9950 Mack Avenue
Fairview Savings Bank, American State Bank of Detroit, First Universal Spiritual Church, Detroit’s Postal Academy A, Trinity Hope Tabernacle
Though this structure may look sound, it’s in worse shape than it appears at first glance. Before we dive into its history, we need to understand the company that built it.
The Village of Fairview was established at the end of the 19th century between the City of Detroit and the neighboring village of Gross Point Park. Bounded by the Detroit River, Bewick, Mack, and Cadieux, the land was eventually developed as Detroit continued to expand, and its factories grew and needed more people. According to an interview with Nick Sinacori in Model D Media in 2008, Fairview was an incorporated entity between 1903 and 1907, when it was annexed into Detroit. Similarly, Delray was annexed to Detroit in 1906.
In 1906, the Fairview Savings Bank was established with $20,000 in capital. The paperwork for the business was completed on January 3, 1907, and the founders purchased a piece of property at Jefferson and Hillger, which is a rail line today, to build their first permanent home. Temporarily, the bank utilized a building at Jefferson and St. Jean, which opened in late March 1907.
By December 1908, the Fairview Savings Bank at Jefferson and Hillger was open. The structure was a handsome one designed by Albert Kahn. Unlike many other banks I’ve covered on this page, the bank was on the main floor, and offices were rented on the second floor. In an advert from 1908, there were two for rent, listed as perfect for a dentist, doctor, or lawyer. The listing was through William Washington Hannan, who would later have a monumental YMCA named after him a short drive down Jefferson.
By 1910, the bank opened a branch at Mack and Pennsylvania. Because of their success there, they decided it was time to build their own bank building in the neighborhood. They purchased a plot of land at the corner of Mack and Cadillac, pictured here, and began work. The structure would be designed by Stahl & Kinsey and feature second-floor offices, similar to their first branch on Jefferson.
In August 1911, the bank increased its capital stock from $20,000 to $100,000. Their new structure on Mack Avenue, pictured here, was not yet complete but would be by the end of the year. In 1912, the bank again increased its capital stock, reaching new heights at $250,000.
By December 1913, the bank had changed its name. Despite being founded in Fairview, the bank was trying to expand, and they needed a name fitting for the commerce giant they hoped to become. The Fairview Savings Bank was gone, and the American State Bank of Detroit was born. In addition to the name change, the operation moved into a portion of the Moffat Building downtown and had newer branches at Gratiot and McClellan, Grand River and Trumbull, and Kercheval and Holcomb (still standing).
In 1920, there were advertisements for American Realty in one of the office spaces above the bank. I’m not certain if they were affiliated with the bank or not.
By 1925, the American State Bank of Detroit had assets worth over $33,000,000, which is more than $500,000,000 in 2024. This era of Detroit’s banking history is bright; however, a black cloud on the horizon would shutter dozens of banking institutions and bankrupt thousands of Detroiters: the Great Depression.
In March 1930, the American State Bank of Detroit merged with the Guaranty State Bank. In 1931, the new bank was taken over in liquidation by the Peoples Wayne County Bank, which would later merge with the First National Bank. I’m not certain when the structure pictured here closed as a financial institution, but I’d assume it was in the 1930s, as many banks were shuttered around this time.
By the early 1940s, the structure appears to have been utilized as a hall of sorts. The Junior of Order United American Mechanics held a 50th-anniversary celebration, the Daughters of America initiated their new officers, and the Easthaven VFW Lodge No. 123 held events here. In 1947, Mayor Edward Jeffries gave a speech here to 40 members of the Detroit Republican Club, telling them “not to permit apathy in voting to upset your good government.” He’d lose when running for his fifth term to Eugene Van Antwerp. Antwerp only served one term, replacing Edward Jeffries again, this time on Detroit’s City Council, after the latter had a heart attack and died on a vacation to Miami Beach.
By 1949, the structure was occupied by the First Universal Spiritual Church. Reverend Elizabeth Edlund founded the congregation at some point before December 1920, when the church met on Gratiot Avenue. The early adverts in the paper call it a Terpsichorean Temple, which is related to dancing in some shape or form, said to offer “divine healing.” The last mention I’ve found of the church, or Edlund, was in 1952.
Between 1964 and 1967, Miller Bros. Realty had offices upstairs.
In 1971, the U.S. Post Office applied to convert the offices and apartments inside the structure into a nonprofit school. Evidently, it was approved, as it became a school that year.
Detroit’s Postal Academy A was a place for students who had been given up on by the traditional school system. They helped teach kids to read and write and do basic math. The Post Office contributed to the program through funding, teachers, and part-time jobs for students. At the time, there were at least three Academy A schools in Detroit.
Despite positive news coverage in the paper, the school didn’t last long. By 1972, the structure was home to Trinity Hope Tabernacle, also known as the Soul Saving Station. The church was founded in 1966 and was operational until the mid-2010s. Since then, the structure appears to have been vacant.
As I mentioned in the introduction, this structure appears in sound shape if you’re not looking closely. There’s a large hole in the roof, and the roofline is deteriorating on the structure’s west side. However, that doesn’t mean that it isn’t being looked after.
This building is owned by the couple behind JJ’s House Company, a construction and interior design company, and JJ’s House, a nonprofit focusing on single mothers in Detroit. I reached out to them to ask about their plans for the structure, and I was thrilled to get a response back.
Through their nonprofit, they planned to utilize the building as a living space for single moms. After replacing the roof, it failed because of the drainage issues that plagued the city, particularly on the east side, two summers ago. Since then, they’ve been dealing with the city and the insurance company to continue moving forward with the property.
Hopefully, they’ll be able to successfully renovate this historic structure soon. It’s one of the oldest ties to the Village of Fairview that’s still standing.
