Selfridge Field, Building Nos. 240, 244, 245 & 251, 240, 244, & 245 Birch Street & 251 Wagner Street; Harrison Township, Mount Clemens, Macomb County, MI

Significance: These buildings are representative of the Georgian Revival architecture present through the cantonment area, with simple porches and restrained details such as corbelling, window hoods and returns. All were built from standardized plans and all played a central role in the lives of non-commissioned personnel stationed at the base. They also are excellent examples of the architectural expression that defined the character of the Cantonment area of the base, a style flourishing in the United States at the nation's Sesquicentennial and inspired by Rockefeller's Williamsburg re-creation. The architectural and functional "core" of Selfridge, the original base, constructed prior to World War II, presents a virtually unique resource in Michigan. Few airfields that were exclusively military in genesis were built in the state and Selfridge is the oldest and best preserved example of its type. The concentration of brick structures built in the cantonment area of the base from the mid-1920s into the early 1930s form a cohesive assemblage.
Survey number: HAER MI-116-I
Building/structure dates: 1934 Initial Construction
Building/structure dates: 1993 Subsequent Work