Wayne State University Buildings
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Wayne State University Buildings
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Old Main on WSU campus
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| Location | Detroit, Michigan, U.S. |
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| Coordinates | 42°21′16″N 83°4′2″W / 42.35444°N 83.06722°WCoordinates: 42°21′16″N 83°4′2″W / 42.35444°N 83.06722°W |
| Built | 1895 |
| Architect | Malcomson & Higginbotham; Field, Hinchman & Smith |
| Architectural style | Neoclassical, Queen Anne |
| NRHP reference # | 78001524 |
| Significant dates | |
| Added to NRHP | June 23, 1978 |
| Designated MSHS | January 19, 1957 |
The Wayne State University Buildings historic district consists of three buildings on 4735-4841 Cass Avenue in Midtown Detroit, Michigan: the Mackenzie House (4735 Cass), Hilberry Theatre (4743 Cass), and Old Main (4841 Cass), all on the campus of Wayne State University. The buildings were designated a Michigan State Historic Site in 1957 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1978.
The Mackenzie House is a Queen Anne house, designed by Malcomson and Higginbotham and built in 1895. The original occupant was Detroit banker Frank Blackman. In 1906, David Mackenzie, principal of Central High School and founder of the College of the City of Detroit, moved into the house. Mackenzie lived in this house until his death. His widow, Esther continued living there until 1935. After Esther moved out, Wayne State University acquired the house, using it as the headquarters of the Women's Guild. It later provided office space for a number of other entities in the University.
In the mid-1970s, the Mackenzie House was slated for demolition, until a group of Wayne State students protested. Their successful effort created a new organization, Preservation Wayne. The building now serves as the offices of the organization, renamed Preservation Detroit.
The Mackenzie House is a 2 1⁄2-story red brick structure with a prominent round tower with a conical turret on one corner of the facade. A large wooden porch wraps around the opposing corner and shelters the front entrance. The building has a slate hipped roof with gables.
The Hilberry Theatre was designed by the architectural firm of Field, Hinchman and Smith (predecessor of Smith, Hinchman and Grylls) and built in 1916–17 as the First Church of Christ Scientist. The auditorium was designed to seat more than 1,500 congregants. The Christian Science congregation used the building until 1961, when they sold it to Wayne State University. WSU remodeled the interior to create a theatre to seat 532 people, serving as a repertory theater. The building was re-christened in honor of Clarence B. Hilberry, the fourth president of WSU, and reopened in January 1964. The University continues to use the building to house its repertory theatre.
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Wikipedia