Historic buildings, Ann Arbor, Michigan / by Marjorie Reade and Susan Wineberg.

111 West Liberty Street
Ludwig Walz Grocery 1880
This late commercial Italianate structure was built in 1880 as the grocery and
saloon of Ludwig Walz. Born in Germany in 1843, Walz came to Ann Arbor
when he was two years old. He apprenticed to confectioner Herman Schlotterbeck and then entered business
himself. Walz remained here until
1892 when his son-in-law, Sid
Millard, converted the building to
a printing shop.
Until the 1970s the Millard Press
was run from this address and
from a small addition built to
the east in the 1890s. One of
Millard's biggest customers was
the University of Michigan's Athletic Department. A wall of autographed photographs attested to
his popularity with the home
teams and Millard painted both
buildings bright blue to show
where his sympathies were. Upon
Millard's retirement, neighbors
Carolyn and Joseph Arcure
bought the building and sensitively restored it, even retaining an
old bake oven in the basement. In
1991 the Ann Arbor Historic
District Commission presented the Arcures with a Special Merit Award for
restoring the cornice using ornamental brackets from the demolished home of
William S. Maynard at Main and William Streets.
The building with its fine restoration, is one of the best downtown examples of
the late Italianate commercial style. It is characterized by tall narrow windows
with segmental arches and keystones, a bracketed cornice and varying planes of
brick corbelling under the cornice. The original storefront is one of very few
remaining examples from this period. Attractive flats with flower-filled rear
decks occupy the two upper floors.
IHP

92

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