Roosevelt Warehouse
The Roosevelt Warehouse (also Detroit Public Schools Book Depository) is a vacant building in Detroit on 14th & Marantette street. It is understood to have been designed by Albert Kahn and that it was originally a Post Office before being used as the Public Schools' surplus equipment depository.[1] It is currently owned by Michigan property billionaire Matty Moroun.[2]
History
The building caught fire in 1987. The fire and efforts to extinguish it heavily damaged much of the supplies inside, which included science and sports equipment, scissors, crayons, and books, many still unused and in their original wrapping. After the fire the building was abandoned, along with all of the equipment, much of which was undamaged and still usable. The reason why undamaged books and equipment were not salvaged by Detroit Public Schools is unknown.
Over the years the building and its contents has been heavily vandalized and further damaged by scrappers. The building remains standing, the decaying materials within, as of January 2012.[2]
In 2009 a frozen human corpse was found in the basement in a lift-shaft. It took 24 hours before the authorities attended to scene.[2] Previously easy to enter, the building has since been boarded up.[3] The only remaining and existing access point to the building exists by way of a tunnel which runs under 15th Street, between the depository and the property of Michigan Central Station (both owned by Matty Maroun).
References
External links
- The book depository at Detroiturbex.com
- A video tour of the warehouse soon after the body was found in the elevator shaft
Coordinates: 42°19′42″N 83°4′32″W / 42.32833°N 83.07556°W