4473 Joseph Campau Avenue
F. C. Mack Store, Walters Candy Studio, New Morning Star Missionary Baptist Church
This structure dates back to at least 1897, as it appears on that year’s Sanborn Fire Insurance Map. When constructed, the building had no storefront on the front side—it was exclusively a residential dwelling.
In September 1906, the owner was selling two sets of ‘fine bantams,’ which can be chickens or ducks. The advert in the paper said that they ‘must sell,’ and is a peek into the rurality that this area experienced through most of its early history. Today, the area feels similar.
In June 1908, Bertha Dargush, 30, lived here and died from tuberculosis.
When the 1910 Sanborn Fire Insurance Map came out, it was still a home without a storefront.
In December 1911, Ludwig Fenzlam, 3, died from bronchial pneumonia. He lived here.
In January 1912, the eight-year-old son of Wladislaus Fenslow, who lived here, walked all the way to Chene Street Police Station at the corner of Chene and Canfield, which is around a quarter mile through Poletown East, in nothing more than an undershirt and a pair of shorts. The Detroit Free Press reported that the temperature was close to zero. The reason for the trip was because his father was beating his mother at home, and he was nearly frozen when he arrived at the station.
Thanks to the boy’s cry for help, Patrolmen Zielke and Rick were sent to the house, where Fenslow was still beating his wife with his fists. She said that he had been beating her for half an hour. The Detroit Free Press reported, “When Fenslow appeared before Justice Jeffries, he was very penitent, and promised that he would never cause any more trouble in his home. Justice Jeffries made him swear to the promise, and let him go on suspended sentence.”
Justice Jeffries was likely Edward J. Jeffries Sr., father of Edward J. Jeffries Jr. and a longtime judge in Detroit. His son would become a City Councilperson and Mayor of Detroit. Though it’s easy to look back in shock over his release of Fenslow, this wasn’t uncommon for the era. That doesn’t make it feel any better, though.
In March 1912, Landin Fenzier, 1 year old, died of bronchial pneumonia. Likely, Fenzlam, Fenslow, and Fenzier were all the same family, but the Detroit Free Press got the spelling wrong.
The 1915 edition of the Sanborn Fire Insurance Map shows the storefront here for the first time, meaning it was built between 1910 and 1915.
In July 1919, the structure was home to a store run by F. C. Mack, which sold CW brand coffee.
In 1920, the structure was for sale and available with $2,500 down. The ad said the building featured a large store, five living rooms in the back, and a two-car garage.
In 1921, the city-wide address change switched the old street number, 901, to the new one, 4473.
In March 1939, Helen Ebenhoch lived at the address and gave birth to a daughter.
By November 1945, the storefront was in use by Walters Candy Studios, which was often hiring boys and girls to dip and pack chocolate and other candies. By 1946, the advertisements had changed to call the business Walters Candy Studio. In February 1945, the average weekly pay for an experienced chocolate dipper was $45, or roughly $800 in January 2025. Some of the jobs paid less, offering a weekly average of $34.
I’m not sure when the candy factory closed; however, by the summer of 1965, the structure was home to New Morning Star Missionary Baptist Church. The church was incorporated by Clarence Stokes, Marcellus Stokes, Chalmers Stokes, Ruben Ruff Sr., and Isaac Nelson.
There’s a Morning Star Baptist Church on McDougall near Mack, which has been a congregation since at least 1944. Potentially, the church at this address split from that one.
I haven’t been able to find much about New Morning Star Missionary Baptist Church and the congregation folded in 2003. The structure is still listed under their ownership, though it appears to be sliding off its foundation. The home seems to be in fair shape—but the storefront is leaning heavily, and on the side of the structure, you can see that the foundational beams are slowly rolling inward. If given a few more years untouched, I imagine this one will fold into itself.
As of 2025, this structure is at least 128 years old and should be saved even given its current state. Though it isn’t significant nationally, small buildings like this make neighborhoods special. With the right owner, it could be a small store, restaurant, home, or church.
