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MORTON HOUSE


walker

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  • 2 weeks later...

When Eastbank Market was around, there was basically Eastbank (Plaza Towers) and the Forslund Condominiums. Downtown has changed a lot since then.

Joe

Why Eastbank Market didn't work is beyond me. They had a deli, bakery, meat counter with a butcher, decent grocery selection and convenient parking.

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  • 6 months later...

Interesting History of the morton house.

morton.jpg

I read somewhere that in the old days the morton was a hotel , and at some point

the owners leased out the top floors to the county insane asylum and continued

using the bottom floors as a hotel. Could have been an intersting night stay at the morton.

Looks a lot different in this postcard from 1911.

Edited by Drew Day
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I believe this is the "old" Morton House. They tore down this building to build the taller build that exists today. It's a great looking building. I also like the building on the right side of the postcard. It's now a parking lot. :(

Joe

Oh is that what happened? I was thinking they just added on the other floors. Urban Renewal in grand rapids geez.

Edited by Drew Day
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0000527.jpg

Yep, the current Mortan House is a different building then the building in the postcard posted by Drew Day. That building was built in 1872 by Israel Smith and George Morton after a fire destroyed the previous building at the site. The current building was built in 1922 and was home to the Morton Hotel and Kent State Bank which became Old Kent Bank, and now 5/3 Bank.

In the above photo you can better make out the building joeDowntown is referring to in the back ground on the far right. It looks a bit like the Trust Building. This page http://www.historygr...mId=1545&full=1 refers to it as the Ashton Building, formerly known as the Pythian Temple.

Edit: The 7th floor of the Pythian Temple was used for G.R. chapters of the Knights of Pythias. The first 5 floors was a furniture store with the 6th floor being offices. You can read more about the Knights of Pythias here:

http://en.wikipedia....ghts_of_Pythias

http://kent.migenweb...ns/pythias.html

Edited by Gorath
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1928morton.jpg

So the old morton house was destroyed by fire and they built this i guess?

Oral history tells us that the Doctor's where tired with the administration of the Hotel part of the business, and that they wanted to focus on the medical practice. Of course it is impossible to say now, but at this time Dr. Ward Ferguson, Dr Lynn Ferguson and Dr. James Droste left the Sanitarium to start their own hospital aptly named Ferguson-Droste-Ferguson, in Grand Rapids.

The Sanitarium took the entire 12th floor of the Morton House hotel, and while the brochure pictures a giant sign outside the hotel. The only sign that where is physical evidence for is this one:

Edited by Drew Day
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Wow ! very intriguing. I see a lot of prominent names on the list of Pythian ranks. Why did they tear that building down? Its a parking lot/walkway that leads to division right?

Yes. Klingman's may have torn it down to provide parking for their showroom next door, lol.

Great pictures. Many of these I've never seen before, and I've seen a lot of historical GR photos and postcards.

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I've been inside the Morton House once. The former Elevator Lobby was the main lobby for the apartment building, and looks very much the same. You can't notice it outright in the picture above, but there is colourful red and blue artwork on the exposed, dark, wooden beams.

Through a partially opened door I caught glimpse of what appeared to be the former main lobby. It seemed empty and unused, with minimal if any changes.

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Yes. Klingman's may have torn it down to provide parking for their showroom next door, lol.

Great pictures. Many of these I've never seen before, and I've seen a lot of historical GR photos and postcards.

ashtonbuilding.gif

Torn down for a parking lot. We also now know where the dentists are supposed to have their offices downtown :P

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