Hotel, Rivertown, since 1902
Parke-Davis Research Laboratory
Still standing, photographed 2017
- Opened
- 1902
- Style
- Romanesque Revival
- Standing
- 124 years
Designed by Albert Kahn and Donaldson & Meier
Parke-Davis Research Laboratory has stood on River Place Dr. in Rivertown since 1902, 124 years and counting. Who built it, what makes it special and how to see it for yourself.
More photos of Parke-Davis Research Laboratory
What is there now
Standing, closed
- Closed Source: Historic Detroit
We checked building permits, sales, listings and the city's blight and demolition files on October 24, 2026. Nothing new at this address in the last two years.
The story
Parke-Davis Research Laboratory opened in 1902, during the boom years when the auto industry turned Detroit into one of the fastest growing cities in America.
Albert Kahn and Donaldson & Meier drew the plans, in the Romanesque Revival style.
The federal government named it a National Historic Landmark in 1976, a status only a few thousand places in the country hold.
Its doors are closed for now, but the building still stands.
Go see it at 1000 River Place Dr. Photos never get the scale right.
The Roberts Riverwalk Urban Resort Hotel, formerly the Parke-Davis Research Laboratory also once known as Building 55-Detroit Research, is a defunct luxury hotel on the Detroit International Riverfront in Detroit, Michigan. The former research facility was redeveloped as a boutique luxury hotel in the 1980s.
Timeline
- 1902 Built Designed by Albert Kahn and Donaldson & Meier
- 1976 Listed on the National Register May 11, 1976
- 1976 Named a National Historic Landmark May 11, 1976
- 2026 Today Standing, closed
Where it is
1000 River Place Dr.
On this map
- 1 Parke-Davis Research Laboratory This place
- 2 Parke-Davis and Company Pharmaceutical Company Plant 470 ft
- 3 300 River Place 0.1 mi
- 4 River Place Luxury Apartments 0.2 mi
- 5 Atwater Brewery and Tap House 0.2 mi
- 6 WGPR-TV Studio 0.3 mi
- 7 Joseph Campau House 0.3 mi
- 8 Garden Court Apartments 0.3 mi
- 9 Franklin H. Walker House 0.3 mi
Street map from OpenStreetMap contributors
Who made it
Architect
Albert KahnAmerican architect, 1869 to 1942. Designed the General Motors Building (1922) and 114 more in Metro Detroit
Also by Albert Kahn
Architect
Donaldson & MeierAmerican architectural firm, founded 1882. Designed the Penobscot Building (1928) and 58 more in Metro Detroit
Also by Donaldson & Meier
More from Detroit in the 1900s
-
![Eastern States, [Str. Eastern States, Detroit, Mich.]](https://rebuilddetroit.com/wp-content/uploads/rd-photos/landmarks/landmark-4436-2275-thumb-5717c27eed.jpg)
Eastern States
Ship, built 1902, by Louis Keil, demolished 1956
Photo: Detroit Publishing Company, no known restrictions, via Library of Congress
-
Bonstelle Theatre
Theater, built 1903, Beaux Arts, by Mason & Kahn
Photo: Saul Vielmetti, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
-
Anna Scripps Whitcomb Conservatory
Building, built 1904, Neoclassical, by Albert Kahn
Photo: PDru2014 from Detroit, United States, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
-
![Belle Isle Aquarium, [The Aquarium and conservatory, Belle Isle Park, Detroit, Mich.]](https://rebuilddetroit.com/wp-content/uploads/rd-photos/landmarks/landmark-4284-2164-thumb-099cdc24f0.jpg)
Belle Isle Aquarium
Building, built 1904, Baroque-Beaux Arts, by Albert Kahn
Photo: Detroit Publishing Company, no known restrictions, via Library of Congress
-
Ford Piquette Avenue Plant
Building, built 1904, Late Victorian, by Field, Hinchman & Smith
Photo: Jackdude101, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
-
Breitmeyer-Tobin Building
Building, built 1905, Beaux Arts, by Raseman & Fisher
Photo: Andrew Jameson, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Around the block
It is in Rivertown. See the neighborhood's homes, pros and story.
-
Parke-Davis and Company Pharmaceutical Company Plant
Building, built 1891, Romanesque Revival, by Donaldson & Meier
Photo: Andrew Jameson, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
470 ft
- 300 River Place Building, built 1929, Romanesque Revival, by Smith, Hinchman & Grylls 0.1 mi
- River Place Luxury Apartments Building, built 1894, by Donaldson & Meier 0.2 mi
- Atwater Brewery and Tap House Built 1916 0.2 mi
-
WGPR-TV Studio
Building, built 1961
Photo: Andrew Jameson, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
0.3 mi
-
Joseph Campau House
Built 1835
Photo: Andrew Jameson, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
0.3 mi
-
Garden Court Apartments
Building, built 1915, by Albert Kahn
Photo: Andrew Jameson, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
0.3 mi
-
Franklin H. Walker House
Built 1896, Neo-Jacobean
Photo: Detroit Publishing Company Collection, public domain, 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.
- Parke-Davis Research Laboratory Detroit MI (formerly the Omni Hotel) Photo: Andrew Jameson, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- The front façade of the Ford Piquette Avenue Plant at 461 Piquette Street, Detroit, Michigan, 2017 Photo: Jackdude101, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Omni Hotel Detroit MI (rear of the original Parke-Davis Research Lab) Photo: Andrew Jameson, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Door to the Parke-Davis Research Laboratory in Detroit MI, now the Omni Hotel Photo: Andrew Jameson, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
- Hyatt Regency, Dearborn, Michigan, 2007 Photo: Dave Parker, 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.