Hudson's Detroit: 'I feel like I'm in NY'
A new 12-story glass building resurrects memories of life we lived and the legacy of a man few know as a key player in the auto industry
The grand reveal of Hudson’s Detroit reimagines the city’s golden era while showcasing its bold future, an exclusive invitation promises for Friday, Oct. 10.
The site sits across the street from the Shinola Hotel and San Morello restaurant.
A 12-story building known now as the Department at Hudson’s, has opened street-level retail and event spaces. Its upstairs tenants will including General Motors, which is moving global headquarters from the Renaissance Center. A second Hudson’s Detroit building next door is a 49-story skyscraper designed to be a hotel and condos.
But not everyone is focused on the glass buildings making headlines.
What makes Detroit special is how it moves into the future while honoring the past.
J.L. Hudson Department Store was to Detroiters what Macy’s Herald Square was to New Yorkers.
So when I stepped into the new Department at Hudson’s for the Automotive Hall of Fame dinner in late September, I had to ask what others felt about being there.
Santa, baby
“At Christmastime, my mom and dad used to bring us down with our cousins and we used to go to the Santa shop … see all the decorations, trees and lights,” said Patty Trojan, 60, of Livonia, who served appetizers to guests at the event. “We lived in Detroit. This building, being where it is, brings back so many memories. It’s going to be different but still bring that energy. The city is growing and changing.”
Spending days together
Francine McDonald, 65, of Detroit, shared her thoughts while keeping the beautiful women’s bathroom sparkling through the night.
“I remember catching the bus, coming down here with my grandmother to do shopping or just walk around the city,” McDonald said. “We’d just spend the day together down here. You think about this when you get older.”
Riding the elevator: ‘4th floor!’
Nicole Gize, 52, of St. Clair Shores, couldn’t stop smiling as she looked at the escalators that seemed to be placed where they once were in the original building.
“I used to go to Hudson’s every Saturday with my mom, who used to work for Hudson’s in the salon that was on the 14th floor,” Gize said. “I would help take rollers out for ladies, fold towels and then I would wander around the store. The ladies that ran the elevators would let me help say, ‘4th floor! Children’s!’ I am sad that I never really got to experience shopping at Hudson’s outside of the children’s department. But you’d be on the elevators with Joe Hudson. It was like, ‘I met a Hudson!’”
Five basements?
Holiday displays drew children and families from all over the country.
“You cannot forget the Christmas displays and all those memories,” Gize said. “Because my mom worked at Hudson’s, she ate at the employee cafeteria, which was the coolest cafeteria. The food that they had, obviously the prices back then for the employees, just made everything so neat.”
The original building had five basements, a main floor, a mezzanine, 2nd through 15th floors, a 15 1/2 floor, 16th through 21st floors, a 21 1/2 floor, and 22nd through 25th floors.
An immigrant’s legacy
Joseph Lowthian Hudson, born in Newcastle upon Tyne, England, arrived in Detroit by way of Ontario, Canada. While he is known today for his association with the iconic department store, his ties to the city run deeper.
Hudson gave start-up money to industrialist Roy D. Chapin, who honored his investor by naming his venture the Hudson Motor Car Company, according to the Detroit Historical Society. The automaker, ranked behind Ford and Chevrolet in 1929, was later acquired by American Motors. (Chapin went on to serve briefly as U.S. Secretary of Commerce under President Herbert Hoover.)
Hudson’s ventures also included Dime Savings Bank of Detroit, American Exchange National Bank, the Detroit City Gas Company, and the Third National Bank of Detroit. When the Third National Bank collapsed during the financial Panic of 1893, Hudson felt personally liable for the bank failure and paid $265,000 from his personal accounts — an amount equal to the balances of record held by each account holder, according to American National Biography.
The financial crisis, caused by massive debt from rapid expansion of the national railway system, triggered a surge in unemployment, business failure and suspension of bank withdrawals nationally, according to federalreservehistory.com.
But Hudson took care of Detroit. His goodwill generated multi-generational loyalty.
When he died during a business trip overseas, his body was shipped back to Michigan Central Station and met by thousands of Detroiters in Corktown, according to the Detroit Times on July 19, 1912.
Hudson’s niece Eleanor Lowthian Clay married Edsel Ford — son of Ford Motor Co. founder Henry Ford — in 1916, later giving birth to Henry Ford II, Benson Ford, Josephine Clay Ford and William Clay Ford. The Edsel and Eleanor Ford House in Grosse Pointe Shores is now an historic tourist attraction on Lake St. Clair.
At one time, Hudson’s was the largest department store in the U.S., attracting shoppers from all over the world. Construction began in 1891 and included multiple expansions. The flagship store closed in 1983 and imploded in 1998.
This latest development by Bedrock — led by real estate magnate Dan Gilbert — broke ground on the historical site in 2017.
I (heart) NY — and Detroit
For Detroiters such as Nicole Gize, whose mother immigrated from Lebanon in 1960, the Hudson’s experience feels bittersweet.
“It’s a different building, this building,” Gize said. “Someone said to me, ‘I feel like I’m in New York.’ I can’t wait to hear people say, ‘I feel like I’m in Detroit.’”
More:
Storied metro Detroit hotel transformed 94 years after debut, reflects luxury trend
Black workers headed north to chase the American dream
Ford HQ demo plan, Glass House pics: ‘Holy Cow’
Editor’s note: As a child in the 1970s, Phoebe Wall Howard took the bus with her mother from Grosse Pointe to Hudson’s downtown to see the decorated windows. I loved the few times I visited the store’s famous dining room for a Maurice Salad with shredded turkey, ham, Swiss cheese and gherkin pickles.
Correction: The story has been updated to correct the floor level of the salon.
As a former reporter at The Des Moines Register, I’m a proud member of the Iowa Writers’ Collaborative, which offers a great mix of political analysis, features and news.
Growing up on the EASSIDE, going downtown was a treat. Seeing Christmas lights, and tall beautiful buildings was fun. On Saturdays, My Mom would take me downtown to do some shopping, read the elevators at Hudsons and watch the gold clock like mechanism at each Elevator station turn as the car went up or down just like a sweep hand on a watch. The toy department was mammoth, At least to me, it was. After shopping at Hudsons, there was Crowley’s at the Kern block, by the large landmark clock. Then, we would walk a block north to Grand Circus Park to the corner steak house Flaming Embers where we ate a small steak, baked potato and salad for $1.99! Then we go across the street to the Fox Theatre and see two movies, as well as a live stage show from the rising stage, between the movies. I remember seeing Bobby Ryder!
Going downtown was special. Hudson’s was second to none. One of my first serious jobs was that of a Parole officer and my first office was on Cadillac Square, where for three years I was able to walk my lunch hour back to Hudson’s, just to cruise that giant gem. Although the original Hudson’s Department store will never return, the new Gilbert effort will encourage the youngers to come down to the City Center and appreciate the beauty, love and dedication to my City just like we did with their new structures.
In fact, my musician son Nick lived at the Trolly Plaza Apartments on Washington Square for a few years, frequenting Comerica Park, Ford Field, and several hot spot watering holes. It was a great experience.,
Thanks to our great humanitarians like Dan Gilbert, Bill Ford, and Roger Penske for their dedication to the City.
The city needs you.
Gregg,
Retired Eassider
PEACE
Lovely story, Phoebe. My mom took us there every Christmas to the Santa Shop, and there was a hilarious (to others) story about my absolute fear of escalators that was discovered there when I was not even 2. Sigh.