Encyclopedia Of Detroit
Mason, George D.
One of Detroit’s preeminent architects, George D. Mason was responsible for the Masonic Temple, the Palmer Park Log Cabin, Mackinac Island’s Grand Hotel and numerous other buildings. He also mentored architect Albert Kahn.
George DeWitt Mason was born on July 4, 1856 in Syracuse, New York. Looking for factory work, his father moved the family to Detroit in 1870. Following his public schooling Mason studied architecture with Henry T. Bush and in 1878 joined Zachariah Rice to create the firm of Mason & Rice.
With Rice, Mason was responsible for the Grand Hotel on Mackinac Island (1887), Trinity Episcopal Church in the Woodbridge district (1890), First Presbyterian Church at Woodward Avenue and Edmund Street (1889), and the Belle Isle Police Station (1893), among other work. In 1884 and again in 1911 and 1924, he traveled to Europe, sketching as he went, through France, Germany, Italy and England.
Upon his return he welcomed young Albert Kahn into the firm, teaching him to draft along the way. Realizing his potential, Mason often brought Kahn home with him at the day’s end to continue working on drawings or to discuss architecture. After leaving the firm in 1896, Kahn later collaborated with Mason on the Belle Isle Aquarium and the Palms apartment building.
Mason ended his partnership with Rice in 1898 and worked on his own until 1920, when he formed George D. Mason & Co. A major project was the 1907 Pontchartrain Hotel that once stood at Woodward and Cadillac Square on the southeast corner.
Some of his major accomplishments occurred during this later period, like the Detroit Yacht Club (1923), Masonic Temple (1926), the Gem Theater (1927) and Central Woodward Christian Church (1928). He was also responsible, appointed by the federal government, for three Detroit housing projects, Brewster, Parkside and Herman Gardens. One residence he designed that still stands is the Lemuel W. Bowen house on Woodward between Ferry and Kirby streets, built in 1912, now part of Wayne State University.
Mason was married to Ida Whitaker and they had one daughter, Lilian. A thirty-second degree Mason, he was a member of the American Institute of Architects, the Michigan Society, the Detroit Engineering Society and the American Federation of Arts. Mason died on June 3, 1948 and is buried in Detroit’s Evergreen cemetery.
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