5838 Chene Street
Kanner Moving Company, Power Tower Church of God in Christ
The first mention of Stanley Kanner’s moving company was in the early 1920s. The business specialized in local and long-distance moves, operating from 5427 Dubois Street during the roaring twenties, a vacant plot of land between Kirby and Ferry today.
Around 1930, Kanner built a new home for his moving company at 5838 Chene Street, pictured here. Even today, the Kanner name still stands tall at the top of the structure. Albeit a small building, the brick design is ornate.
The Kanner Moving Company operated until at least 1940, but I’m not certain when it went out of business. At this time, Chene Street in Poletown East was still a bustling commercial corridor with small businesses and light manufacturing sprinkled throughout, so I assume it was snapped up reasonably quickly and utilized by another operation.
I’m not sure when, but the current church moved into the location at some point. Power Tower Church of God in Christ was established on June 22, 1968, by Pastor and Chairman Willie Lee. At that time, the registered office was on Harding Street, a home near Shoemaker and Cadillac.
By 1979, the church had moved into its location on Chene Street, pictured here, as evidenced by an image on file at the Burton Historical Collection. At that time, there was a large handmade white cross on the structure, the lower portion was painted white, and the doors were wooden with cross-shaped windows on either side. Back then, two homes stood on either side of the structure.
There isn’t much information available online about Power Tower COGIC; however, the structure is maintained and appears to be used in one way or another. A few years ago, it was painted grey, with the blue accent color appearing during the pandemic.
Towards the highway, there isn’t an active structure until the gas station next to 94. On the river-side, there are a vacant home-storefront combination structure two-or-three parcels down and an active resale/auto shop on the corner of Chene and Hendrie. For the most part, the Kanner Moving Company Building sits alone on an island on Chene Street.
Luckily, this one has been maintained and appears to be in good hands.
