This week’s episodes uncover pieces of Michigan that most people walk right past — unaware they were ever there at all.

History isn’t loud.
But it always leaves clues.

Here’s what we explored:

Premiered Monday at 6 PM

Streets of History — Monday

Detroit was once home to some of the most extravagant private estates in the country — rivaling the great homes of New York, Chicago, and Philadelphia.

This episode looks at the Gilded Age mansions that symbolized Detroit’s rise, the families who built them, and the social forces that ultimately led to their disappearance.

These homes weren’t lost overnight.
They faded through economic shifts, urban policy decisions, and changing values.

Their absence still shapes Detroit’s landscape today.

👉 Watch on Streets of History

Premiered Wednesday at 6 PM

Pontiac’s identity wasn’t accidental — it was built.

This episode explores the large civic, commercial, and cultural buildings that once anchored the city: hotels, schools, performance spaces, and institutions that made Pontiac a destination in its own right.

Some still stand. Some are gone. All helped shape the city’s character.

Understanding these buildings helps explain why Pontiac looks the way it does today — and why preservation still plays a role in its future.

👉 Watch on Pontiac Pulse

Premieres Friday at 6 PM

This week’s Homes of Michigan episode looks at both sides of preservation.

Across the state, historic homes disappear every year. But sometimes — when enough people care — they don’t.

This episode highlights:

homes that were lost

homes that were saved

and the small decisions that determine the difference

Preservation doesn’t always win. But when it does, it leaves a permanent mark.

👉 Watch on Homes of Michigan

This week, demolition began on Roosevelt Elementary School in Keego Harbor.

I went to elementary school there.

For some, it was simply an aging school building. For many of us, it was where childhood began.

Roosevelt Elementary served generations of families in Keego Harbor and the surrounding area for decades. Built during a time when public schools were designed as long-term civic anchors, it reflected an era when these buildings were meant to last — physically and symbolically.

Like many early-to-mid-20th-century Michigan schools, Roosevelt featured:

solid masonry construction

large windows for natural light

a presence that made it feel rooted in the neighborhood

Thousands of students passed through its hallways. Friendships formed. Teachers shaped lives. Entire childhoods unfolded inside those walls.

This week, as demolition equipment arrived, something more than brick and mortar was lost.

Roosevelt’s removal reflects a broader trend across Michigan — aging public buildings increasingly evaluated for cost and efficiency, rather than legacy and meaning.

Progress is inevitable. But it’s still worth asking:

How many places disappear before we stop to remember what they gave us?

Roosevelt Elementary mattered. Not because it was famous — but because it mattered to the people who grew up there.

This week, we remember it that way.

The stories we told this week — lost mansions, forgotten buildings, vanished schools — are exactly why the Forever Home Project exists.

Not every structure can be saved. But every story deserves to be documented.

Preservation isn’t just about architecture. It’s about memory. And once memory is gone, there’s nothing left to protect.

More updates soon as we continue building projects centered on restoration, documentation, and community storytelling.

Recovery continues.

I’m back to walking in the boot — slowly, deliberately, and with patience. Not where I want to be yet, but moving forward.

Meanwhile, Kit has now had three Michigan Mustangs Track Club practices, and he continues to impress me every time he steps onto the track.

We even built him a small at-home gym this week so he can train, move, and grow stronger.

Watching your kid find confidence through movement is a powerful reminder: progress doesn’t always look the same — but it still matters.

This week’s videos were all about the spaces built by hand — brick by brick, bottle by bottle, tunnel by tunnel.
So the spotlight naturally falls on the Foundation Collection:

Each piece helps fund The Forever Home Project — restoring the Mary Day House and preserving Pontiac’s architectural heritage.

Wear the history. Support the mission.

Your support helps fund:

Shop the Collection

Shop the Tee

If you want to binge the journey that inspired this newsletter, start here:

🏡 Inside Palmer Woods: Detroit’s Hidden Million-Dollar Mansion Forest
Walk the curved streets, towering trees, and architect-designed mansions that changed how Detroit was built.

🔦 Inside Pontiac’s Secret Tunnels
From church basements to forgotten bowling alleys — a look at the underground Pontiac most people never knew existed.

🧪 Inside Michigan’s Hidden Bottle House: The Strange Home You’ve Never Seen
A one-of-a-kind home built out of bottles, creativity, and stubborn vision.

👉 Watch all three episodes and let me know which story hit you the hardest.

**Watch the Channel

Every view, share, comment, email, and reply helps keep this project moving — and keeps Michigan’s history from fading quietly into the background.

If this email gave you something to think about, do me a favor:

Because…

Every home has a story.
Every city has a secret.
And every Thursday, we uncover both — together.

— Chris
History Loves Company · Pontiac, Michigan

💌 Subscribe to The Stories We Keep →

History Loves Company | Pontiac, Michigan
A portion of all apparel proceeds support The Forever Home Project — restoring homes, rebuilding lives.

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