Last Updated on December 17, 2023
Besides the undeniable influence on music and pop culture, what do Diana Ross, Smokey Robinson, and Motown music like have in common?
They all got their start in an American Foursquare home…..
Diana Ross
The childhood home of Diana Ross, recently went on the market in Detroit, Michigan. Diana lived in this house until her teenage years in the late 1950s. And from the looks of the picture of the exterior, it appears to be a traditional Foursquare home (source: zillow.com).
According to Zillow, this two-family house located at 633 Belmont Street in Detroit was built in 1913 contains a 2,000 ft2 house on a ~3,900 ft2 lot. Interior pictures (below) show that the house has been stripped of character. BUT it was recently upgraded with new doors, windows, wiring, plumbing, insulation, and drywall.
Both Architectural Digest and the Detroit Free Press reported that the house was bought in May 2017 for $1,800 by a house-flip investor who didn’t realize the house’s connection to Diana and importance to R&B music history.
Smokey Robinson
While living in this house, Diana reportedly met another future Motown star, William “Smokey” Robinson Jr., when she was 8 years old. He was about 7 years her senior and lived up the street at 581 Belmont Street, which also appears to be a Foursquare home. (Source: mlive.com with Travis R. Wright)
Can you picture young versions of Diana Ross and Smokey Robinson running around the open floor plan characteristic of their modest Foursquares, singing and dreaming about being famous singers.
Both Diana and Smokey got their big break in the music industry with the Motown record label founded by Berry Gordon. And the location of that record’s label first headquarters? You guessed it – a Foursquare house.
Motown Headquarters
Motown founder Berry Gordy purchased a Foursquare in the late 1950s (source: Wikipedia). He converted the existing photography studio on the first floor in the back of the house into a small recording studio and lived on the second floor with his family. Motown’s future heavy-hitters including the Four Tops, The Temptations and many others that recorded in that tiny studio, catapulting their dreams into reality and shaping the sound of Motown. As the record label grew, Berry acquired six neighboring houses (some also Foursquares) to handle the record label’s success.
In the late 1960s, Berry moved the headquarters, but the original Foursquare stayed in the family. It became a home for Berry’s sister and then-husband Marvin Gaye, yet another Motown superstar.
In 1985, the Foursquare was converted into the current Motown Museum (aka Hitsville U.S.A), dedicated to the legacy of the record label, its artists, and its music, and is one of the top tourist destinations in Detroit. Recently (December 2017) the museum announced an impressive $50 million dollar expansion, but staying true to its roots, the Foursquare houses will remain. These houses will remain dignified symbols of the rise of one of the most influential record labels in American music.
Interested in more more about American Foursquares? Check out these related posts:
- The What, Who, Why and Where of the Foursquare
- Ready for a Road Trip? American Foursquare Bed & Breakfasts and Vacation Rentals
- 16 Foursquare Blogs to Follow and be Inspired
- Celebrities Who Grew Up in Foursquares
- American Foursquare House In Need of a Lift!
Also follow me on Instagram for Foursquare Friday (#foursquarefriday) is a recurring feature with tidbits of info about the American Foursquare style of home. What to learn more? Click here.
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