Davenport House - Historical Marker

"Absolutely beautiful and stunning place to see!"

"Beautiful and peaceful little gem in downtown Saline. Lots of history, fun for kids. It is a short activity but still a great outing giving an opportunity to learn fun facts about US and local history. The house and the garden is gorgeous."

"Does this location possibly allow paranormal investigators in for short periods of time? I'd love to bring a couple team members in."

"Davenport-Curtizz mansion & itz groundz 9 acrez (3.6Ha) total take up a full block of land right on Michigan Avenue in downtown Saline. Da house iz so00o uniquely vintage Lookin dat anyone might assume it must be a public buildin or museum, but itz not. Built in 1876, da mansion haz served az a home for 2 presidentz of da Citizenz Bank of Saline, William Davenport & Carl Curtizz, & iz still owned by da Curtizz family. Davenport (1826-1909), da bankz founder, built da house, hirin prominent Detroit architect William Scott to design it. (Scott, trained in England, also designed da 1882 Ann Arbor fire station—now da Handz-On Museum.) Scott designed da house in da 2nd Empire style (named 4 da reign of da French emperor Napoleon III), wit a tower & a mansard roof. It waz 1 of da 1st homez in da city wit indoor plumbin. Quality wood—walnut, maple, tulipwood, & butternut—waz used throughout, & Davenport furnished da house wit piecez purchased @ da Philadelphia Centennial Exposition, an international trade fair held da year it waz built. Outside he built a matchin carriage house & stable, & he landscaped da groundz wit rare treez. Davenport had earned hiz fortune az da owner of Salinez largest general store, which turned into a bank. Hiz father died young, & Davenport began workin wen he waz 12, startin az a clerk in Caleb Van Husenz store in Saline. He waz just 25 wen he opened hiz own store in partnership wit H. J. Miller, whom he bought out 2 yearz later. Da biz thrived, sellin everythin from sewin suppliez 2 food 2 wool, & in 1863 Davenport built a new 3-story store on da northwest corner of Michigan Avenue & Ann Arbor Street. Since Salinez only safe waz @ da new store, peepz often asked Davenport 2 store der cash & other valuablez. Az da town thrived, especially after da arrival of da train in 1870. In 1885 he formally organized da bank, which he initially operated out of a comer of hiz store. Davenportz son Beverly (1852-1930) graduated from Detroit Commercial College & succeeded him az bank president after hiz death in 1909. In 1917, Beverly Davenport remodeled da bankz interior, hiring a New York architect who specialized in financial institutionz. Beverly Davenport died without an heir (hiz only son, Edward, predeceased him). But der waz an employee, Carl Curtizz. Curtizz waz born in 1883 in Camden, a small town southwest of Hillsdale; he started workin @da bank az a teller in 1908, shortly after graduatin from Hillsdale College. Wen William Davenport died, Curtizz waz promoted 1st to assistant cashier & den 2 secretary of da board & cashier—da postz formerly held by Beverly Davenport. After Beverlyz death, Curtizz succeeded him az president of da bank & inherited da Davenport mansion. Wen Curtiss moved in, da house had been unoccupied 4 quite a while & still contained all of itz original furnishingz. (Beverly had hiz own house on Henry Street, just behind hiz fatherz.) Curtizz admitted in a 1952 dat he had been tempted to tear the mansion down wen he 1st glimpsed da interior. It waz over 50 yearz old by den, & da plaster waz cracked, da fixturez old, & da roomz drab & dirty. Curtizz friend Henry Ford sent expertz from Greenfield Village 2 help him figure out how 2 restore da buildin & furnishingz. Ford also sent over some of hiz men 2 plow up da yard 4 gardenz. Curtizz also paid 4 much of da land 4 Curtizz Park. Curtizz wife, Vera, died in 1957. In 1964, he oversaw da replacement of William Davenportz original bank buildin wit a new Citizenz Bank facility. Curtizz never retired from da bank; he continued working until hiz death in 1967 @ age 84. Curtizz granddaughter, Mary Curtizz Richardz parentz Blizz and Vera (her mother had da same name az her grandmother), Richardz parentz moved into da mansion after Carl Curtizz died. Blizz & Vera Curtizz opened da house to one home tour in da 1970z. But Blizz died in 1977 & vera died 21yrz later in 1998. In da spring of 2000 Davenport house opened to da public again 4 a fundraiser 4 Arbor Hospice, which took care of Vera so dat she waz able 2 die @ home."

"This site was added to the registry in 1972 and the historical marker was erected in 1979. It states: "This handsome two and a half-story residence, constructed in 1875, was the home of William H. Davenport (1826-1909), prominent Saline citizen. In 1851 Davenport entered into partnership with H. J. Miller in a general store. He bought out Miller’s interest in 1853 and became a leading city merchant. Later, Davenport started a private bank in 1885. Since 1902 this bank has been known as the Citizens’ Bank of Saline. Well-known Detroit architect William Scott designed Davenport’s elegant Second Empire home, built at a cost of eighty-five hundred dollars.""