729 Meldrum Street
Peninsula Emery Wheel Company, Peninsular Grinding Wheel Company, Lardner Elevator Company
The Peninsula Emery Wheel Company filed articles of association with the Secretary of State in March 1891. Their startup capital was $25,000, or roughly $850K today. The company would later claim they were founded in 1889, so there may have been operations before its incorporation.
In 1919, Peninsula Emery Wheel Company became the Peninsular Grinding Wheel Company—which would become a household name if you’re into grinding wheels.
I’m not certain when Peninsular’s operations at Meldrum and Fort, but in 1930, contracts were awarded for a $20,000 addition to their manufacturing plant. The address wasn’t listed in the article, but by May 1942, there would be advertisements in the Detroit Free Press for Peninsular at 729 Meldrum, pictured here.
Starting in the late 1800s, companies would often field sports teams made up of their workers. Baseball was popular in Detroit, but there were other sports, too. Although uncommon, Peninsular Grinding Wheel Company had a soccer team.
In May 1937, there was controversy at a match between the Peninsular Grinding Wheel Company team and a squad fielded by Chevrolet. Eddie Willocks scored a goal to give the Peninsulars a 2-1 lead, but the Michigan Soccer Commission ruled that he was offside after the match, so the goal shouldn’t have counted. A replay was scheduled for the next week.
In June 1937, the Peninsulars beat Curry S.C. from Pittsburgh 3-2 in a friendly. Five hundred fans came out to watch the match in Mack Park, which was located off Mack between Fairview and Beniteau, where Fairview Manor is today. The proceeds from the friendly benefitted Joe Wanick, a Peninsular forward who had broken his leg a few matches prior.
Later in 1937, the club competed in the National Amateur Cup. The NAC was organized in 1923 as a lower-level version of the U.S. Open Cup. It’s similar in style to the FA Cup. In 1941, one of Peninsular’s rivals, Crysler S.C., was runners-up in the tournament. In 1962, Detroit Carpathia won, and in 1999 Detroit Arsenal won.
Peninsular Grinding Wheel Company’s team failed to exist or stopped getting newspaper coverage around 1938. The company still existed and continued firing on all cylinders at 729 Meldrum.
In 1954, Peninsular purchased the Motors Metal Manufacturing Company of Detroit and became the Abrasive and Metal Products Company. They manufactured electrical products and grinding wheels for heavy industrial work. The plant on Meldrum, at one time, employed some 300 workers.
In 1961, the company merged with Wakefield Co. of Vermillion, Ohio.
In 1967, they were purchased to form ITT Abrasive Products alongside Sterling Grinding Wheel Co. of Tiffin, Ohio. Their parent company was the International Telephone and Telegraph Corporation, or ITT.
ITT was founded in 1920 and quickly began purchasing phone companies worldwide. During World War Two, they reportedly supported the Nazi regime. In the 1960s, they used leveraged buyouts to buy hundreds of businesses. The largest of these included Sheraton Hotels, Avis Rent-A-Car, and more. The company still exists today, is based in Stamford, Connecticut, and employs a few thousand people.
At some point, ITT closed the factory at 729 Meldrum.
The Lardner Elevator Company was incorporated by Richard C. Lardner, James C. Jarrait, and Bruce E. Lardner in 1960, but they may have been in operation two years prior. They initially operated out of 300 Riopelle, which used to stand by the Detroit River.
By May 1982, they had moved their operations to 729 Meldrum, and they’ve been there ever since. The company installs, maintains, repairs, and updates elevators. Their website lists that all their mechanics are licensed elevator journeypersons in the City of Detroit and the State of Michigan.
Until updates in the past two years, the old Peninsular Grinding Wheel Co. lettering was visible on the front of the structure. It sits in an often forgotten part of the east side, sandwiched between MLK High School, West Village, and Jefferson Avenue.
I enjoy researching every building I post here, but as a big football (okay, soccer) fan, it was neat to learn about the history of the Peninsular Grinding Wheel Co.’s soccer team. Some of the most famous clubs in the world started as company teams, including the club I support, Manchester United—when I’m not at Detroit City FC matches, of course…DCTID!
