Located on the south east corner of Riverside Dr. and Devonshire, the Flat Iron building designed by Mason & Rice was demolished by Hiram Walker’s parent company in 1995, in an attempt to pay less taxes. Today the site of the building remains an empty lot.
Regular reader Robert Pratt, passed along a pair of photos he took of the Flat Iron Building in January, 1995, before the hammer fell.
The building was constructed by Detroit architects Mason & Rice at a cost of $24,000. The building was built c. 1895, and was about a century old when the wrecking ball wiped it off the planet. Next door to the east was the former Walkerville Town Hall. It was successfully saved, and moved around the corner onto Devonshire where it stands today.
oh i wish you had a photo of the little parkette on the corner…. i never knew this building was ever there…. i have lived in this neighborhood for the past six years and never knew. i was aware that they moved the building behind it…thanks so much for the old photos… hope you enjoyed the walk tonight…
RF
May have marked the moment Hiram Walkers went from good corporate citizen to bad.
Thanks to Robert Pratt for having the foresite to get those shots. Must remember this demo was thirteen+ years ago and we all weren’t quite as keen about our built heritage as we are now that blogs like I.M. are raising awareness. (Better late than never.)
Question to Andrew: This demo today would have obviously been met with staunch opposition. How did they pull it off in 1995? Haven’t looked at the inventory PDF yet but I assume this would be prime material for designation, non? Not assigning blame – just curious as to how something this amazing went down the toilet.
Shawn, the previous owners, Allied Domecq, were even worse at being corporate “citizens” (truly not in their lexicon). They removed all of the flowers round the property that would be planted each year and instead installed pea gravel.
John, there was some opposition but much like many things in Windsor it didn’t matter. Windsor will allow the illogical things to be done while logic remains on the shelf. I believe it was one reason the Town Hall was saved. A “compromise” if you will.
I thought only Detroit had buildings that nice. What a waste! Was this an office building or an apartment building? Why didn’t they just sell the building if they didn’t like it? It survived for a century, so I doubt they’d have a problem keeping it rented. I bet Hiram Walker was turning in his grave when it was being knocked down.
wow…what a stunning building
Re: Was it an office building?
I think Walker’s used it as offices. I do recall an interview with the recently deceased Camilla Stodgell Wigle and she said that her father ran a store located in this building. That would have been in the late 18th/early 19th c. I’m assuming that the lower level must have been shops and the upper stories may have been apartments – I’m saying “assuming” – I don’t know for sure but so many of the urban streetscapes were set up like that.
Andrew – would the fire insurance maps clarify this?
It was a beautiful building and it was such a shame went it was torn down – ME, you are right – it was a “compromise” – the city hall building was saved and this one was sacrificed. (I miss the flowers, too).
Initially the building held shops on both levels, then just the lower level with a bowling alley on the top and then it was used for storage for a few years before it was demo’ed.
Wow, it had a bowling alley on the top floor? That’s sad. I guess it could be worse. Like if I were a preservationist in Detroit seeing the historic Wolverine Skyscraper Hotel across from the Fox getting demo’d for a parking lot for Comerica Park or even Hudson’s for Compuware Parking. Man, like how are we even supposed to take all these landmark demos in Windsor and Detroit with a grain of salt and not have a heart attack? The history and architecture of what the Motor Cities once were was like reading about something great like the Roman Empire crumble into dust…
According the the book “Postcards from the Past” from Walkerville Publishing:
it’s crazy how many times i walked by it yet never took a photo. i saw the death fence around that tavern on wyandotte today too and the building next to it that used to be a hair salon i think. so i wonder how soon it will be coming down now.
Which tavern? Cross street please. There’s a lot of taverns and hair salons on Wyandotte.
Jane – according to the fire insurance map:
Offices below with dwellings over (as of 1937).
David – this one: http://internationalmetropolis.com/?p=929
Oh, that’s still there untouched? I figured it would have been gone from a couple weeks ago when you did your first post on it, seeing how fast Seagrave’s, BMO on Walker, and Top Hat were demo’d…
My father worked at HW for 28 years — indeed, was offices (during the 80s, when I’d visit). Dad was downsized in ’93 after Allied took over.
The grounds were the pride of HW for the longest time.
That demolition was my first foray into writing letters to the editor. I couldn’t believe they were tearing down that magnificent building and it spurred me into writing to the paper. I think my mom still has it. She was so proud!
what a shame to see this fine old building come down you don’t get this kind of arhaticture anywhere in the city
I don’t remember that building at all. It’s a shame we lost it. Looked solid.