Explore The Past At The Book Tower

The Book Tower on Washington Boulevard in Detriot is like no other. It is a piece of the cities skyline. A renaissance style architecture is on the oldest buildings in the city. Francis Palms had purchased a lot of land on Washington Boulevard. He was one of the cities wealthiest men. In 1916 his grandsons wanted to turn the street into an upscale area. They first built the Book Building, which was named after them, the Book brothers. It was a 13 story Italian Renaissance office building. It opened in 1917. They continued to build skyscrapers along the boulevard. On the first piece of property their grandfather purchased, they built the Book Tower. A 475 foot high building, it was the tallest building in town until the Penobscot Building was built two years later. It was named after an American Indian Tribe in England. Today the Book Tower remains the seventh tallest building in town. From the ground to the top floor, the building is covered in detail. It has nude female figures in the midsection. They have been rudiculed and critized by critics from the start. Still the building gives the Washington Boulevard a unique charm today. You can not go down the boulevard without noticing it.