2933 Gratiot Avenue
Wohlfeil Furniture Company, Globe Furniture Company, Chene Restaurant Equipment, Buch Equipment Company
Charles Wohlfeil immigrated to the United States from Prussia (Germany) in 1887. By the turn of the century, he had opened a furniture shop on Gratiot Avenue. This first venture was located at 853 Gratiot, near the present-day intersection of Grandy and Gratiot.
Wohlfeil started constructing a new home in 1912 and was moved into the space by August 1913. The structure stood tall on its part of Gratiot Avenue and offered a wide variety of furniture for Detroiters.
Wohlfeil was successful, but he had his issues, too. A woman fell through an open trapdoor at his original location, leading to a lawsuit, and he didn’t pay his fair share of taxes between 1905 and 1921, leading to the confiscation of one of his moving trucks. After the ambush, he paid his bills in full.
Wohlfeil Furniture Company closed around 1930. This wasn’t uncommon for the era—Detroit had a plethora of furniture and other luxury businesses in the 1920s that didn’t make it long after the onset of the Great Depression.
I assume another furniture company took over quickly after Wohlfeil was gone; however, the first mention I’ve found of a business there is the Globe Furniture Company in 1940. A company with that name dates back to the 1880s, but I’m not certain it’s the same. The assets of the Globe Furniture & Manufacturing Company of Northville were auctioned off in 1931, and I haven’t found mention of it again until 1940 at Gratiot Avenue. The company would remain at that location for around two decades.
In 1950, a man posed as a customer fooled then-manager Lou Babcock and stole $200 from the cash drawer. That’s over $2,500 in 2023.
A year later, a trio of bandits hit the joint again, stealing $500 from the Globe Furniture Company. That’s over $5,500 in 2023.
The last mention of the Globe Furniture Company I found on Gratiot was in 1959. A Globe Furniture Company existed until around 2002 on Van Dyke in Sterling Heights, but again, I’m not sure whether they’re related. I’d guess not.
In 1962, Chene Restaurant Equipment opened up shop inside the former furniture warehouse. They sold, you guessed it, equipment for restaurants and kitchens, in addition to random odds and ends they could get their hands on.
In the mid-1970s, the Chene Restaurant Company closed its doors, and the Buch Equipment Company moved in. I believe it was a similar business to the one it took over. It would remain in the Wohlfeil Building until 2015, when the structure was vacated completely.
When the Wohlfeil Building was abandoned, the two-story former beauty salon up Gratiot had been burned out and demolished. Down Gratiot, the small connected structure was in poor shape but still standing. Today, the roof and facade have collapsed, leaving a shell that was included in the sale of the Wohlfeil Building. We’ll get to that, though.
In 2017, Michigan native (and current Detroit resident) Pat Perry painted a massive mural on the uptown side of the structure, depicting two long-term residents of the neighborhood. It’s long been a favorite of mine. It feels more uniquely Detroit than most of the other large-scale murals I’ve seen in the Motor City, and I think that should be celebrated. If you haven’t taken this one in yet, I highly recommend it. Get out of your car, too.
For the past few years, the Wohlfeil Building has been for sale off and on. According to a document from O’Connor Real Estate, preventative maintenance was completed, including a new roof, asbestos removal, and maintaining the freight elevator. The sale included the large plot of land up Gratiot and the collapsed, smaller structure towards downtown. The interior photos show the building has good bones and some ornate details remain. I’m unsure whether it sold; however, I believe the current owner is Cobblestone Gratiot, LLC.
That company is based out of Deleware, which is common because of how taxes are assessed in The First State. I believe the company is operated by David J. Devine, a University of Michigan graduate and lawyer at Butzel Long, and Suzanne Miller, an Alma College and Wayne State Graduate and lawyer at Butzel Long.
In recent weeks, I’ve seen ongoing work at the Wohlfeil Building. I’m not sure of the project’s scope; however, seeing things being done here is positive. For a few years or longer, it’s felt like folks have been expecting the bolstering of Eastern Market to expand up Gratiot. In some ways, that’s happened. In others, it’s happened at a snail’s pace.
I hope that the Wohlfeil Building is in good hands and that wholesale renovation efforts will occur here soon.
