Detroit Mansion Editorial Image

The Hecker Smiley Mansion on Woodward Avenue in downtown Detroit. The 28,000 square-foot French chateau-inspired mansion was modeled after the Chateau de Chenonceau in the Loire Valley of France. The turreted mansion was designed by Louis Kamper and built in 1892 by railroad tycoon Colonel Frank J. Hecker as his private residence. Hecker lived in the home until his death in 1927, after which it remained with the Hecker family but was used as a boarding house for college students. Between 1947, it was in the possession of Smiley Brothers Music Company and used as its headquarters. In 1991 it was bought by Charfoos and Christensen and extensively restored. It's currently being used as law offices and the Danish consulate. Former Presidents Rutherford B. Hayes and William McKinley stayed there and Joe Biden recently visited.