Click above images to enlarge Dearborn Inn and Colonial Homes 20301 Oakwood Boulevard, NW of Rotunda Drive, Dearborn - Wayne County Property Type complex Historic Use DOMESTIC Current Use DOMESTIC Style Colonial Revival Architect/Builder A. A. ALBRECHT Albert Kahn Narrative Description The Dearborn Inn and Colonial Homes is a hotel complex comprised of the inn building, designed by Albert Kahn and built in 1931, the staff dormitory building, built in 1931, and five colonial house reproductions built in 1937. The Dearborn Inn was constructed directly across from Henry Ford's Airport and down the road from the Edison Institute. The inn building is a three story, gable roofed, red brick, Georgian style building flanked by two story, flat roofed wings. The dormitory building is a two-and-one-half story, gabled roof brick building designed in simplified Georgian style to harmonize with the Inn. Behind the inn building are five reconstructions of Colonial homes arranged in a village-like setting. These buildings are reconstructions of homes of noted Americans; the Walt Whitman House, a two-story, brick, Federal style building; the Edgar Allen Poe House, a one-and-one-half-story shingle cottage; the Barbara Fritchie House, a one-and-one-half-story brick cottage; the Oliver Wolcott House, a two-story, frame, Federal style buildings; and the Patrick Henry House, a two-story, frame Federal style building with symmetrical flanking wings. Each building is an exact exterior reproduction of its namesake's house while the interiors are modified to provide hotel accommodations. Statement of Significance The Dearborn Inn was built in 1931 by Henry Ford to serve passengers arriving and departing from the Ford Airport in Dearborn. Built directly across the street from his airport, Ford's Dearborn Inn is significant as the first airport hotel in the country-- a hotel designed and built specifically for the air traveler. Albert Kahn designed the inn while Architect Charles M. Hart of New York was responsible for the village layout and house reconstructions. The village concept is a direct reflection of Henry Ford's nearby Greenfield Village which the hotel served and exemplifies the historic preservation thinking of the time. In its early years, the Dearborn Inn served as the hub of Dearborn's social life. The inn continues to be used as a hotel. Marker Name The Dearborn Inn / Colonial Homes & Adjacent Bldgs Marker Text THE DEARBORN INN Henry Ford built the Dearborn Inn in 1931 to accommodate overnight travelers arriving at the Ford Airport. Located opposite the inn on Oakwood Boulevard, the airport opened in 1924. The 179-room inn, designed by Albert Kahn, was the world's first airport hotel. The Georgian-style structure features a crystal-chandeliered ballroom and high ceilings. Its rooms are decorated with reproductions of furniture and fabrics of the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. The guest quarters along Pilots Row originally were used by the airline's crews. The inn and the adjacent Colonial homes reflect Henry Ford's fondness for American history. COLONIAL HOMES AND ADJACENT BUILDINGS In 1937 the Dearborn Inn's accommodations were expanded with replicas of historically famous homes. Constructed on this twenty-three-acre wooded complex, the additions included the Barbara Fritchie House, the Patrick Henry House, the Oliver Wolcott House, the Edgar Allen Poe House and the Walt Whitman House. The homes are funished with brass candlesticks on the mantles, English shaving mirrors, brass or pencil four-poster beds, traditional lighting fixtures and Dutch doors. In 1933 the dormitory building was added to house the inn's employees. It served this purpose until 1961. The fifty-four-unit Motor House was completed in 1960. Period of Significance 1931-1945 Significant Date(s) 1931 Registry Type(s) 05/06/1983 Marker erected 12/10/1982 National Register listed 02/10/1983 State Register listed Site ID# P25006