Lost theater, Detroit, 1910 to 1928
Miles Theatre
Demolished in 1928
- Opened
- 1910
- Style
- Classical
- Torn down
- 1928
Designed by Frederick Kees, Kees & Colburn and Serenus Colburn
The Miles Theatre stood in Detroit from 1910 until 1928. Here is what it was, who made it and where to find the spot today.
Then and now
What stands there now
Built 1929, 14 stories, Building
Detroit's Miles Theatre, designed by Frederick Kees and Kees & Colburn, stood on this spot for 18 years. In 1929, a year after it came down, The Albert rose in its place: 14 stories, designed by Albert Kahn. It has now stood 97 years, more than five times as long as the theater it replaced.
The Albert, formerly the Griswold Building, is a former office building named after architect Albert Kahn, located at 1214 Griswold Street in Downtown Detroit, Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980 and is part of the Capitol Park Historic District. In 2014, it was renovated into apartments.
- 1910 Opens Miles Theatre
- 1927 Closes Miles Theatre
- 1928 Comes down Miles Theatre
- 1929 Rises The Albert
- 2026 Today The Albert, 97 years on the site
What is there now
The Albert
- Rose on the site 14 stories, building Source: Wikidata, Rebuild Detroit records, and OpenStreetMap
- Miles Theatre 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
The Miles Theatre went up in 1910, during the boom years when the auto industry turned Detroit into one of the fastest growing cities in America.
The design came from Frederick Kees, Serenus Colburn, and Kees & Colburn, in the Classical style.
It is gone now, demolished in 1928, and the map pin below marks where it stood.
Timeline
- 1910 Built Designed by Frederick Kees, Kees & Colburn, and Serenus Colburn
- 1927 Closed
- 1928 Demolished
- 2026 Today 98 years since it came down
Where it is
1220 Griswold St.
On this map
- 1 Miles Theatre This place
- 2 The Albert Next door
- 3 35W Capitol Park Apartments 70 ft
- 4 Fowler Building 120 ft
- 5 Michigan State Capitol 160 ft
- 6 Traver Building 160 ft
- 7 Capitol Park Historic District 180 ft
- 8 Kresge Building 190 ft
- 9 Stevens T. Mason Monument 220 ft
Street map from OpenStreetMap contributors
Who made it
More from Detroit in the 1910s
-
7300 Woodward
Building, built 1910, by Albert Kahn
Photo: Jet Lowe, Historic American Buildings Survey, no known restrictions, via Library of Congress
-
Cathedral Church of St. Paul
House of worship, built 1911, Neo-Gothic, by Ralph Adams Cram
Photo: Andrew Jameson at English Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
-
Belle Isle Casino
Building, built 1908, Renaissance Revival, by Van Leyen & Schilling
Photo: Tichnor Brothers, Publisher, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
-
![Broadway Market, [Edw. Neumann, Broadway Market, Detroit, Mich.]](https://rebuilddetroit.com/wp-content/uploads/rd-photos/landmarks/landmark-4310-2194-thumb-42e52f2f8b.jpg)
Broadway Market
Building, built 1912, Beaux Arts, by Harry C. Stevens, demolished 1967
Photo: Detroit Publishing Company, no known restrictions, via Library of Congress
-
![Capitol Park Building, [Griswold Street from Capitol Park, Detroit, Mich.]](https://rebuilddetroit.com/wp-content/uploads/rd-photos/landmarks/landmark-4329-2213-thumb-3f981d9a17.jpg)
Capitol Park Building
Building, built 1913, by Leonard B. Willeke
Photo: Detroit Publishing Company, no known restrictions, via Library of Congress
-
Cary Building
Building, built 1906, Beaux Arts, by Richard E. Raseman
Photo: Andrew Jameson, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Around the block
- The Albert Building, built 1928, Art Moderne, by Albert Kahn Next door
- 35W Capitol Park Apartments Building, built 1922, Neo-Classical, by Brown, Derrick & Preston 70 ft
- Fowler Building Building, built 1911, by Donaldson & Meier 120 ft
-
Michigan State Capitol
Building, built 1828, Greek Revival, by Obed Wait, demolished 1893
Photo: capitolunionschool.jpg via http://www.senate.michigan.gov/history/capitolhistory.html (was a smaller version from http://www.senate.michigan, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
160 ft
- Traver Building Building, built 1889, English Gothic, by Gordon W. Lloyd 160 ft
-
Capitol Park Historic District
Historic district, built 1877
Photo: Andrew Jameson, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
180 ft
- Kresge Building Building, built 1917, by Smith, Hinchman & Grylls 190 ft
- Stevens T. Mason Monument Monument, built 1908 220 ft
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.