  Quinn Member Username: Quinn Post Number: 1347 Registered: 01-2005 |
Just a reminder that the 2007 Indian Village Home & Garden Tour is this Saturday. Online, advance-day tickets for $13.00 will only be available through Friday at 6:00pm, so if you want to go and want to save a few dollars, you've still got some time. Same day tickets are available for $18.00. Here's the previous thread about it: https://www.atdetroit.net/forum/mes sages/89914/99896.html | ||
Patrick Member Username: Patrick Post Number: 4474 Registered: 10-2003 |
Too bad I cant make it this year. I was going to be a docent this year too! If you havent gone on the tour, I HIGHLY suggest it. You may have to wait in long lines to get into a few homes. | ||
Quinn Member Username: Quinn Post Number: 1348 Registered: 01-2005 |
We've got more homes this year, plus some of the larger ones, and of course, the fabulous Willeke house on Iroquios. I think it's going to be a year not to miss. | ||
Mackinaw Member Username: Mackinaw Post Number: 2829 Registered: 02-2005 |
Can't wait. I believe the largest house in the Village is on the tour. | ||
Quinn Member Username: Quinn Post Number: 1355 Registered: 01-2005 |
Little reminder to get at the top of the post...hope to see you guys over here tomorrow. We're going to have a great tour day I expect! -Quinn | ||
Kathleen Member Username: Kathleen Post Number: 2306 Registered: 10-2003 |
Quinn: How will we know you? | ||
Mackinaw Member Username: Mackinaw Post Number: 2846 Registered: 02-2005 |
I am counting down the minutes until I can see 1771 Seminole for myself. | ||
Mackinaw Member Username: Mackinaw Post Number: 2859 Registered: 02-2005 |
Great tour! Lots of people there. The Willeke-designed house at 2505 Iroquois actually stole the show, though 1771 Seminole and a handful of others were still among the more impressive homes in the city. I'll post photos later. | ||
Kathleen Member Username: Kathleen Post Number: 2310 Registered: 10-2003 |
A mostly enjoyable day in Indian Village. But it was quite crowded and some of the lines to get in the houses were rather long. Spent 5 hours there and saw 4 of the 6 houses on the tour. The Roscoe B. Jackson House on Iroquois was the house to see!!! Its interior is absolutely exquisite!! Also enjoyed the three vintage Hudson automobiles parked there! | ||
Pam Member Username: Pam Post Number: 1717 Registered: 11-2005 |
quote: We also saw 4 of the 6 but it took us less than 5 hours. Maybe we were there earlier than you? I think we were there from about 10:30-1:30. I thought the house the owners were still working on was interesting as a contrast to the fixed up ones. I wouldn't have minded cooler weather today! I thought some of the seniors looked like they might be getting overheated. | ||
Kathleen Member Username: Kathleen Post Number: 2311 Registered: 10-2003 |
I was there from 11 to 4 pm, but parked my car in one place and walked from there rather than driving from house to house or waiting for a shuttle bus. Yes, it is interesting to see the gutted house every once in a while!! It's hard to believe that there are houses in dire need of love and repair in Indian Village, but there are a few!! Despite the heat, I was glad that the rain held off until I was home. | ||
Pam Member Username: Pam Post Number: 1719 Registered: 11-2005 |
quote: So did we. I guess we just lucked out and got some faster moving lines. We also looked in the Waldorf school and a couple of the churches. | ||
Thnk2mch Member Username: Thnk2mch Post Number: 937 Registered: 02-2006 |
We went too. Parked and walked, started about 11:00. The first house we went to took almost an hour, the others about fifteen-twenty minutes. It was warm alright. The walking in the shade helped. | ||
Mackinaw Member Username: Mackinaw Post Number: 2863 Registered: 02-2005 |
Here are my photos: http://www.flickr.com/photo_zo om.gne?id=526834380&context=po ol-41894188133@N01&size=l Click that link. When looking at that photo, click the link at the top (w/ my Flickr account name) and that will take you to my photo page. To the right at the center of the page you'll see an 'Indian Village' set. Click on that and you'll be golden. Flickr links don't work well on this site so this is why you need to click a couple links. I don't think IV has looked as good as it does now in my entire lifetime. The level of investment in the houses on the tour had to be at an all-time high, further. I was able to see all SEVEN homes in 4 hours, starting at 10:30. | ||
Wash_man Member Username: Wash_man Post Number: 436 Registered: 05-2006 |
