
Take a Look at Downtown Grand Rapids Then and Now
I've written about downtown Grand Rapids rebirth many times, looking back through the lens of many historical photos. It is always amazing to look back at where we were then, and where we are now.
One of the earliest photos I can find through Grand City Archives is from 1865, Grab Corners. Huh? Grab Corners?
GRAND RAPIDS 1865
That what this Grand Rapids famous intersection was called back then. Ten years later this busy intersection of Grab Corners changed a again.
GRAND RAPIDS 1875
The intersection of Grab Corners in downtown Grand Rapids near the intersection of Pearl and Canal, we know now as Monroe. Also, we know the intersection as Campau Square. Notice the Sweet's Hotel, First National Bank, Perry Brothers, and other downtown businesses.
However, all of this changed 50 years later. This photo from 1926 is looking down Monroe, downtown, with the Pantlind Hotel in the far haze of a background. The Pantlind replaced the Sweet's Hotel in the early 1900s, and now, of course, it has become the Amway Grand Plaza.
GRAND RAPIDS 1926
In the 1930s Monroe was evolving even more.
GRAND RAPIDS 1930
This view is across the street from the Pantlind Hotel looking down Monroe to Michigan Street. Today, DeVos Performance Hall and DeVos Place convention center take up almost the entire city block.
DEVOS PLACE/DEVOS PERFORMANCE HALL
As Grand Rapids was growing to become Michigan's second largest city, streets were changed or eliminated, new buildings were springing up everywhere, and old buildings were being rehabilitated.
Check the 1953 map of downtown before things really moved around.
GRAND RAPIDS 1953
What a rich history Grand Rapids has, and how lucky are we to have such forward thinking community leaders to keep Grand Rapid developing and growing as a leading city in America.
LOOK: Food history from the year you were born
Gallery Credit: Joni Sweet
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