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Category: Chittenden & Kotting

Detroit Architects: Chittenden & Kotting

Posted on by Expert


Chittenden & Kotting was in operation from the late 1890s to the 1920s.

The esteemed architectural firm of Alpheus W. Chittenden and Charles Kotting, Chittenden & Kotting quickly gained a reputation for their luxurious, refined, and skillfully designed revival style residences (Tudor, Renaissance, and Colonial) – homes sought out by Detroit’s upper-class merchants, industrialists, and civic leaders.

Together, Chittenden & Kotting helped shape the architectural identity of Detroit’s emerging elite neighborhoods, like Indian Village, where they contributed the largest collection of homes by a single firm in the district, including:

  • The Bingley Fales House at 1771 Seminole
  • The Dr. Howard C. Judd House at 873 Iroquois
  • The Fritz Goebel House at 1480 Seminole
  • The Harry C. Bulkley House at 749 Seminole
  • The Standish Backus House at 1750 Iroquois
  • The Henry A. Haigh House at 762 Seminole
  • The John D. McKay House at 1450 Iroquois
  • The Mary S. Smith House
  • The Mrs. Sophia Breisacher House at 1073 Seminole
  • The Rufus Clark House at 1427 Burns
  • The Walter Brooks House at 1091 Burns
  • The William S. Connant House at 790 Seminole

Through these expertly crafted commissions, Chittenden & Kotting have bolstered Detroit’s reputation as a place of architectural treasure — a city full of stately boulevards lined with individually designed homes that continue to embody cultural status, abundance, and historic legacy.

The William S. Connant House – 790 Seminole Street, Detroit, MI 48214

Posted on by Expert

The William S. Connant House at 790 Seminole Street, Detroit, MI 48214 is a gorgeous residential commission constructed at the turn of the century by the celebrated architectural partnership Chittenden & Kotting.

Known for their eye-catching designs that helped form Indian Village’s early reputation for excellence, Chittenden & Kotting designed the home at 790 Seminole for businessman William S. Connant, one of Detroit’s early upwardly mobile residents.

The property stands as a living reflection of the duo’s mastery of proportion and their stylized architectural approach: symmetry, refined massing, broad rooflines, large windows, and a charming blend of classical and modern influences that conveys quiet abundance over ostentation.

This is further seen in the home’s interior, which features generously sized rooms perfect for everyday life and formal entertaining, a hallmark of residences found along Seminole and all throughout Indian Village as a whole. 

As for the home’s first resident, William S. Connant, like many of Detroit’s early elite, chose Seminole Street for its prestigious reputation, architect-designed homes, and close proximity to Detroit’s cultural and industrial centers – a legacy that carries on to this day, shining a light on how high-quality residential design had a major hand in shaping Detroit’s iconic identity in its golden age.