Those were great pics. Thanks for posting them. | ||
Mackinaw Member Username: Mackinaw Post Number: 2864 Registered: 02-2005 |
Your welcome. Glad that link works. | ||
Bob_cosgrove Member Username: Bob_cosgrove Post Number: 530 Registered: 03-2005 |
I would like to make a minor comment on the captions of the excellent photographs of the 2007 34th Annual Historic Indian Village Home and Garden Tour. Despite what the U.S. Post Office wants - the say north-south roads are "streets" and east-west are "Avenues." The three streets in Indian Village are Seminole Avenue, Iroquois Avenue and Burns. And they have been since 1895, when the Village was platted. Historically Burns hasn't had the suffix "Avneue" used with it, but it not incorrect, especially so as not to confuse it with Burns Drive, which is almost immediately south of East Jefferson but not in a direct line with Burns. This is where The Whittier apartment hotel is. I wish the Big Government - e.g. the U.S. Postal Service wouldn't make these arbitrary decisions. And, I'm sure the charities, etc. who mail me mailing labels with my address as "Iroquois Street" would too - since I have to discard them. Bob Cosgrove | ||
Mackinaw Member Username: Mackinaw Post Number: 2868 Registered: 02-2005 |
Now that's interesting. With you being an IV expert, I'm accepting your take on things. I'm not sure about the post office thing, though. I thought the city makes the call. There are counter-examples throughout Detroit. Woodward Ave., Cass Ave., and 2nd Ave. (amusingly followed by 3rd Street)...and then Fort Street, Atwater St., Monroe St., etc. In my made-up world a street is narrower than an avenue. What I hate is the term 'road' used for streets in incorporated city, such as we see with all the 'roads' in Grosse Pointe. | ||
Mackinaw Member Username: Mackinaw Post Number: 2869 Registered: 02-2005 |
Let me also apologize for the lack of Burns coverage in my photos. All the house tours were on the other two streets this year. I'll either take another walk some other time, or scan some good photos of Burns from last year. | ||
Thnk2mch Member Username: Thnk2mch Post Number: 939 Registered: 02-2006 |
Mackinaw, nice pictures. The 12th picture in your series had me staring at the gutters on that house while in line across the street. As you can see in the picture, the white downspout entered the masonry of the house, yet there was a second set of copper(or brown) downspouts next to them draining to the ground. ???? | ||
Mackinaw Member Username: Mackinaw Post Number: 2870 Registered: 02-2005 |
Wow that is strange. I'm staring at it now, too. I never actually walked all the way around in front of that house, but I think that behind the columned entrance there the walkway actually continues, and the home is actually side-entry, so perhaps there is a downspout that drains back in that area. Still, it is hard to explain why there would also be double downspouts on the other side of the house. It is a strange element to the home, but all the IV houses have quirks, don't they? | ||
Bob_cosgrove Member Username: Bob_cosgrove Post Number: 531 Registered: 03-2005 |
The City of Detroit determines whether its an avenue, street, etc. when the street is layid out, not the Post Office. They've just arbitrarily decided on this nomeclature for streets being north-south and avenue east-west. As I said ealrier: BIG GOVERNMENT Bob Cosgrove | ||
Neilr Member Username: Neilr Post Number: 513 Registered: 06-2005 |
Think2mch, quote: In his well-researched book, Leonard B. Willeke: Excellence in Architecture and Design, (1986), Tom Brunk has a very clear full-page picture of this house. It shows the house to have just the 2 interior downspouts on the front side. Then, on the north side, towards the rear, there is just one external downspout. | ||
Mackinaw Member Username: Mackinaw Post Number: 2872 Registered: 02-2005 |
So, too be clear, the C of D calls the IV roads 'Avenues?' If this is the case then that nomenclature takes precedent to me. Thanks for the input, Neilr. | ||
Warrenite84 Member Username: Warrenite84 Post Number: 105 Registered: 01-2007 |
For this to be my first home tour in Indian Village, I regret that I should have toured it years ago. My favorites were 2505 Iroquois, and 1771 Seminole. One question, does the home and garden tour showcase different houses each year? Are the homes above included on a regular basis? Thanks. I only took a couple of hundred pics with my digital camera and will try to post only the best of them soon on my flickr account.gab482 | ||
