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Iconic greenhouse-style hangar at James Clements Airport, built in 1929 by public subscription, toured Wednesday by historic preservation group. BAY CITY GEMS: State Historic Group Tours Airport, City Hall, Center Avenue
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The historic gems of Bay City are prime targets for distinguished visitors this week.
Touring historic Bay City is on the opening agenda of the Michigan Historic Preservation Network Conference on Wednesday, May 13.
Headquartered at Northwood University, the four-day gathering brings together preservation experts from around the state.
"Always Seeking Modern" is the title of the conference that will focus on the 130 buildings in Midland (600 overall) designed by famed architect Alden B. Dow, a student of Frank Lloyd Wright.
The Network conference participants will visit Frankenmuth and the Castle Museum in Saginaw, entering Bay City via River Road (aka Veterans Memorial Highway).
Ron Bloomfield of the Bay County Historical Museum and Terry Moltane of the City of Bay City will guide the group on its Bay City exploration.
Historic James Clements Airport is the first stop where local docents will explain the part the airport and grounds have played in aviation history since the first flight here by Lionel DeRemer in a Wright Brothers plane in 1912.
The greenhouse style Henry Dora Hangar and the Georgian Revival Administration Building, designed by local architect Joe Goddeyne, with its iconic portrait of James Renville Clements will no doubt amaze the group.
Airport historian Geraldine Higgs and Charles Binder of the Valley Aero Club will tell of that two weeks in 1936 when the building was headquarters for 600 soldiers in Army Air Corps exercises in preparation for World War II. The building was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1982.
Newly refurbished City Hall will be toured by the group, after which members will view the historic architecture of the restored 1904 Pere Marquette Depot and Center Avenue, including the Masonic Scottish Rite Cathedral, Aladdin homes and lumber era mansions. Last on Wednesday's agenda is a stop on the Midland Street entertainment district.
Thursday night's activities will include a showing of "Margin of Victory," a Delta College QTV documentary produced by Robert Przybylski about local industries' contributions to World War II.
Saturday, May 16, the last day of the conference will feature a symposium as part of its Michigan Modern Project (michiganmodern.org).
The Symposium slates noteworthy speakers, a tour of a home built with experimental materials developed by the Dow Chemical Company and a closing reception at the Alden B. Dow Home & Studio.
"American Modernism and Michigan's Distinct Role in It," is the title of the keynote address Friday at 12:45 p.m. by Alan Hess, who has written 19 books on architecture. The event at the Griswold Communications Center is free and open to the public.
"The leading edge of American Modernism moved to Michigan after the turn of the twentieth century. As the auto industry grew, 'Modernism' came to mean the auto factory that provided livelihood and wealth, and the Model T parked in front of a factory worker's house," says Mr. Hess, adding:
"This visceral understanding of the modern era cut across all classes, and created a foundation that led to Modern designs that would spread -- and define Modernism -- nationally.
"Within a framework of innovation and cultural understanding, Michigan's auto stylists, furniture designers, architects, and academics hammered out the aesthetic issues of mass production vs. handcraft, of democratized consumer products vs. fine art design, of the spirit of tradition vs. the spirit of innovation."
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ggallagh Says:
On May 17, 2015
at 10:04 AM
Nice. Good coverage.
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Dave Rogers |
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