Abram W. Pike House | |
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| Location | 230 Fulton Street East, Grand Rapids, Michigan  United States |
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| Coordinates | 42°57′42″N 85°39′47″W / 42.96167°N 85.66306°W |
| Built | 1844 |
| NRHP reference No. | 70000276 |
| Added to NRHP | July 8, 1970 |
The Abram W. Pike House is a historic home built in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Built in 1844, it is one of the oldest homes still standing in Michigan and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.[1] The home is named after its original occupier, Abram W. Pike. Pike was a fur trader who came to Michigan in 1827. He lived in Port Sheldon on Lake Michigan, at the mouth of the Pigeon River, and was employed as the company clerk for the Port Sheldon Land Company.[2]
At the time, there were hopes that Port Sheldon would become a major metropolis. Though this vision was never fully realized, the Ottawa House Hotel was completed before the project's eventual financial ruin. The Ottawa House Hotel was only open for five years but was recognized as one of the most impressive buildings in Port Sheldon.[2] When Abram Pike relocated to Grand Rapids in 1844, he had four of the six pillars from the grandiose Ottawa House Hotel drug by ox and attached to the front of his home, which now stands—unmistakably—at 230 E. Fulton Street.
The house was occupied as a family residence until 1922, upon which it was turned into the Grand Rapids Art Gallery (Now the Grand Rapids Art Museum) and remained so until the museum moved in 1978.[3] In 2014, amidst building renovations, workers uncovered an original “Grand Rapids Art Museum” sign, painted in large, bold letters atop the entryway to the Pike House.[4]
In 2014, the Pike House was purchased by Grand Rapids bankruptcy law firm, Keller & Almassian, PLC, which remains in the property today.[5]
- ^ "National Register of Historic Places". National Park Service. Retrieved 12 Feb 2016.
- ^ a b Beld, Gordon (2011). "Port Sheldon: Michigan's Missing Metropolis". Michigan History Magazine. 95 (2).
- ^ "First Art Museum". History Grand Rapids. Retrieved 18 Feb 2016.
- ^ Harger, Jim (13 June 2014). "That's a genuine Alten". The Grand Rapids Press.
- ^ Zentmeyer, Anya (July 16, 2015). "Historic Grand Rapids Pike House becomes new home for lawyers at Keller & Almassian". Rapid Growth. Retrieved 2022-11-10.