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BERNSTEIN AND BERNSTEIN-A CAPSULE HISTORY

I HAVE WORKED FOR THE FIRM OF BERNSTEIN AND BERNSTEIN FOR SOME YEARS. WHEN I FIRST STARTED THIS SITE, I WANTED TO INCLUDE ARTICLES ABOUT THE STATE OF THE LAW IN MICHIGAN AND THE HISTORY OF DETROIT. THE HISTORY OF THE FIRM SEEMS THE PERFECT TOPIC TO COMBINE BOTH.

THIS HISTORY, IN EXPANDED FORM, WILL BE FEATURED ON THE SOON TO BE LAUNCED BERNSTEIN AND BERNSTEIN WEBSITE. THE SITE WILL ALSO INCLUDE SOME VERY INTERESTING CONTENT REGARDING THE STRUGGLE TO PROTECT CIVIL JUSTICE IN THIS STATE.

1923, Detroit, Michigan. Ty Cobb was playing for the Detroit Tigers. Ernie Harwell hadn’t started grammar
school.

There were no Lions, no Red Wings, no Pistons. The other pro sports team in town was the Detroit Stars of the National Negro Baseball League. The Tigers played baseball in a place called Bennett Park. No luxury boxes, no giant instant replay screens.

DETROIT POSTCARDS-DETROIT PIX WEBSITE

The Website, Detroit Pix, is a large and impressive site, developed by Greg Kacir. It has a huge array of photos taken by Greg, of some of the grand buildings of Detroit, some in their current state of diminished grandeur.

It looks like the site has not been updated in about 21 months, and not any substantial work done in nearly 3 1/2 years. In fact the homepage contains an icon with the legend: "Save the Cadillac Hotel, Click Here Before It's Gone Forever". Fortunately, the renovation of the Book Cadillac is well underway and the project is set to be open for business later this year.

Attempted contact with Greg has gone unanswered, so I will not use any of the photos he has taken here. However, his site does contain reprints of vintage Detroit postcards, and as I haven't seen anything indicating that he has a proprietary interest in these items, I have included some in a photo album here. The picture below, of the Scott Fountain on Belle Isle, shows the treatment of painting over photos used in many of these postcards.

PINEHURST19475 DETROIT SCULPTURE

Pinehurst19475 Photc Sets appear on the Flickr photo site. There are some fantastic sets covering the Detroit area, including Belle Isle, Palmer Park, Residential Detroit, and Churches of Detroit.

The picture above is a detail from the Spanish-Amercan War Monument on Belle Isle. That photo is from the Statues and Sculpture set, selections from which are featured in a new album on this site. Those photos appear with the permission of the photographer, and all rights are reserved.

A great collection of some of the classic heritage of the Detroit area.

DETROITYES

DETROIT SITE OF THE WEEK

DETROITYES is one of the most comprehensive Detroit sites on the web. It is amazing, both in depth of coverage and breadth of topics. There a number of photo "tours" including such diverse themes as: "The Fabulous Ruins of Detroit", "Ethnic Halls of Detroit", and "The Detroit Boat Club".

Especially interesting are the Forums, covering a variety of current and historical subjects. Recent threads: I Remember Bill Kennedy, Do You?, Group Seeks to Redevelop Old Cass Tech, Book Cadillac Penthouse Work(including photos), Detroit Neighborhoods. The list goes on and on. Last weekend, I read a thread regarding the power being turned off at the Book Tower, apparently temporarily.

As someone who thought he had a fairly decent knowledge of the Detroit area, and its history, this site has shown me how little I really know.

You can spend hours, if not days on this site, and not scratch the surface. I might start a rating system for Detroit sites, just so I could award this site my highest honor. My brief description here does not begin to do justice to this site.

MASONIC TEMPLE HISTORY

DETROIT SITE OF THE WEEK

The Masonic Temple History Page is part of the Masonic Temple website and gives a great deal of detail about the massive structure on Temple in Detroit, that most people know solely because of the theatre. Vintage photographs show many of the huge rooms inside. Among the miscellaneous facts, is a list of features the building once contained:

• 3-chair barber shop
• Shoe shine parlor
• 15 bowling alleys
• Cigar/candy/souvenir stand
• Indoor swimming pool
• Bakery
• Billiards room
• Roof-top garden
• Gymnasium

THE FOUNTAIN BALLROOM

FORGOTTEN DETROIT

DETROIT SITE OF THE WEEK

The website FORGOTTEN DETROIT is the work of David Kohrman, a Western Michigan University graduate, with a love of old buildings and historic preservation. It appears that most of the work on the site was done from 1999-2004. In fact, the website has not been updated since then, and most of the contact links no longer work. I did try another email address on the site, without response. A pity, as I would like to express my admiration for what he has done. David catalogs many of Detroit’s classic structures, many of which are vacant, and often in extensive states of disrepair and neglect. He has taken his camera into many of these buildings, a practice that is often dangerous as well as illegal, to capture his images. They are fascinating, and often discouraging. Mr. Kohrman expresses his purpose in developing Forgotten Detroit: “My intent with the site is to preserve the memory, and hopefully shape opinions in favor of the preservation of these landmarks.”

