Louis Kamper

Louis Kamper (March 11, 1861 – February 24, 1953) was an American architect, active in and around Detroit and Wayne County, Michigan, in the United States.

Project range In the early 20th century, with the major development of Detroit's Washington Boulevard launched by the Book brothers, Louis Kamper was called to redesign the street wall of the area. As a result, the boulevard is now lined with several Kamper-designed buildings: the Book Building (1916), the Washington Boulevard Building (1922–23), the Book-Cadillac Hotel (1924), the Book Tower (1926), and the Industrial Building (1928). Other downtown works include the Cadillac Square Building (1918), demolished in 1978, and the Water Board Building (1928), one of his finest skyscrapers.

His residential architectural projects include the Châteauesque style Col. Frank J. Hecker House in Detroit, and the Italian Renaissance Revival style Murray Sales House (1917) in Grosse Pointe, Michigan.

Louis Kamper styled the four architectural sculptures above the Michigan Avenue entrance to the Book-Cadillac Hotel which are, from left to right: Anthony Wayne, Antoine Cadillac, Chief Pontiac, and Robert Navarre.

Kamper-designed buildings All buildings are located in Detroit, unless otherwise indicated. Buildings designed by Louis Kamper include:

Col. Frank J. Hecker House, 1888–1892 Marvin M. Stanton Home ("The Castle"), 1898 Detroit International Fair and Exposition Building, 1889 (structure made entirely of wood) Hugo Scherer summer home, 1898 Eighth Precinct Police Station, 1900–01 Frederick Chambe, 1897–1898 Frank J. Hecker, 1900 Bloomer and Nellie Gill House, Galion, Ohio, 1902–1903 Austin E. Morey, building permit issued 8/18/1903, finished 1904 Arthur E. Barker, building permit issued 12/14/1908, finished 1910 Cornelius Ray Mansion, building permit issued 11/12/1909, finished 1910 James Burgess Book Mansion, building permit issued 9/1/1910, finished 1911 George E Lawson Residence, building permit issued 10/9/1912, finished 1913 Herman Darmstaetter, 1913 Roseland Park Mausoleum, 1914 August P. Kling, building permit issued 12/9/1914, finished 1915 Frank B. Melin, 1915 Book Building, 1916 Murray Sales House, Grosse Pointe, Michigan, 1917 Kamper Residence, building permit issued 4/23/1915, finished 1917 C. Henry Haberkorn, 1917 Cadillac Square Building, 1918 (demolished, 1978) Henry Wiegert, 1921 Kurt Kling, 1921 Clarence J. McLeod, 1922 Herbert V. Book Jr., 1921–1922 Louis N. Hilsendegen, 1922 Washington Boulevard Building, 1922–23 Carlton Plaza Hotel, 1923 (renovated into The Carlton Lofts) Book-Cadillac Hotel, 1924 - four sculptures above the Michigan Avenue entrance Park Avenue House, 1924 Eddystone Building, 1924 Park Avenue Hotel, 1924 (demolished 2015) Book Tower (adjacent to the Book Building), 1926 (A 1929 project for an even taller, 81-story New Book Tower remained unbuilt due to the advent of the Great Depression.)