The Mellus Newspapers Building was a commercial building at 1661 Fort Street in

Lincoln Park, Michigan Lincoln Park is a city in Wayne County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 38,144 at the 2010 census, down from 40,008 at the 2000 census. With a population density of at the 2010 census, Lincoln Park is the second most-densely ...

. It was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

in 2005, and demolished in 2010.

History

In 1933, William S. Mellus founded the ''Lincoln Parker'', a newspaper serving the city of Lincoln Park. As the population of Lincoln Park grew, Mellus eventually needed more space, and in 1941 he constructed this building on Fort Street. Mellus also published newspapers for other downriver communities: ''The Allen Parker'', ''Ecorse Advertiser'', ''Southgate Sentinel'', ''Taylor Tribune'' and ''Riverview Sentinel''. In the 1950s, a two-story addition was constructed in the rear of the building, enlarging the space to . Mellus also expanded operations into the next-door Pollack Jewellery Building. Mellus sold his newspaper chain to Panax Corp. in the early 1970s. The company remained in the building until 1986, when it merged with Heritage Newspapers. The building was sold by the Mellus family in 1994. In 2009, the Mellus and the next-door Pollack were purchased by the Lincoln Park Downtown Development Authority for $93,000. The Mellus Building was demolished in May 2010; a small park is planned for the lot.

Description

The Mellus Newspapers Building had simple but distinguishing

Art Deco Art Deco, short for the French ''Arts Décoratifs'', and sometimes just called Deco, is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design, that first appeared in France in the 1910s (just before World War I), and flourished in the Unite ...

characteristics exemplifying the application of these to a small commercial building. The front facade was covered with white porcelain enamel panels, and the entryway was framed with curved glass block sections. Six steel casement windows faced the front.

References

External links

Save the Mellus
{{National Register of Historic Places in Michigan Newspaper buildings Buildings and structures in Wayne County, Michigan Office buildings completed in 1941 National Register of Historic Places in Wayne County, Michigan 1941 establishments in Michigan Demolished buildings and structures in Michigan Buildings and structures demolished in 2010