Built as part of the Detroit Arsenal at Dearbornville in 1833, the Commandant’s Quarters is the oldest building in Dearborn standing at its original location.
Hours:
Friday, 10am-2pm or by appointment
21950 Michigan Avenue, Dearborn, MI 48124
Admission:
Free
Donations Greatly Appreciated
The Commandant’s Quarters is the flagship museum of the Dearborn Historical Museum. When you visit, you will find exhibits and galleries that cover the history of Dearborn from Native American settlement all the way to the present day.
On the first floor, you will find an exhibit room dedicated to early settlement in Dearborn as well as Native American life and early industries, like brick manufacturing. 
The 1800-1900 gallery at the Commandant’s Quarters. 
Twork Bros. sign and other Dearborn artifacts make up the the 1800-1900 gallery at the Commandant’s Quarters. 
The 1800-1900 gallery at the Commandant’s Quarters. 
Our Dearborn Schools gallery features artifacts from all Dearborn Schools, covering nearly 200 years of education in the city. 
Our early 1900s room features artifacts from Ford Motor Company and World War I. 
Our early 1900s room features artifacts from Ford Motor Company and World War I. 
Artifacts from Dearborn Police and Fire Departments are featured in the second floor hallway. 
Our Midcentury exhibit gallery features artifacts from World War II and discusses former Mayor Orville Hubbard. 
Our Midcentury exhibit gallery features artifacts from World War II and discusses former Mayor Orville Hubbard. 
The Arab American heritage gallery features artifacts and stories of Dearborn’s early Arab American citizens. 
The Modern room covers the history of Dearborn to the present. 
The Modern room covers the history of Dearborn to the present.
Learn more about the history of the Commandant’s Quarters and the Detroit Arsenal below
Timeline of the Commandant’s Quarters
1832
In 1832, it was necessary for the Detroit Arsenal, a complex for storing and repairing weapons and munitions, to be relocated outside of Detroit due to the city’s population growth. A small, sparsely-populated area outside of Detroit on military reserve land near where the old Sauk Trail crossed the Rouge River was chosen as the new home for the Arsenal and came to be known as Dearbornville.
The name “Dearborn” was selected in honor of Revolutionary War hero General Henry Dearborn by the Arsenal’s first commandant, Colonel Joshua Howard. It was at this time that the two-story, red-bricked, Commandant’s Quarters, was created.
The location that was chosen was strategic, allowing for close proximity to Detroit, as well as to military personnel both to the south and west of the arsenal. The Arsenal was not a defensive fortification, nor was it a small installation. It included eleven buildings and a large parade ground which was surrounded by a brick wall and gates.
1835-1836
The Toledo War
The Detroit Arsenal buildings serve as the only surviving structures in the Toledo War conflict of 1835. From this facility, weapons were issued to Michigan militia men who were being sent to the Toledo area to fight over the border with Ohio. The war was largely a bloodless boundary dispute between Ohio and the Michigan Territory.
H.C. Carey 1822 Map of the Michigan Territory Both sides mobilized militias after Michigan passed the Pains and Penalties Act to arrest Ohio surveyors. The conflict was resolved when Congress intervened, giving Toledo to Ohio in exchange for granting Michigan statehood and the mineral-rich Upper Peninsula.
1837-1838
The Patriot War
The Commandant’s Quarters is also one of the only surviving American military buildings that was active during the “Patriot War.” In 1837, following the Toledo War and Michigan’s statehood, residents of both upper Canada and the United States, of Irish descent or birth, and United States citizens who had moved to Canada planned to detach the southern Ontario peninsula lying between the Michigan frontier and the Niagara frontier from Canada and attach it to the United States. Known as “Patriots,” they operated out of secret groups known as “Hunters Lodges” organized in Michigan.
Painting depicting the Patriots attack on Windsor by C. H. Foster, 1977. The Patriots plotted to capture the United States Arsenal at Dearborn and take possession of the arms stored there. A company of the Michigan Militia was assigned guard duty at the arsenal to stop a possible attack. The war ended in 1838 with the failed Battle of Windsor campaign.
1839
A powder magazine was constructed 200 feet west in 1839 (what later became the McFadden-Ross house). Below the magazine, on the Rouge River, there was a dock (Thompson’s), which was used during high water to bring heavy loads to the magazine and Arsenal.
1861-1865
The American Civil War
During the American Civil War, the Detroit Arsenal at Dearborn was a key facility for mobilizing and supplying newly created volunteer military units.
The Arsenal acted as a storage facility for weapons and munitions as well as a campsite for troops travelling across northern states. At any given time, there were usually around a dozen men assigned to the Arsenal. However, units were often stationed at the Arsenal while being equipped. Soldiers had tents set up on the parade ground and numerous other parts of the Arsenal property. Eight men of the Ordnance Department were regularly on duty at the Arsenal cataloging weapons. Unused weapons were stored at the Arsenal after the American Civil War in 1865.
1875
By 1875, the frontier was moving west and the Arsenal of the Northwest Territory was no longer needed. It was sold to private citizens, and served the community in many ways.
The Arsenal’s Armory was converted into a clothing factory known as Arna Mills until it was destroyed in a fire in 1910.
The Second Officers’ Quarters was replaced with Adams Junior High and the Salisbury School Training Center. Finally the Smith’s and Carpenter’s shops were converted into parts of Dearborn’s early auto manufacturing industry. A lot of the less-prominent buildings have now been made into parking lots.
Today
Before becoming a part of the Museum, the Commandant’s Quarters was used as a police station, a kindergarten, and a village hall.
Today, the Commandant’s Quarters serves as a reminder of Dearborn’s early military and frontier history. Come see for yourself the immense changes that Dearborn has undergone over time.
