Freer House, Wayne State University

Views of The Freer House in Michigan Winter from E Ferry St. 1900-1910 —-> December of 2025

“The closer one can live to himself, the better he is off, and the best part that is left of me is probably represented at […]Ferry Street” - Charles Lang Freer (writing to artist Dwight W. Tryon), 1911

The Freer House Garden has its fall colors on display! The Japanese Maple, the garden’s center piece, is currently a vivid red, and the ginkgos are just starting to switch to golden-yellow. While the flowers may not be in bloom, we welcome visitors to enjoy the garden and its harmony in all seasons !

Members of the Association of Preservation Technology (APT), a group of professionals devoted to promotion of advanced historic building restoration techniques, visited the Freer House on 9/12 for a tour of the current exterior masonry and roof repairs project.

The visit was organized by Brian Parvin, Cass Sheet Metal with support from Mike Hipes, Grunwell-Cashero, Ron Kahle, WSU Facilities, and William Colburn, Freer House/WSU. The visit concluded with a discussion & thorough tour of the Freer House interior

Thanks for following along with our repair and restoration journey!

This month (August), our volunteer group gathered at the Freer House with Simon Leverett of , one of the top historic masonry consultants in the nation, who has been supervising the house’s urgently needed repairs to sections of the house exterior to halt continued water damage to the interior of the building.

Simon shared insights into historic masonry techniques and demonstrated the specialized stone repair methods being used for proper preservation of this landmark house.

It was a fascinating look at the expertise and craft being used to maintain one of Detroit’s architectural treasures. Work by highly qualified masons from Grunwell Cashero and intersecting critical roofing repairs by Cass Metal are part of the project scope. Overall supervision is by WSU project manager Rob Kahle.

Thank you to Simon, the project team, and our wonderful volunteer group and members for supporting the Freer House’s continued care and history!

The work continues! The scaffolding is up as the cicadas buzz in the trees, and outdoor repair and restoration work continues on the Freer House this summer

Critical Exterior Repairs Begin at Wayne State’s Historic Freer House

We are pleased to announce work has begun to correct some causes of serious interior water damage at the NE section of Wayne State’s historic Freer House. Repairs including tuckpointing, roofing, and capstone replacement are underway using historically appropriate mortar, masonry and restoration techniques and will continue through the summer.

Project team includes: Leverett Historic Masonry Consultants of Chicago; project coordination and masonry restoration by Grunwell Cashero, general contractor; roofing work by Cass Metal, subcontractor; supervision by Ron Kahle, WSU Project Manager; techical guidance by Rebecca Torsell, Ford House, Grosse Pointe; and participation by the Freer House Preservation Project committee. 

We are grateful to Rob Davenport, VP, WSU Facilities Dept. for support and the WSU Board of Governors for the first round of funding of $550,000 to launch this important ongoing effort to secure the structural integrity of the historic Freer House, a Detroit landmark listed on the City, State and National Registers of Historic Places

Some photos from the annual spring cleanup underway at The Freer House! 🌿 Thanks to the incredible team from .c.runciman.landscapes. With Fred Knight and crew, the garden and courtyard continue to receive excellent care and upkeep. This work is made possible by the garden’s donors and supporters — especially the generous contributions we received on WSU Giving Day. In 2025, the Freer House Garden received some of our most generous donations yet. Thank you to all who help keep the Freer House Garden growing! 💚
We welcome visitors and encourage you to come enjoy the garden, which is open to the public — and see the wonderful work .c.runciman.landscapes continues to do here!

March 2025 at the Freer House Garden! We’re looking forward to the spring weather and guests it brings to the garden! The garden is open daily to all!

Spring is in the air at the Freer House Garden! We’re looking forward to seeing the garden, maintained beautifully by .c.runciman.landscapes , begin to bloom as the warm weather arrives in Detroit!

Our wonderfully dedicated Freer House volunteers and docents gathered for the Spring meeting. Discussion included plans for a Freer House welcome to Detroit reception for the new Consul General of Japan in late April, WSU Giving Day online fundraiser April 10th for the courtyard garden’s 2025 beautification, and a presentation by Dr. Geoffrey Drutchas about his recent article, “James McNeil Whistler’s Presence in Detroit”, for the Michigan Historical Review.

The volunteers are looking forward to a busy 2025 Spring and Summer season at the Freer House and Garden!