8944 Mack Avenue
Central Savings Bank, McKenna Trucking Company, Detroit Cycling Association, Life Insurance Company of Virginia, Barber Shop, Mount Nebo Missionary Baptist Church, Belvidere, Holcomb, and McClellan Community Association
This structure includes 8942-44 Mack Avenue and 3551-3565 Holcomb Street.
Originally a Central Savings Bank Branch, this structure was completed in 1920 and was designed by famed Detroit-based architect Louis Kamper. Prior to that, there was a two-story wooden store at this address.
This structure is much larger than most neighborhood bank branches, having room for multiple offices inside. These were accessible from Holmcomb Street and had addresses on Holmcomb.
In 1923, the McKenna Trucking Company was located at 3559 Holcomb. The bottom of an advert in the Detroit Free Press stated, “Louis W. McKenna is a candidate for councilman.” The company was still there in 1925, doing concrete, excavating, and hauling.
From 1923 until 1925, there were ads in the paper for a real estate company at 3551 Holcomb. Various houses were listed in the paper, and the address to contact was the bank building pictured here.
A business at 3555 Holcomb was hiring salespeople and collectors in 1925. The positions received a salary and commission; the only stipulation was that you had to live on the east side. In 1926, a company at the same address was hiring brick and sewer masons.
In 1927, the Central Savings Bank was absorbed into the First National Bank. So, if the bank branch was still open, it may have closed due to the merger or become a First National Bank Branch.
In 1929, the Detroit Cycling Association had offices at 3555 Holcomb. The group, comprised mostly of Belgians who used to cycle in their homeland, wanted to continue in America.
A 1931 piece in the Detroit Free Press on U.S. Army Veteran Loans mentioned that there were sixteen neighborhood stations where veterans could pick up loan applications, including the structure pictured here.
In 1932 and 1934, the Life Insurance Company of Virginia was listed inside this structure. J. A. Ziegler was the District Manager.
By 1946, there was a barber shop at 3551 Holcomb. It was for sale, which included three chairs and the entire business. It was still for sale in 1948, and the advert in the paper said that $500 cash would take everything.
In 1954, the Mount Nebo Missionary Baptist Church was founded on the state level at 2014 Dubois Street by Ellis Putney, Timothy Boykins, and G. E. Crenshaw. By 1964, the congregation had moved to 8944 Mack Avenue, pictured here.
Though the church was using the primary space inside the former bank, other businesses and groups still used the offices. By 1964, 3555 Holcomb was in use by the Belvidere, Holcomb, and McClellan Community Association, which was heavily associated with Waymon Howard, Jr., a 29-year-old neighborhood resident.
In a lengthy article in the Detroit Free Press, Howard explained how the neighborhood had started to change. According to the piece, “The situation developed while the quiet, old neighborhood slept, Howard said. Urban renewal sent many people into the area who care little for sweep-up, clean-up techniques. Downtown vice activities moved east…His daughter can look out the dining room window and watch the prostitutes drifting along Mack.”
So, Howard and other block club members began protesting and getting involved at the city level to try and make changes to the neighborhood. This was met with resistance, and “Howard had been threatened with violence or death 25 times in two months…Rocks are thrown through the windows of Association homes.” According to the paper, their protests upset those making money on Mack Avenue. Howard felt that there were some seedy ongoings in the background, too, stating that when the Detroit Police came around, the seedy joints had already removed their ‘Rooms By The Hour’ signs.
Howard explained that in addition to policing the neighborhood, the group tried to explain that because of the work that they’re doing, they may get arrested based on suspicion, but this was just a part of the process of cleaning up the neighborhood. He said, “It doesn’t console them much knowing that they may be arrested, handcuffed, taken downtown, questioned, and they may lose a couple of days work in the process. It’s worth it if we can alert the right people to action.”
Additionally, the Belvidere, Holcomb, and McClellan Community Association sponsored three baseball and three basketball teams with over 200 youth involved in the programs.
Waymon Howard, Jr. went on to be a big part of the Bagley Neighborhood Service Center at 2631 Bagley.
I’m not sure what happened to the block club, but the stretch on Mack around the structure pictured here, which was called the trouble area in the paper, has very few remaining structures. On the other side of Mack, there isn’t a structure between Belvidere and Fischer; five whole blocks. On the same side of Mack, there are more structures, but many of them are vacant or underutilized.
Mount Nebo Missionary Baptist Church stood strong through all the trouble inside the 1920 Central Savings Bank Branch Building. In 1998, the original church was dissolved at the state level, and a new one was formed the same year. It is still operational and occupies the structure pictured here. The current pastor is Reverend Henry Crenshaw and the congregation is active on Facebook and continues to serve the neighborhood. I’m unsure if Henry Crenshaw is related to G. E. Crenshaw, one of the founders.
Though there aren’t many structures left on this part of Mack Avenue, I’m thankful that Mt. Nebo MBC has held down the corner of Mack and Holcomb as long as it has. Without the church, this structure would likely have been demolished long ago.
