14143 Gratiot Avenue
Peoples State Bank, Peoples Wayne County Bank, Detroit Bank & Trust Bank, Comerica Bank, Ameritech Cellular & Paging, State Communications, Troxtel Staffing Connection
The Peoples State Bank branch at 14143 Gratiot Avenue was under construction by 1926. Within two years, the bank was called the Peoples Wayne County Bank. This location was known as the Eastwood-Gratiot Branch. Unfortunately, that banking corporation wouldn’t escape the Great Depression. At some point, it became a Detroit Bank & Trust Bank branch.
In October 1965, a coward attempted to rob the bank. He had a pistol but didn’t have the nerve to commit a robbery. He pointed his gun at Gerald Rzadko, 27, and handed him a note, instructing him to give it to the teller. By accident, Rzadko dropped the note in the exchange, leading the man with the pistol to exclaim, “Oh well, you would have loused it up anyway,” the Detroit Free Press reported. He ran off.
In March 1974, another robbery was attempted.
Edward Hill was a 31-year-old budget analyst for Wayne County Community College. He graduated from Eastern High School and the Detroit Institute of Technology and was enrolled in an Urban Studies Masters Degree Program at the University of Detroit. He wanted to be a controller for the state or city. He made $12,750 a year at his job, which equates to roughly $79K in 2023. He was also a Vietnam veteran.
Hill owed money to the J. L. Hudson Company. Those close to him thought his ex-wife may have been responsible for the bills; however, they were in his name. He passed them some bad checks, and the company turned those over to a lawyer, and Hill was in trouble.
On March 19, 1974, Hill walked into the bank branch pictured here around 11:15 AM and asked for a loan application. He left the bank and returned later with a revolver, ordering the teller, Susan Bania, to put all the $10, $20, and $50 bills she had into a paper bag. With $2088 in tow, Hill left the bank on foot and headed up Gratiot. Unbeknownst to him, bankers had set off a silent alarm while he was still inside.
Detroit Police officers followed him to Quality Discount Furniture (14247 Gratiot, the corner of Gratiot and Seven Mile) and followed him inside. Hill grabbed hold of Steven Childs, 21, and pointed his revolver at his head. Officer Kenneth Peltier shoved Hill’s hand and gun aside and fired four shots, three of which hit Hill. Another shot hit Childs in the hand, who was taken to the hospital. Having been hit in the head, Hill died on the scene.
Detroit Bank & Trust was formed in 1956 after the merger of the Detroit Bank, Birmingham National Bank, Ferndale National Bank, and the Detroit Wabeek Bank & Trust Company. The name was changed to the Detroit Bank Corporation in the 1970s and again to Comerica Bank in the early 1980s.
In 1986, the Comerica Bank Branch pictured here was held up. The FBI and Detroit Police were both involved, and they believed that the perpetrator also hit the National Bank of Detroit Branch at 13771 Gratiot. It was later thought that Clifford Day was responsible for the robberies. I’m not certain if he was convicted.
By 1997, the structure was utilized as an Ameritech Cellular & Paging dealer. It may have been called State Communications. Ameritech was one of the first companies in the United States to offer cell phone service to the general public. Based out of Chicago, their service started in 1983, and it eventually became a subsidiary of AT&T.
At some point, it was utilized by Troxtel Staffing Connection. The company was founded in 1998 and only existed for a few years.
By 2003, the space was for rent. It offered 3,000 square feet of space and a mezzanine. Rent was $1,200 a month, equating to roughly $2K in 2023.
After that, the old bank building was used by a church. I’m not certain what the name was, but I’d assume this was around when it was put up for lease. The structure has been vacant since then, often left open for scrappers to get inside and used as a canvas for graffiti artists.
If you’ve followed this page for a while, you’ll know that small structures like this still dot the landscape of Detroit. They were built to last and are an iconic part of Detroit and the Rust Belt’s history. Hopefully, this one can be saved from the wrecking ball.
