Dry Dock Complex (Detroit, Michigan)
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Dry Dock Engine Works-Detroit Dry Dock Company Complex
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Dry Dock No. 2 (now filled with water) is in the foreground; the Engine Works complex is in the background
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| Location | 1801–1803 and 1900 Atwater St., Detroit, Michigan |
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| Coordinates | 42°19′59″N 83°1′37″W / 42.33306°N 83.02694°WCoordinates: 42°19′59″N 83°1′37″W / 42.33306°N 83.02694°W |
| Built | 1892, 1902, c. 1910s |
| Architect | Berlin Iron Bridge Co. |
| NRHP Reference # | 09000680 |
| Added to NRHP | September 3, 2009 |
The Dry Dock Complex consists of six interconnected buildings located at 1801–1803 Atwater Street in Detroit, Michigan, as well as the remains of a nearby dry dock at 1900 Atwater Street. The 1801-1803 Atwater complex is also known as the Globe Trading Company Building. The complex is significant as a historic maritime manufacturing facility. The earliest structure, an 1892 machine shop, is also significant as an early example of an industrial building entirely supported by its steel frame, but using traditional brick and standard windows to infill the curtain walls. The complex was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2009. In 2012, the Department of Natural Resources received funding for historic redevelopment of the complex, along the city's east riverfront promenade.
The Dry Dock Engine Works-Detroit Dry Dock Company Complex includes pieces of two once-independent companies—the Dry Dock Engine Works and the Detroit Dry Dock Company—which merged in 1899.
In the 1840s, Captain Stephen R. Kirby began a shipbuilding firm in Cleveland, Ohio, and by 1852 had moved to Saginaw, Michigan. In 1870, Kirby's son Frank, a Cooper Union-trained engineer, joined the firm as lead designer. (Frank Kirby went on to a successful shipbuilding career, which included the design of two National Historic Landmarks: the Columbia and the Ste. Claire.) In 1872, the Kirby's firm purchased a shipyard in Wyandotte, Michigan.
In 1852, Campbell, Wolverton and Company opened a ship repair yard on the Detroit River at the foot of Orleans Street. In 1860 the firm, now known (with the addition of John Owen as president) as Campbell & Owen, constructed a 260' dry dock in the same location. They constructed their first steamship in 1867.
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