Pam Member Username: Pam Post Number: 1725 Registered: 11-2005 |
quote: Yes. quote: From the tour booklet about 2505 Iroquois: quote:. | ||
Warrenite84 Member Username: Warrenite84 Post Number: 107 Registered: 01-2007 |
Thanks. I'll be back next year. | ||
Kathleen Member Username: Kathleen Post Number: 2315 Registered: 10-2003 |
Question for Bob Cosgrove.... The sidewalks throughout Indian Village need to be fixed. You really have to be observant in walking around the neighborhood because the sidewalks are frequently cracked and/or uneven. More than once I heard comments about what poor shape some of the sidewalks are in from people walking in front or behind me on the streets. Has this been an issue for the Homeowners Association? What's the deal? Thanks! | ||
Dabirch Member Username: Dabirch Post Number: 2308 Registered: 06-2004 |
KAthleen -- Try it pushing a stroller. You actually have to walk in the street. | ||
Dds Member Username: Dds Post Number: 247 Registered: 10-2006 |
quote: And this is different from everywhere/everyone else in Detroit how? When in Rome. | ||
Mackinaw Member Username: Mackinaw Post Number: 2878 Registered: 02-2005 |
Well IV has a homeowners assoc. and generally goes above/beyond. If they tried really hard they could get sidewalks repaired. At one point on Iroquois there is a tall hedge in front of one house on the west side of the street that cuts down the width of the sidewalk by 50-75 percent, and it comes right to the north of one of the worst slabs on concrete on any sidewalk. Like I mentioned, IV home investment appears to be way up. The neighborhood is improving and the city should recipricate with some new sidewalk slabs. | ||
Kathleen Member Username: Kathleen Post Number: 2318 Registered: 10-2003 |
Hey Dabirch! Yes, I can imagine pushing a stroller, and of course, I was thinking of a lot of the older folks walking on Saturday. Some sidewalks are in much worse shape than others, so it's not like all need replacing in the near future, but it is a concern. I was also curious about the Historic District designation and who is responsible for what upkeep. | ||
Susanarosa Member Username: Susanarosa Post Number: 1527 Registered: 11-2003 |
quote: Yeah Dabirch, you just didn't try hard enough. | ||
Dabirch Member Username: Dabirch Post Number: 2309 Registered: 06-2004 |
If at first you don't succeed, quit and move to Cali, that's what I always say. | ||
Quinn Member Username: Quinn Post Number: 1358 Registered: 01-2005 |
The city doesn't pay for sidewalks, we do. A few years ago our neighbor, and sometimes detyes poster, coordinated a neighborhood sidewalk replacement plan, where we all got the same city permit and got a discount from the sidewalk/cement people. They did "exposed aggregate" and it turned out great. Unfortunately we didn't have the money to repair ours at the time, still don't, and we have maybe 6 slabs that need to be replaced. It's costly, and a hassle especially with the permit, and low priority for us right now. I'm glad so many people had a good time! I thought it was a great day, and I actually went on the tour this year instead of docenting. I thought the Willeke home was awesome, and loved the layout/architecture of 1771. Anyone interested in buying, you'd be surprised at some of the great deals you can get now. I'd recommend the village, and as I've said before, we've got many amenities including the community spirit that, in my opinion, make us the better choice for anyone interested in living in a historic district. | ||
Mackinaw Member Username: Mackinaw Post Number: 2880 Registered: 02-2005 |
Yeah I guess that's pretty standard, Quinn. At my parents GP home we have a couple slabs that are crooked so they alway created a pond, yet at this point the city says it is up to us to pay for it. On the other had, the city still replaces some sidewalks on it's own volition in a random manner. So there is no point at which a sidewalk can completely crumble and the city will step in and fix? Entirely the homeowners responsiblity, huh. My only idea would be creating a pooled fund within the homeowners association for these repairs, and then the worst sidewalks, wherever they are, can be repaired at the discretion of the association. Yes, Quinn, there are some great deals there now, | ||
Dougw Member Username: Dougw Post Number: 1723 Registered: 11-2003 |