If I ever can make contact with David I hope to obtain his permission to put some of his photos on this site. It is definitely worth the visit. I would especially like to call readers attention to the Book Cadillac page, which includes the 1924 tour of the hotel.
There is an interactive map, that links to period pictures of the lobby ballrooms, guestrooms (see picture). Some amazing work.

JOHN K. KING USED AND RARE BOOKS

DETROIT SITE OF THE WEEK

JOHN K. KING USED AND RARE BOOKS has its main location at 901 W. Lafayette in Detroit, in the old Advance Glove Factory building. In that four story structure, there are over 750,000 titles. The site may be a bit outdated. As to its inventory, the site proclaims: "They're Not On-Line, They're on Shelves." Very glib, but it appears that you can both search, purchase and arrange delivery from the comfort of your computer.

A search unearths some amazing stuff, in addition to a wide variety of books. For instance, a signed photo of Henry Ford and Connie Mack is featured for the mere pittance of $4,500. Among items listed in the "Detroit" category is Bridging the River, a copy of a 1876 joint resolution of the Wisconsin Legislature opposing the bridging of the Detroit River at Detroit ($15), and Detroit Cultural Center, a copy of an ambitious city plan, 1960s vintage, for the central area of Detroit that never came to pass ($45).

While browsing a website is nothing like the actual experience of visiting the store, many a delightful hour can be spent browsing the collection online. (Sorry, no pictures of the inventory items are provided.)

DETAILS OF DETROIT

DETROIT SITE OF THE WEEK

The site DETAILS OF DETROIT, has a great selection of photos of lesser known aspects of Detroit architecture. As the name implies, there are eight catergories covering various architecural details of Detroit buildings, including masonry, windows, doors and architectural styles.
Leann, the site owner, has been nice enough to grant AttorneyButler.net permission to include some of her photos of the interior of the Guardian Building in a photo album on this site. The photos are copyrighted and all rights are reserved.

Leann is undertaking an update of her site, so make a note to visit now and in the future.

A Detroit News Rearview Mirror story on the Guardian Building can be found at: GUARDIAN BUILDING.

DETROIT NEWS REARVIEW MIRROR

DETROIT SITE OF THE WEEK

In what is a huge undertaking, the Detroit News, on its website, has tapped into its huge archive of stories and photos to produce the Rearview Mirror Page. This project appears to have been started as part of the Detroit Tricennial in 2001.

There are literally hundreds of articles and photo galleries covering a very broad array of subjects. The News doesn't just reprint old articles here. It has assigned current reporters to research its archives and write articles about historical subjects. This link, When Detroit Danced to The Big Bands, covers the histories and fates of various Detroit ballrooms. There are even some contemporary interviews with people who danced at such places as the Vanityand Grande Ballrooms and the Bob-Lo Pavilion (pictured below).

Stories come up randomly when you click on the Rear View Mirror icon. A dozen clicks resulted in a dozen different stories. The page is fully searchable, however. The random story feature may seem odd at first, but it does have the value of exposing readers to aspects of Detroit history they might never had heard about. Hard to search for something you never knew existed.

The history fan should be prepared to spend a lot of time here.

DETROIT NEWS REARVIEW MIRROR

ARCADIA PUBLISHING

Arcadia Publishing's Images of America series is a gold mine for anyone interested in Detroit History. The site has a search feature and a search for "Detroit" brings up books on Hudsons, the Masonic Temple, the Michigan Central Depot, the Scarab Club, the Detroit Athletic Club, the Thanksgiving Day Parade, Belle Isle, and dozens of others.

The books follow the same format, about 130 pages, mostly containing historical photos with detailed and informative captions. Retail price is $19.99 per book and most local bookstores carry a variety of titles in the series. Books in the series can also be found, at discounted prices at Amazon.com.

Arcadia Publishing has done a great service to all those interested in their local heritage.