Lost building, Detroit, 1938 to 2013
Brewster-Douglass Projects
Demolished in 2013
- Opened
- 1938
- Torn down
- 2013
Brewster-Douglass Projects stood in Detroit from 1938 until 2013. Here is what it was, who made it and where to find the spot today.
Then and now
What stands there now
An open, grassy lot
Detroit's Brewster-Douglass Projects stood on this corner for 75 years. It came down 13 years ago. Today the spot is a open, grassy lot.
- 1938 Opens Brewster-Douglass Projects
- 2008 Closes Brewster-Douglass Projects
- 2013 Comes down Brewster-Douglass Projects
- 2026 Today Open, grassy lot
How we know what stands there
- OpenStreetMap open, grassy lot at the map point
Checked October 25, 2026. We never guess: a site no source speaks for shows no answer.
What is there now
An open, grassy lot
- Today Source: OpenStreetMap
- Brewster-Douglass Projects came down Source: Historic Detroit
We checked Wikidata, Wikipedia, OpenStreetMap, Rebuild Detroit's landmark records and the county parcel records on October 25, 2026.
The story
In 1938, as Detroit pushed through the Depression, Brewster-Douglass Projects went up.
It is gone now, demolished in 2013, and the map pin below marks where it stood.
Timeline
- 1938 Built
- 2008 Closed
- 2013 Demolished
- 2026 Today 13 years since it came down
Where it is
Chrysler Drive and Alfred Street
On this map
- 1 Brewster-Douglass Projects This place
- 2 455-459 Alfred House 0.2 mi
- 3 William Lennane House 0.3 mi
- 4 George S. Chandler House 0.3 mi
- 5 Isaac L'Hommedieu House 0.3 mi
- 6 Eastern Market Historic District 0.3 mi
- 7 James V. Campbell House 0.3 mi
- 8 Frontera & Son 0.3 mi
- 9 William A. Butler House 0.3 mi
Street map from OpenStreetMap contributors
More from Detroit in the 1930s
-
River Terrace Apartments
Building, built 1939, Colonial Revival
Photo: Andrew Jameson, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
-
Louis G. Redstone Residential Historic District
Historic district, built 1940, International Style
Photo: National Park Service, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
-
Alger Theater
Theater, built 1935, Art Moderne
Photo: Andrew Jameson, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
-
Birwood Wall
Structure, built 1941
Photo: John Vachon, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
-
Immaculata High School
Building, built 1941, Modern Movement
Photo: Albertype Company, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
-
U.S. Post Office, Court House, and Custom House
Building, built 1934, Moderne
Photo: Andrew Jameson, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Around the block
- 455-459 Alfred House Built 1888, Romanesque Revival, in Brush Park 0.2 mi
- William Lennane House Built 1913, Colonial Revival, in East Ferry Avenue 0.3 mi
- George S. Chandler House Built 1874, in Brush Park 0.3 mi
- Isaac L'Hommedieu House Built 1883, in Brush Park 0.3 mi
-
Eastern Market Historic District
Historic district, Early Commercial
Photo: Michael Barera, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
0.3 mi
-
James V. Campbell House
Built 1877, Italianate, in Brush Park
Photo: w_lemay, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
0.3 mi
- Frontera & Son Building, built 1900, demolished 0.3 mi
-
William A. Butler House
Built 1883, Second Empire, in Brush Park
Photo: w_lemay, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
0.3 mi
Photo credits
Every photo on this page is used under its license, named here with its author and a link to the original.
- The four remaining towers of the Fredrick Douglass housing projects as seen from the nearby Brewster mid-rise buildings, 2010 Photo: Albert duce, CC BY 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Sources
Facts only, gathered from these sources. The story above is written by Rebuild Detroit. Every photo names its author and license where it appears.