Nice tour day! I ended up working as the entrance docent at 1771 Seminole for the afternoon shift, so I probably saw a bunch of you there. Yes, at this point we're not really expecting the city to replace a bunch of sidewalk, given the city's dire financial straits. However, it would be nice if they could at least waive the building permit fee if you're repairing/replacing something which provides the public right-of-way, such as a sidewalk. The $200 permit fee is kind of crazy. (I confess that we have one pretty bad square of sidewalk on the border of our lot & our neighbor's. I was waiting 'til we fixed the driveway at the same time... looks like next year. We'll definitely join up with the neighborhood plan when we do it.) Still, overall I'd say that keeping blight issues (such as the ridiculous hedge that Mackinaw pointed out) under control is a higher priority for the association than replacing large amounts of sidewalk, which is unfortunately pretty costly. | ||
Thnk2mch Member Username: Thnk2mch Post Number: 940 Registered: 02-2006 |
Neilr, thanks for the tip. I am going to try to find the book and look at the original picture, ( I assume original) Now it's bugging me. | ||
Bob_cosgrove Member Username: Bob_cosgrove Post Number: 534 Registered: 03-2005 |
I waa looking at that hedge on Iroquois the other day and it appears to me that it's been that way for decades. The homeowners have lived there long and are responsible people. I couldn't tell but, I wonder if for some reason the sidewalk is purposely narrowed there. In the beginning the slabs on the lower end of the Village were all flag stone monsters. The last was removed only within the past 10 or so years. The concrete sidewalks that replaced the flag stone or where installed new all had pebbles in them and look better than the modern pebbleless concrete ones which quite white, at least when new, almost glisten. Pebble sidewalks are still available at greater cost and only from a few knowledgeable cement contractors. The Indian Village Elements of Design enacted by City Council in 1976 are quite strict, but do not mention sidewalk concrete. However, an historic area like Indian Village should consider establishing a sidewalk committe as suggested earlier in this thread and oversee the replacement of broken slabs with pebble concrete sidealks. Bob Cosgrove | ||
Patrick Member Username: Patrick Post Number: 4516 Registered: 10-2003 |
The sidewalks in B-E are in far worse condition. When I went on the walking tour I tripped twice over this ground up pulp of a sidewalk. | ||
Swingline Member Username: Swingline Post Number: 838 Registered: 11-2003 |
It is definitely a buyer's market in IV these days. There are at least ten foreclosures for sale. There might be twenty other places on the market. A handful of the places are turn-key, but most require some level of renovation. The state historic rehab income tax credit program will help with those costs. Many of the properties for sale have been on the market for awhile and presumably the owners are willing to negotiate. Partial NEZ property tax relief goes into effect next year too. Now is the time to buy that dream home. | ||
Bob_cosgrove Member Username: Bob_cosgrove Post Number: 538 Registered: 03-2005 |
A footnote to the Roscoe B. Jackson home at 2505 Iroquois, which was on the 2007 Historic Indian Village Home & Garden Tour on June 2nd. The Roscoe B. Jackson Memorial Laboratory in Bar Harbor, Maine was estabished with funding donated by Mrs. Jackson (Louise Webber - not Weber as appears in the H> booklet) and Edsel & Eleanor Ford. It is a reknown national cancer center. And it is famed in the scientific community beginning with the work of its first director, former University of Michigan President C. C. Little, in genetic research and with the deveopment of laboratory mice. See http://www.jax.org/about/timel ine/ Bob Cosgrove | ||
Patrick Member Username: Patrick Post Number: 4532 Registered: 10-2003 |
Hey Bob, you know of the Albert Kahn design that was moved to GP? It is now on Provencal...where in IV was that home located? Seminole and Jeff? | ||
Bob_cosgrove Member Username: Bob_cosgrove Post Number: 539 Registered: 03-2005 |
Patrick, that's the Lewis Henry and Ida Sales Jones home at 41 Provencal Road in Grosse Pointe ?Farms on the southwest corner of (I believe)Kercheval. It was the Junior League of Detroit Show House several yeara ago. Jones was the long-time president of Detroit Copper & Brass Rolling Mills. Albert Kahn took out the building permit in 1906. In Indian Village the Jones homes stood at 8191 East Jefferson on the northwest corner of Seminole, where the Dr. Faber eye clinic is now. It was disassembled, moved and re-erected sometime in 1930-32 as East Jefferson became commecialized. Bob Cosgrove | ||
