Col. Frank J. Hecker House

The Col. Frank J. Hecker House or "Hecker House" is located on Woodward Avenue at the corner of Ferry, in Midtown Detroit.  I have driven passed this mansion many times without knowing what it was, until now.  The Hecker House was built in 1888 by Louis Kamper.  It is 21,000 square feet and in the French Chateauesque style.  Hecker used his house to host parties, where William Mckinley and Rutherford B. Hayes were said to have attended.  The exterior of the home has large turrets(towers coming out of the wall of a building such as a medieval castle) at the corners.  The interior has 49 rooms, including a large oak-paneled hall designed for parties, a mahogany oval dining room, an English oak lobby, and a white and gold music room.

It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1971.  After Hecker's death, the family kept it for another twenty years.  During this time, it operated as a boarding school for single college students.  I couldn't even imagine living in a place like this, it looks like a castle.  Eventually the Hecker House was sold to Paul Smiley, of the Smiley Brothers Music Company.  When Smiley died in 1990, the building was sold to Charfoos and Christensen, P.C.  It currently serves as their law offices and the Royal Danish Consulate in Detroit.

The Hecker House definitely sticks out from its surroundings.  One second you could be on a street with a bunch of burned down and abandoned buildings and the next second be in front of this beautiful mansion, its crazy. I love this building and the beautiful architectural details it has, I'm glad it's a part of Detroit.