Glance at the Past

The 40 acre development south of Hall St. and between Jefferson and Madison Avenues became a commercial hub at the turn of the 20th Century.  

Remembering the bygone days of a favorite community landmark: the corner drug store.  

In 1916, Harry H. Gardner "The Human Fly" caused a stir in Grand Rapids with his death-defying feats.  

Wildcat bankers and failed banks made for shaky finances for 19th century Grand Rapids citizens.  

Grand Rapids artist Gert VanHouten became a well known WWI cartoonist publishing under the byline 'GERT'.  

Before the movies, many Grand Rapids residents got their entertainment at the vaudeville theatre "The Empress", an early burlesque locale.  

A 1907 postcard series published in Grand Rapids, MI by the Reed Tandler Company featured Harry H. Wickham aka "Mr. Rover", a fellow who perhaps took his title too literally.  

Grand Rapids first Catholic school opened in 1853, educating area students for 137 years.  

Michigan followed Maine's idea for prohibition in 1853, but, it was found impossible to do enforce this ideal in Grand Rapids. By 1870, Grand Rapids housed 58 saloons and five breweries. Women's organizations for prohibition, were an understated part of keeping alcohol out of Michigan. Under the leadership of Abigail Hastings of Lansing, she formed the Michigan Women's Christian Temperance Union to fight for the ban of alcohol.      

William R. Fox began the Fox Machine Company in 1885. It's principle products were machines for the wood working industry. Fox later collaborated with Glenn Barrett to create a typewriter. Every part of the machine was made in Grand Rapids. There were three types of typewriter: blind, visible, and portable size. Foreign sales were an important part of his income. The Russian government had at one time place an order for 500 machines. Fox was forced to close his doors in 1920 after being sued by the makers of the Corona for supposed patent infringement.   

In 1916, Mother Mary Elias and her Carmelite Sisters, were forced to flee the bloody Civil War happening in Mexico. After living in Havana, Cuba; New Orleans, Louisiana; and St. Louis, Missouri; Bishop Henry Joseph Richter invited Mother Mary Elias and her sisters to live in Grand Rapids. The Nuns enjoyed a simple life, spending most of the day in silence.   

The Detroit, Grand Haven, and Milwaukee railroad provided the first rails to Grand Rapids, in 1858, and the only rails until 1869. After the Civil War, Grand Rapids was given a land grant to subsidize the construction of rails between Petoskey and Fort Wayne, Indiana. The rail between became known as the Grand Rapids & Indiana Railroad (GR&I). The Rails were demolished in 1961 to make way for US-131.   

In 1922, Leo Robinson and Don Gildersleeve opened a radio supply store on Diamond Ave to bring, nearly non-existent, home radio to Grand Rapids. It took Robinson and Gildersleeve two years of hard work to create a radio station on par with other, larger cities. WEBK was formed in 1924 to broadcast shows from other cities. A year later, WEBK was on the air full time. In 1926, the WEBK call-letters were changed to WOOD.   

John Lipczynski pioneered the field at his 19th Century landmark Pottery Works at Michigan and Eastern in Grand Rapids, MI.   

In 1906, Albert Kahn, Detroit's leading architect, was commissioned to design a new building for downtown Grand Rapids. He designed one of the most unique and artistic buildings solely for newspaper use, and it was meant to complement the Ryerson Public Library across Fulton St. Park.