A Look Inside This Abandoned Detroit Copper and Brass Plant: 1899

WARNING: Under no circumstances should you enter this property. By doing so you risk bodily harm and/or prosecution for trespassing on private property.

In April 1880, Detroit Copper and Brass Rolling Mills was incorporated, with Christian Buhl as its first president. According to official papers, the company was formed to “manufacture sheet copper and brass, copper rivets, copper and brass wire, copper bars, bottoms and other articles in that line.”

Six years later, the original factory was put up for sale – not because they were failing, but because they were building and moving to better facilities. By 1890, the new structures were ready. With their success, they went all out and began hiring left and right. Around 1895, the company had its own baseball team, cementing their foothold in the community.

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They didn’t stop there. In March 1899, proceedings began for yet another, extra facility...this time on McKinstry Avenue. The new location was right next to the Delray section of Detroit – known for its bawdy, raucous residents and factory workers. In the early 1900s, several break-ins and thefts happened at the plant. Gun shootouts with plant watchmen happened on more than one occasion.

It wasn’t just the area that was dangerous – working at the factory was another entity in itself. In 1903, a couple of guys got some body parts crushed: a left arm completely crushed between two rollers, and another one had his right thumb “crushed to a jelly.” Many, many other gruesome accidents occurred...not just broken, crushed, and smashed arms, legs, and other body parts, but deaths as well. Many hands and fingers were also lost.

The company was purchased in 1927 to another company and over the years it was used as a warehouse. The structure became extremely dangerous and polluted, making it uninviting for trespassers...but that didn’t stop ‘em. The property was up for sale in 2020.

Over 100 years ago, Detroit Copper & Brass Rolling Mills supplied the most output of copper and brass in Michigan and was a vital part in making Detroit "the city that put America on wheels."

The gallery below takes you inside the crumbling remains of this historic Detroit facility, located at 235 S. McKinstry Street...thanks to Pinetop Jackson for the images...