Tponetom Member Username: Tponetom Post Number: 3 Registered: 06-2007 |
Two days ago I had posted a short blurb about my "Favorite Detroit Tour" being a walk through Indian Village. I did not mention that I was reminiscing, circa 1945. It was my 'fall back' cheap date with the girl that I am still married to. Every time we took that walk we had to go down the west side of Seminole, between Mack and Vernor Highway, to look at the "Snow White" House. Slate roof, gables galore, leaded glass windows and in the early evening, a romantic aura to die for. It was/is? one of a kind. Can anyone in the Forum relate to that house? Address? Occupancy? Present Tenants? I pray to goodness that it did not become a part of the Fabulous Ruins! | ||
Mackinaw Member Username: Mackinaw Post Number: 3065 Registered: 02-2005 |
Hmmm I'll have to drive by and guess which one. Do you know if it was south of Charlevoix or Goethe by any chance? I feel the same about many houses in IV. Very few homes in IV have been lost, especially in recent decades. There is one new house on the west side of Seminole just off Charlevoix. Hopefully, hopefully this isn't on the site of your old favorite. | ||
Dougw Member Username: Dougw Post Number: 1762 Registered: 11-2003 |
It took me a minute to think of the house you might mean, but I believe it is 3001 Seminole, halfway between Charlevoix and Goethe. "Snow White" house is a perfect description for it, actually. A very steep roof, also, probably the steepest in the neighborhood. The house is still there and occupied. No homes have been lost in Indian Village in the last 40 years, although there are a fair number of fixer-uppers. | ||
Jennifer Member Username: Jennifer Post Number: 6 Registered: 06-2007 |
Old thread, I know, but I went to this home & garden tour for the first time this year & loved it! One of my recent professors was a docent too...haha | ||
Tponetom Member Username: Tponetom Post Number: 5 Registered: 06-2007 |
Thank you, Dougw and Mackinaw. You made our day. My wife and I will be in Detroit later this summer and another tour down Seminole will be a priority. I am an anachronism in this Forum. I have (literally) a thousand and one stories, anecdotes and memories of our life in Detroit. They were all happy experiences. | ||
Bob_cosgrove Member Username: Bob_cosgrove Post Number: 546 Registered: 03-2005 |
There has been one Indian Village home lost in the past 40 years circa 1976. It was built by Carl G. Fishcer (Electric Autolite & Indianapolis Speedway) and later the home of C. Harold Wills (Henry Ford's metalurgist and later maker of the Wills-Ste. Claire automobile). The Wills home stood on the south side of East Jefferson between Seminole and Iroquois just west of Owen Park - you can still see the fence on either side of the of the lot. It was removed on speculation of new housing, probably an apartment, which never happened. As Dougw points out, the home before that was on the southwest corner of Mack and Burns. It was lost when the storefronts along Mack Avenue were torched in the 1967 Detroit Riots. Bob Cosgrove | ||
Dougw Member Username: Dougw Post Number: 1765 Registered: 11-2003 |
Thanks for the correction Bob, I often forget about the houses facing Jefferson. (Although the south side of Jefferson is sometimes not thought of as technically being within the neighborhood boundaries.) | ||
Mackinaw Member Username: Mackinaw Post Number: 3082 Registered: 02-2005 |
Tponetom, enjoy your return visit and Seminole tour. | ||
Patrick Member Username: Patrick Post Number: 4591 Registered: 10-2003 |
Bob, where was the Elizabeth Buhl home located on Jefferson? Next to Edsel's mansion? | ||
Bob_cosgrove Member Username: Bob_cosgrove Post Number: 553 Registered: 03-2005 |
Theodore DeLong Buhl (1844-1907) and his wife Elizabeth Walker, the daughter of Hiram Walker I, had John Scott build their riverside mansion at 7850 East Jefferson Avenue, which is about opposite the old Jennings Hospital, now Riverside Hospital. After Theodore death in 1907, Elizabeth continued there until 1928. Theodore and Elizaberth's son Willis E. Buhl (1875-1916) and his wife Louise T. Ziegfeld, the daughter of Showman Flo Ziegfeld, built their riverside mansion in 1910 at 8430 East Jefferson immediately west of The Whittier apartment hotel. The building permit was taken out by Willis, so we don't know who the architect was, or he might have been the designer. Louise continued to live there until at least 1940. Bob Cosgrove |
