Real Estate Blog - January, 2026

Historical Architecture of Grosse Pointe – Architect D. Allen Wright – Part 1

Last week we explored 20 Village Lane, an exquisite home designed by D. Allen Wright in 1927, for Harold B. Tyree, a veteran of World War I and vice president of Detroit Edison.

This week we stay with the work of D. Allen Wright as we begin a two-part presentation featuring many of the homes he designed in Grosse Pointe. It appears he designed close to 30 homes in the community. In part one we are going to focus on his French inspired period: 1926 – 1930.

David Allen Wright was born on July 19, 1886, in Springfield Township, Michigan. During his career he became a noted designer, both locally and nationally. Between 1926 and 1930, many of his creations appear to be large French inspired homes, typically in the Normandy and Provencal style –…

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Historical Architecture of Grosse Pointe – 20 Village Lane

Last week we visited Kenwood Road, Grosse Pointe Farms, to explore a fine selection of beautifully crafted houses that were created by some of the leading architects of the early 20th century.

Two of the homes we featured were designed by D. Allen Wright. So, this week we are going to look at another of Wright’s creations, 20 Village Lane (formerly 16910 Village Lane) in Grosse Pointe. Completed in 1927, it was designed for Harold B. Tyree, vice president of Detroit Edison.

20 Village Lane was featured in Architectural Forum magazine (October 1935) and the Book of Small Houses (1936). It is a uniquely styled English Cotswold home. At just over 2,000 sq ft the asymmetrical house is bigger than it looks and is perfectly formed. The article in the…

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Historical Architecture of Grosse Pointe – Kenwood Road

Last week we visited 109 Kenwood, a magnificent home in Grosse Pointe Farms. Completed in 1929, it was designed by the “Dean of Detroit Architects”, Geroge D. Mason for Lynn McNaughton, vice president in charge of sales at Cadillac.

This week we stay on Kenwood to look at a selection of beautifully crafted houses on the street, created by some of the leading architects of the early 20th century. The architectural styles on display include Colonial Revival, English Cotswold, Tudor, Dutch Colonial, and French Provencal styles. Many of the homes exhibit charming architectural features such as intricate brickwork, grand entrances, beautiful limestone detailing, and decorative pediments.

Let’s begin with the residences created by Robert O. Derrick,…

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Historical Architecture of Grosse Pointe –109 Kenwood

Happy 2026!

In our last post of 2025, we presented the history of the “Christmas Walk.” Beginning in 1960, it became an annual event that opened some wonderfully decorated homes to the public in Grosse Pointe and Bloomfield-Hills to benefit the Detroit Symphony Orchestra. It was incredibly popular and ran until the late 1970's.

For our first post of the new year, we are going to visit a magnificent home in Grosse Pointe Farms – 109 Kenwood. Completed in 1929, it was designed by the “Dean of Detroit Architects”, Geroge D. Mason for Lynn McNaughton, vice president in charge of sales at Cadillac.

109 Kenwood is a 10,518 sq ft residence, and arguably one of the grandest homes in Grosse Pointe Farms. It was one of the largest homes George Mason…

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