Downtown Adrian Commercial Historic District

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Downtown Adrian
Commercial Historic District
Downtown Adrian Commercial H.D..JPG
Looking north along Main Street (M-52)
USA Michigan location map.svg
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Location within the state of Michigan
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Downtown Adrian Commercial Historic District (the United States)
Location Adrian, Michigan
Coordinates 41°53′55″N84°02′12″W / 41.89861°N 84.03667°W / 41.89861; -84.03667 Coordinates: 41°53′55″N84°02′12″W / 41.89861°N 84.03667°W / 41.89861; -84.03667
Architectural style Federal, Greek Revival, and Late Victorian
NRHP reference # 86000803 [1]
Added to NRHPApril 17, 1986

The Downtown Adrian Commercial Historic District is a historic district comprising the downtown area of Adrian, Michigan. It was designated as a Michigan Historic Site and added to the National Register of Historic Places on April 17, 1986. [1] The district is roughly bounded on the north by Toledo Street, on the east by North Broad Street, on the south by East Church Street, and on the west by North Winter Street (M-52), West Maumee Street, and the River Raisin. [2] Most of the district is enclosed by the US-223 Business Route, although the two are not conterminous.

Downtown citys core or central business district (CBD) in North America

Downtown is a term primarily used in North America by English-speakers to refer to a city's commercial, cultural and often the historical, political and geographic heart, and is often synonymous with its central business district (CBD). In British English, the term "city centre" is most often used instead. The two terms are used interchangeably in Canada.

Adrian, Michigan City in Michigan, United States

Adrian is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan and the county seat of Lenawee County. The population was 21,133 at the 2010 census. Adrian lies in Michigan's 7th congressional district.

Michigan U.S. state in the United States

Michigan is a state in the Great Lakes and Midwestern regions of the United States. The state's name, Michigan, originates from the Ojibwe word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake". With a population of about 10 million, Michigan is the tenth most populous of the 50 United States, with the 11th most extensive total area, and is the largest state by total area east of the Mississippi River. Its capital is Lansing, and its largest city is Detroit. Metro Detroit is among the nation's most populous and largest metropolitan economies.

Contents

History

Adrian was first settled in 1826 by Addison J. Comstock, building a group of cabins at this site. Comstock built a sawmill, and in 1828 platted the first section of the city, nearly all of which in included in the current historic district. Both residences and commercial buildings were constructed on the area, with the first commercial enterprise, Dr. E. Conant Winter's dry goods store, opening in 1829. As Adrian grew, the earliest frame buildings were displaced by the growing commercial district. In 1838, Adrian became the county seat, creating a legal and financial sector within the district. A number of banks opened their doors in the mid 19th century. [3]

By the latter part of the century, development in the downtown district reached its peak. A new courthouse was constructed in 1884 (just outside the district), and Adrian was the commercial supply center for the surrounding agricultural area. By 1900, the growth of the central business district had slowed, leaving a district that has changed little in the years since. Although many of the storefronts have been altered, some buildings demolished, and a few new buildings added, downtown Adrian is a remarkably intact representation of what the area looked like over a century ago. [3]

Description

The Downtown Adrian Commercial Historic District contains 102 structures, of which 84 contribute to the historical character of the district. The buildings within the district are a mix of Federal, Greek Revival, and Late Victorian architecture. The oldest buildings within the district today date back to 1865; the majority were built between 1865–1920. Most of the buildings are two- and three-story commercial structures, but some churches, government buildings, and other social structures (such as the Adrian Union Hall-Croswell Opera House and Clark Memorial Hall, both individually listed on the National Register of Historic Places) are included. [3]

Federal architecture architectural style

Federal-style architecture is the name for the classicizing architecture built in the newly founded United States between c. 1780 and 1830, and particularly from 1785 to 1815. This style shares its name with its era, the Federalist Era. The name Federal style is also used in association with furniture design in the United States of the same time period. The style broadly corresponds to the classicism of Biedermeier style in the German-speaking lands, Regency architecture in Britain and to the French Empire style.

Greek Revival architecture architectural movement of the late 18th and early 19th centuries

The Greek Revival was an architectural movement of the late 18th and early 19th centuries, predominantly in Northern Europe and the United States. It revived the style of ancient Greek architecture, in particular the Greek temple, with varying degrees of thoroughness and consistency. A product of Hellenism, it may be looked upon as the last phase in the development of Neoclassical architecture, which had for long mainly drawn from Roman architecture. The term was first used by Charles Robert Cockerell in a lecture he gave as Professor of Architecture to the Royal Academy of Arts, London in 1842.

Victorian architecture series of architectural revival styles

Victorian architecture is a series of architectural revival styles in the mid-to-late 19th century. Victorian refers to the reign of Queen Victoria (1837–1901), called the Victorian era, during which period the styles known as Victorian were used in construction. However, many elements of what is typically termed "Victorian" architecture did not become popular until later in Victoria's reign. The styles often included interpretations and eclectic revivals of historic styles. The name represents the British and French custom of naming architectural styles for a reigning monarch. Within this naming and classification scheme, it followed Georgian architecture and later Regency architecture, and was succeeded by Edwardian architecture.

The majority of the buildings in the district are Italianate in style, with the finest example being the highly detailed Clark Memorial Hall, with its eclectic limestone and metal facade. Older architectural styles are also represented, such as the three-story brick Federal style Lathrop Block at 128 E. Maumee. Greek Revival is also represented, including the large three-story masonry Greek Revival Underwood Block at 101 E. Maumee and two early churches: the 1837 First Baptist Church at 119 N. Broad, and the 1842 First United Presbyterian Church. A few Revival buildings exist in the district, and some of the latest additions include the 1905 YMCA building at 146-150 S. Main, which is a hybrid composition with Richardsonian and Classical elements; the 1925 Tudor Adrian Armory at 230 W. Maumee; and the 1924 Neoclassical Masonic Temple at 160 E. Maumee. [3]

Italianate architecture 19th-century phase in the history of Classical architecture

The Italianate style of architecture was a distinct 19th-century phase in the history of Classical architecture.

Richardsonian Romanesque Romanesque Revival architectural style, named for Henry Hobson Richardson

Richardsonian Romanesque is a style of Romanesque Revival architecture named after architect Henry Hobson Richardson (1838–1886), whose Trinity Church, Boston (1872–1877), is designated a National Historic Landmark. Richardson first used elements of the style in his Richardson Olmsted Complex in Buffalo, New York, designed in 1870.

Tudor Revival architecture architectural style

Tudor Revival architecture first manifested itself in domestic architecture in the United Kingdom in the latter half of the 19th century. Based on revival of aspects that were perceived as Tudor architecture, in reality it usually took the style of English vernacular architecture of the Middle Ages that had survived into the Tudor period. The style later became an influence elsewhere, especially the British colonies. For example, in New Zealand, the architect Francis Petre adapted the style for the local climate. In Singapore, then a British colony, architects such as R. A. J. Bidwell pioneered what became known as the Black and White House. The earliest examples of the style originate with the works of such eminent architects as Norman Shaw and George Devey, in what at the time was thought Neo-Tudor design.

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References

  1. 1 2 "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. November 11, 2009.
  2. ↑ State of Michigan (2009). "Downtown Adrian Commercial Historic District". Archived from the original on June 6, 2011. Retrieved May 31, 2010.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Lorri D. Sipes; Malcolm L. Collins (October 24, 1985), National Register of Historic Places Inventory-Nomination Form: Downtown Adrian Commercial Historic District (note: large pdf file)
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