Introduction

Origins

The City

Collegeville (1887, 1895)
College Delta (1898, 1899)
Oakwood (1899)
Cedar Banks (1900)
College Grove (1903)
Fairview (1904, 1905)
College Heights (1904)

Charter of 1907

Avondale (1913)
Bungalow Knolls (1916)
Chesterfield Hills (1916)
Ardson (1919)
Ridgeley Park (1921)
Strathmore (1925)
Glen Cairn (1926)
Bailey (1927)
Touraine (1927)

The Campus

Chronology

Interactive Map

Sites on the National and State Historic Registers

Complete list of
Significant Structures

Sources

College Delta (1898)

Map by the author, based on Newman, 1915.

The "Delta," the triangular area of land extending west from the Michigan Ave. / Grand River Ave. junction to just west of Delta Street, was originally included as part of the Agricultural College when it was founded in 1855. At that time, Michigan Avenue's eastern end was at Harrison Road. When Michigan was extended to Grand River Avenue around 1863, the Delta was isolated from the rest of campus. With better proximity to the center of campus than Collegeville, the Delta became a prime candidate for faculty housing. Thus, in 1898 the State Board of Agriculture (the bureaucratic controller of the M.A.C.) platted the site into "College Delta," with proceeds from the sale "going towards the purchase of land for an athletic field on the south side of the river," now known as Old College Field.[Lautner, pp.59,102] Water and sewer service were provided by the college, and housing quickly sprang up.[Towar, p. 43]

College Delta, circa 1900, view from campus facing north. Only two years after its platting, at least eight homes have already appeared on the Delta. Photo Credit: Chace Newman Family. Reprinted in Kestenbaum, p.8.

Twelve houses were eventually built on the eleven lots of College Delta, and over the years they sheltered many of East Lansing's (and the college's) famous names, among them:

Ernst Everett Bogue, first Professor of Forestry, 1902-1907.
Chace Newman.
Jonathan L. Snyder, President of M.A.C., 1896-1915.
Ray Stannard Baker (1870-1946, M.A.C. '89), prominent "muckraking" journalist,* awarded honorary Dr. of Laws by M.A.C. in 1917.
Luther H. Baker (1872-?, M.A.C. '93), Mayor of East Lansing, 1925-1928.
Frederick Cowles Jenison (M.A.C. '06), millionaire and donor of funds for Jenison Fieldhouse and renovations to Cowles House, renamed for Jenison's mother, Alice B. Cowles.
Elizabeth Abbott. [Kestenbaum, pp.115-116]

Gas station at the apex of College Delta, late 1920s. Photo Credit: James Case. Reprinted in Miller, p.50.

By the 1920s, a gas station had replaced the rooming house at the apex of the Delta, and by 1976 only three historic homes remained on the plat. Today the Landon-May house is the sole survivor. The College Delta, with its monolithic student apartments, fraternity houses, and convenience store, now stands as a testament to the fate of historic homes in the midst of urban development.[Miller, p.50; Kestenbaum, p.9]

Landon-May House, 243 W. Grand River (1902)

Brooks' Addition to College Delta (1899)

Map by the author, based on Newman, 1915.

Charles and Hannah Brooks filled in the last space between Harrison Road and the Delta with this addition. Louis Street is named for their son, and has since been converted into a cul-de-sac. Empire Avenue was renamed Elm Place by 1915. Prospect Street was changed to Oakhill Avenue following the creation of College Heights, and later became Hillcrest Drive.

C. M. Krentel House, 322 Elm Place (1906)
Central School, 325 W. Grand River (1917) SR/NR

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