Midland National Bank by Alden B. Dow
An enterprising group of businessmen first began discussing plans to establish the Midland National Bank, a locally owned banking institution, in 1945. Following federal approval of their application the following year, they proceeded to acquire the Chemical City Restaurant building at 133 E. Main Street for the location of the new bank. A contract was […]
Church and Guisewite Advertising Building by Alden B. Dow
Alden B. Dow Associates converted an existing building in downtown Midland into offices for Church and Guisewite Advertising in 1966. Working drawings and specifications were completed in January, and Branson Builders of Midland was selected as general contractor. Construction began in February and was substantially completed by the end of September 1966. The final cost […]
Alden B. Dow’s Display Cases for the Dow Chemical Company’s 1939 Golden Gate International Exposition Exhibit in San Francisco, California
Alden B. Dow enjoyed exploring the design possibilities of plastics and other new products the Dow Chemical Company was on the forefront of developing in the 1930s. His 1937 drawing entitled “1940 House” illustrated the potential use of Dow’s Ethocel in forming 12-inch square building blocks. His design of the 1937 addition to the company’s […]
Nease Memorial Church of the Nazarene by Alden B. Dow
On January 29, 1961, the Nease Memorial Church of the Nazarene was organized with 40 charter members. The congregation chose a flat, barren 4.5 acre site on the western edge of Midland, Michigan for its first church and purchased the land for the sum of $10,850. Upon the recommendation of its building committee, the firm […]
The Jesse Kreger Residence by Alden B. Dow
Most of the usual documentation that tells the story of the design of an Alden B. Dow home does not exist for the Jesse Kreger residence on Grosse Ile, a picturesque island south of Detroit. There are specifications, just a few working drawings, and a color pencil presentation drawing, but no contract, no correspondence, and […]
The Midland, Michigan Farmers Market by Alden B. Dow
The first discussion about the design of a structure to cover farmers selling their produce in the open parking lot at the foot of Ashman Street took place in March 1973. Those meeting notes describe a simple roof structure, 160 feet long by 30 feet wide, to be supported by telephone poles donated by the […]
The Chippewa Nature Center’s Interpretive Building by Alden B. Dow
As early as 1965, the long-range plan for the Center called for a building with a museum, library, auditorium, classroom, workshop and related facilities. In 1970, three years after the completion of the Nature Observatory, Mr. Dow prepared a preliminary sketch for a building on the bluff overlooking the Chippewa River with an earthen-covered roof […]
The Chippewa Nature Center’s Nature Study Building by Alden B. Dow
The Nature Observatory (Nature Study Building) The inspiration to establish a place for the study of the natural environment in the Midland area first came to the members of the Midland Nature Club in 1963. Their search for a building and sanctuary site led them in 1965 to property at the confluence of the Pine […]
Smith’s Flower Store by Alden B. Dow
Alden B. Dow began the design of a large standalone building for Smith’s Flowers in September 1954. The shop had been in its original location in the nearby Ashman Circle business district in Midland, Michigan for seven years. The new store would be situated just off the Circle on Ashman Street about a block away […]
Bay City Jewish Center by Alden B. Dow
Just a year after completing the design of Messiah Lutheran Church in Bay City, Alden B. Dow began developing the first of a number of schemes for the Bay City Jewish Center in 1955. The first drawings showed a floorplan that followed the outlines of the six-pointed Star of David, the primary symbol of the […]
