay window in the front.[3][6]

After Trowbridge's death, the house remained in the family, and was converted to a rooming house in 1936. In 1942, the Trowbridge family sold the house to Marie Cavanaugh and it was converted back to a single-family residence.[4] Today, the house is privately owned and houses multiple businesses including Trowbridge Law Firm, Trowbridge Realty, Dickson & Associates and RBD Creative.

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. 2008-04-15.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Trowbridge, Charles, House". Michigan State Housing Development Authority. Retrieved September 3, 2010.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Eric J. Hill, John Gallagher, American Institute of Architects Detroit Chapter, AIA Detroit , Wayne State University Press, 2002, ISBN 0-8143-3120-3, p.232
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 Charles Trowbridge House from the city of Detroit
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 James V. Cambell, "Biographical Sketch of Charles C. Trowbridge," read June 3, 1883, published in Pioneer Collections: Report of the Pioneer Society of the State of Michigan, 1907, pp. 478 - 491
  6. ↑ Charles Trowbridge House from Detroit1701.org

External links