Skip to content
Rebuild Detroit

Popular in Metro Detroit

Call (888) 471-3135

Park, Belle Isle, since 1960

Dossin Great Lakes Museum

Still standing, photographed 2026

The Dossin Great Lakes Museum is an historical maritime museum in Detroit, Michigan, 2009 Photo: PDru2014 from Detroit, United States, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Opened
1960
Standing
66 years

Designed by William Kapp

The Dossin Great Lakes Museum has stood on The Strand in Belle Isle since 1960, 66 years and counting. Who built it, what makes it special and how to see it for yourself.

On the map

More photos of Dossin Great Lakes Museum

From the Dossin Great Lakes Museum, 2009 Photo: PDru2014 from Detroit, United States, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
The Dossin Great Lakes Museum is an historical maritime museum in Detroit, Michigan, 2009 Photo: PDru2014 from Detroit, United States, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
From left to right: Detroit Mayor Mary Sheffield, Michigan DNR official Kristen Kosick, conservancy CEO Meagan Elliott..., 2026 Photo: City of Detroit, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

What is there now

Standing and open

We checked building permits, sales, listings and the city's blight and demolition files on October 25, 2026. Nothing new at this address in the last two years.

The story

By Victoria Jackson, Editor in Chief Updated

The Dossin Great Lakes Museum opened in 1960, during the decades Detroit spent remaking its downtown.

The design came from William Kapp.

It still stands and still opens its doors.

Next time you are nearby, stop at 100 The Strand and look up.

Timeline

  1. 1960 Built Designed by William Kapp
  2. 2026 Today 66 years and still standing

Where it is

100 The Strand

On this map

  1. Dossin Great Lakes Museum This place
  2. Anna Scripps Whitcomb Conservatory 520 ft
  3. Belle Isle Aquarium 0.1 mi
  4. White House 0.2 mi
  5. Belle Isle Band Shell 0.2 mi
  6. Levi L. Barbour Memorial Fountain 0.2 mi
  7. Jerome H. Remick Band Shell 0.3 mi
  8. Newsboys Fountain 0.3 mi
  9. Floral Clock at Water Works Park 0.3 mi

Street map from OpenStreetMap contributors

Who made it

University Club, by William Kapp University Club, by William Kapp. Photo: Detroit Publishing Company, no known restrictions, via Library of Congress

Architect

William Kapp

American architect, 1891 to 1969. Designed Word of Power Ministry (1949) and 5 more in Metro Detroit

Also by William Kapp

More from Detroit in the 1960s

Around the block

It is in Belle Isle. See the neighborhood's homes, pros and story.

Photo credits

Every photo on this page is used under its license, named here with its author and a link to the original.

  1. The Dossin Great Lakes Museum is an historical maritime museum in Detroit, Michigan, 2009 Photo: PDru2014 from Detroit, United States, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
  2. From the Dossin Great Lakes Museum, 2009 Photo: PDru2014 from Detroit, United States, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
  3. The Dossin Great Lakes Museum is an historical maritime museum in Detroit, Michigan, 2009 Photo: PDru2014 from Detroit, United States, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
  4. From left to right: Detroit Mayor Mary Sheffield, Michigan DNR official Kristen Kosick, conservancy CEO Meagan Elliott..., 2026 Photo: City of Detroit, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
  5. The Stroh Brewery Company was a beer brewery located in Detroit, Michigan, 2009 Photo: PDru2014 from Detroit, United States, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
  6. The Dossin Great Lakes Museum, a flagship of the Midwest’s inland lakes maritime heritage museums, stands on the shore..., 2009 Photo: PDru2014 from Detroit, United States, CC BY 2.0, 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.