Corktown Historic District

Corktown Historic District
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Trumbull Avenue in Corktown (Note: Tiger Stadium has since been torn down)
Location:	Detroit, Michigan  United States
Coordinates:	42°19′50″N 83°03′50″W / 42.33056°N 83.06389°W / 42.33056; -83.06389Coordinates: 42°19′50″N 83°03′50″W / 42.33056°N 83.06389°W / 42.33056; -83.06389
Architectural style:	Colonial Revival, Late Victorian, Federal
Governing body:	Local
NRHP Reference#:	78001517[1]
Added to NRHP:	July 31, 1978

Corktown is the oldest neighborhood in Detroit, Michigan,^[2][3] although the city of Detroit is twice as old. The current boundaries of the current district include I-75 to the north, the Lodge Freeway to the east, Bagley and Porter streets to the south, and Rosa Parks Boulevard (12th Street) to the west.^[1] The neighborhood was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1978.^[1]

The Corktown Historic District is largely residential, although some commercial properties along Michigan Avenue are included in the district.^[4]

History

The roots of Corktown lie in the Great Irish Potato Famine of the 1840s. The Irish immigrated to the United States in droves, and by the middle of the 19th century, they were the largest ethnic group settling in Detroit.^[3] Many of these newcomers settled on the west side of the city; they were primarily from County Cork, and thus the neighborhood came to be known as Corktown. By the early 1850's, half of the population of the 8th Ward (which contained Corktown) were of Irish descent.^[3] Historically, the neighborhood was roughly bounded by Third Street to the east, Grand River Avenue to the north, 12th Street to the west, and Jefferson Avenue/Detroit River to the south.^[3]

By the Civil War, German immigrants had begun making inroads into the Corktown neighborhood.^[5] By the turn of the century, the original Irish population had diffused through the city, and other immigrants, notably Mexican and Maltese, moved in.^[5] As the century progressed, southern migrants in the U.S. lured by the jobs in the automobile industry followed suit.^[5]

By the middle of the 20th century, the size of Corktown was reduced through revitization, the building of light industrial facilities, and the creation of the Lodge Freeway.^[3]

The residential section is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and is designated as a City of Detroit Historic District. The neighborhood contains many newer homes and retains some original Irish businesses.^[5]

Architecture

The original buildings in Corktown are Federal-style detached homes and rowhouses built by Irish settlers. A worker's row house circa 1840 is located on Sixth Street and is one of the oldest existing structures in the city of Detroit.^[3] In further years, modestly sized Victorian townhouses with Italianate, Gothic, and Queen Anne elements were constructed.^[4]

Education

Residents are zoned to Detroit Public Schools. Residents are zoned to Owen at Pelham and King High School.^[6][7][8]

Notable residents

• Sheila Cockrel, former Detroit City Council member^[9]

See also

• North Corktown, Detroit

References

1. ^ ^{a b c} "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. 2007-01-23. http://nrhp.focus.nps.gov/natreg/docs/All_Data.html. 
2. ^ Corktown from ModelD Media, retrieved 8/6/09
3. ^ ^{a b c d e f} History from the Greater Corktown Development Corporation
4. ^ ^{a b} Corktown Historic District from the National Park Service, retrieved 8/6/09
5. ^ ^{a b c d} Armando Delicato, Julie Demery, Detroit's Corktown, Arcadia Publishing, 2007, ISBN 0-7385-5155-4
6. ^ "Interactive Map." Greater Corktown Development Corp Retrieved on April 24, 2009.
7. ^ "Owen MS Attendance Area." Detroit Public Schools. Retrieved on April 24, 2009.
8. ^ "M. L. King HS Attendance Area." Detroit Public Schools. Retrieved on April 24, 2009.
9. ^ "Detroit City Council Biography." Sheila Cockrel. Retrieved on April 25, 2009.

External links

• Greater Corktown Development Corporation (GCDC)
• DetroitIrish.org, Information about the Irish Community in greater Detroit.
• Glorious Detroit: Corktown
• Detroit1701
• Corktown Historic District from the city of Detroit