(MSF) – The Stove That Burned Traditional Geocache
(MSF) – The Stove That Burned
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The MSF (Michigan State Fairgrounds) series of caches will focus on historical landmarks on this historic site.
The first official Michigan State Fair was held in 1849, which is claimed by the state of Michigan to be the oldest state fair in the United States. The first fair was held in Detroit, Michigan. Subsequent fairs were held in other cities until it received its permanent home in 1905 at the Michigan State Fairgrounds in Detroit. In 1904, Joseph L. Hudson, together with three of his associates, decided to give the State Fair its permanent home. They formed the State Fair Land Company, which acquired 135 acres between 7½ and 8 Mile Roads, east of Woodward Avenue. Because Hudson had no interest in running the fair, he sold the land to the Michigan State Agricultural Society for one dollar on April 18, 1905. The Agricultural Society accepted the land then purchased an additional 32 acres, extending the fairgrounds to 167 acres. The state fair ran at this site until 2009, when state funding was cut. From 2010-2013, this property remained largely unused until a new shopping plaza was installed on this site.
At the close of the nineteenth century Detroit was "The Stove Capital of the World." As the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago approached, The Michigan Stove Company, founded by Jeremiah Dwyer in 1872, decided to build a "Mamoth Garland" stove for its exhibit in the Manufacturers and Liberal Arts Building. Designed by William J. Keep, the wooden structure weighed fifteen tons and measured 25 feet high, 30 feet long and 20 feet wide. A colossal exhibit, it stood on a platform with real stoves beneath.
• After the exposition, the stove was reassembled beside the Michigan Stove factory at Adair and East Jefferson in Detroit.
• When the The Michigan Stove Company and the Detroit Stove Works merged to become the Detroit - Michigan Stove Company in 1927, they moved Detroit's giant stove to 6900 East Jefferson Avenue, just west of the Belle Isle Bridge.
• Detroit-Michigan Stove Company was bought out in 1955 by Welbilt Corp, and from 1957 to 1965, Schaefer Bakeries leased the stove to advertise its bread.
• There it stood until 1965, when it made its first appearance on the Michigan State Fairgrounds.
• Due to its deteriorating condition, it was removed from the State Fairgrounds in 1974 and stored at the Fort Wayne Military Museum.
• In 1998, Michigan State Fair Management rallied corporations, labor unions, and individuals to put this unique Detroit landmark back together. The carefully restored symbol of nineteenth-century Detroit industry was unveiled on the eve of the grand opening of the Michigan State Fair, August 24, 1998.
• On August 15, 2011, in a freak lightning strike, the stove caught fire and burned down.
Photo taken by scrapcat 16 days before the fire:
Photo featured on the news:
Please feel free to share any stories you may have of the fairgrounds in your logs!
Although this is a shiny new plaza, always be aware of your surroundings.
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