Vernors Ginger Ale 150th B-Day

[SODAPOPBOB]

Here's a brief history about Woodward Avenue ...

http://www.motorcities.org/Story/Woodward+Avenue++the+Spine+of+Detroit-168.html

And here's a 1807 map of downtown Detroit

It doesn't show Clifford Street, but it does show Woodward Ave in the center going somewhat north and south and Jefferson Avenue near the bottom going somewhat east and west. This was long before any changes were made along the waterfront.

 

[SODAPOPBOB]

If 33 Wooward Avenue was "south of Jefferson" then Vernor's 1896-1940 drug store should have been located somewhere in the vicinity of the yellow X

 

[SODAPOPBOB]

Here's what that area of downtown Detroit looks like today ...

 

[SODAPOPBOB]

When world's collide ...

 

[SODAPOPBOB]

Leon

I got the location right this time for ...

Vernor's Drug Store
Southwest Corner of Woodward Avenue & Clifford Street
235 Woodward Avenue
Detroit, Michigan



1873 Map of Detroit



2016 Google Earth Aerial



2016 Google Earth Street View

 

[hemihampton]

Are you sure that's the same corner, was it at woodward & Jefferson? I thought it was a block closer to the river & that road now gone? LEON.

I'm quoting myself, Like I said, 1 block closer to the river & that road now gone. LEON.

 

[SODAPOPBOB]

Four+ hours of studying dozens of Detroit maps finally paid off with ...

1884 Detroit Map

Drugs ~ Corner of Woodward St. and Clifford St. ~ Notice the number 235 on the Woodward side of the building ...





1897 Detroit Map

SODA WATER FACT'Y - Notice the number 33 on the Woodward side of the building ~ Located between Woodbridge and At-water. Woodbridge St. is one block south of Jefferson Ave. ...





1807 Detroit Map for birds-eye view. The colored squares at the bottom indicate ...

Green = Woodbridge Street
Blue = At-water Street



Note: For some reason it won't allow me to use the word "At-water" so I had to hyphenize it.

 

[SODAPOPBOB]

I was curious what type of business was at 33 Woodward Avenue before James Vernor moved there around 1896, and discovered that in 1884 the building was a Shoe Factory. Of course I don't know how long the Shoe Factory was in business, nor if other types of businesses occupied the building between 1884 and 1896, but I think its interesting to note it was a Shoe Factory at least 12 years before Vernor moved there. Vernor was located at the 33 Woodward address for about 44 years between 1896 and 1940 when he relocated again to the well known downtown multistory building.

1884 Detroit Map

 

[SODAPOPBOB]

P.S.

However ...

Its possible that only the shaded area //// on the 1884 map was the Shoe Factory and that the Woodward side of the property was a vacant lot - I'm really not sure!

 

[SODAPOPBOB]

Standby ...

I just figured out that the shaded areas on the "Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps," like the ones I have been posting, indicate the businesses that Sandborn insured. So any building that was not insured by Sandborn would not be shown on their maps. In other words, there were definitely other businesses in that particular block, some prior to 1884, and some after 1884, which I will be posting newspaper ads for just as soon as I get them together. For starters, here's one from ...

April 14, 1884



Note: I title everything with "Vernor" whether it applies directly to James Vernor or not - that way all of my saved stuff is alphabetized in the same file.