Talk:SmithGroup

On April 17, 2005, this article was nominated for deletion. The result was keep. See Wikipedia:Votes for deletion/Smith Hinchman & Grylls for a record of the discussion. Mindspillage (spill yours?) 19:37, 1 May 2005 (UTC)

The following works are NRHP-listed and credited to "Smith,Hinchman & Grylls" or variations, per the March 2009 version of the National Register Information System:

• Central United Methodist Church, Woodward Ave. E. Adams St. Detroit MI (Smith,Hinchman & Grylls)
• Edwin Denby High School, 12800 Kelly Rd. Detroit MI (Smith, Hinchman & Grylls)
• Detroit-Columbia Central Office Building, 52 Seldon Detroit MI (Smith, Hinchman, & Grylls)
• One or more works in Eastern Market Historic District, Bounded by Gratiot Ave., Riopelle, Rivard, and Division Sts. Detroit MI (Smith,Hinchman & Grylls)
• One or more works in Eastern Michigan Asylum Historic District, 140 Elizabeth Lake Rd. Pontiac (MI (Smith,Hinchman & Grylls)
• Guardian Building, 500 Griswold St. Detroit MI (Smith,Hinchman & Grylls)
• League of Catholic Women Building, 100 Parsons Detroit (MI (Smith, Hinchman & Grylls)
• Meadow Brook Farms, 480 S. Adams Rd. Rochester MI (Smith,Hinchman & Grylls)
• Michigan Bell Building, 309 S. Washington Saginaw MI (Smith,Hinchman & Grylls)
• Pease Auditorium, College Pl. Ypsilanti MI (Smith,Hinchman & Grylls)
• One or more works in Piquette Avenue Industrial Historic District, Roughly bounded by Woodward, Harper, Hastings and the Grand Trunk Western Railroad Line Detroit MI (Smith, Hinchman and Grylls, et al)

• See Ford Piquette Avenue Plant.

• The Players, 3321 E. Jefferson Ave. Detroit MI (Smith,Hinchman & Grylls)
• One or more works in Pontiac Commercial Historic District, (Boundary Increase) Roughly E. Huron St. and S. Saginaw St. within loop of Wide Track Dr., Pontiac, MI (Smith,Hinchman & Grylls)
• Saint Paul Catholic Church Complex, 157 Lake Shore Rd. Grosse Pointe Farms MI (Smith, Hinchman & Grylls)
• Wilson Theatre, 350 Madison Ave., Detroit, MI (Smith,Hinchman & Grylls)

I wonder if these works are all included in the article; they are all notable. --doncram 00:32, 5 June 2011 (UTC)

An editor removed this Talk page section for no reason I can understand. I am restoring it. There are items here which are not yet included in the article, and the Talk page is a perfect place to suggest their being added. --doncram 14:42, 5 June 2011 (UTC)

I've added checkmarks for the ones that are already mentioned in the article. Next time, you should consider doing this cross-check yourself, instead of doing a data dump and asking someone else to do the work. --Elkman ^(Elkspeak) 17:44, 5 June 2011 (UTC)

Thanks for adding the checkmarks. Your criticism is absurd, however; it was a fine contribution to provide this list here. I notice that in several edits you have refined what you check off above, which started with 6 items checked off suggesting that 5 individually listed NRHP places are not included in the article. I see you checking off more once you added an item to the article itself, and making a correction after identifying the NRHP name is not the same as an article name for one. The list above is serving well as a worklist/checklist. --doncram 18:12, 5 June 2011 (UTC)

First, I want to recognize my conflict of interest as I work at SmithGroup. I understand the community guidelines and the changes I am proposing are merely in order, format, and removing the linked cities (seemed excessive), as well as two additional projects. Please let me know if anyone takes issue with these proposed changes.

2000s:

Zeiss Michigan Quality Excellence Center, Wixom, Michigan, 2022

Promega Corporation, Kornberg Center, Fitchburg, Wisconsin, 2021.

California Institute of Technology - Chen Neuroscience Research Building, Pasadena, California, 2020

California Pacific Medical Center - Van Ness Campus, San Francisco, California, 2019

University of Michigan Museum of Natural History, Ann Arbor, Michigan, 2019

DC Water Headquarters, Washington, DC, 2018. The first building in the United States to use a wastewater heat recovery system for heating and cooling +

University of Texas at Dallas Engineering Building, Dallas, Texas, 2018

Museum of the Bible, Washington, DC, 2017

University of Pennsylvania, Stephen A. Levin Building, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 2016

Brock Environmental Center, Virginia Beach, Virginia, 2014

University of Illinois, Electrical and Computer Engineering Building, Urbana, Illinois, 2014

GateWay Community College, Integrated Education Building, Phoenix, Arizona, 2012

Chandler City Hall, Chandler, Arizona, 2010

Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory Molecular Foundry, Berkeley, California, 2006

Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago Detroit Branch, Detroit, Michigan, 2004

Visteon Village, Corporate Headquarters, Detroit, Michigan, 2004

Consumers Energy, Corporate Headquarters, Jackson, Michigan, 2003

Discovery Communications World Headquarters, Silver Spring, Maryland, 2003

Edward H. McNamara Terminal Detroit Metropolitan Airport, Romulus, Michigan, 2002

University of California, San Francisco Mission Bay Genentech Hall, San Francisco, California, 2002

Ford Field, Detroit, Michigan, 2002. Home of the NFL Detroit Lions.

National Academies Building Headquarters, Washington, DC, 2002

Phelps Dodge Corporate Headquarters, Phoenix, Arizona, 2001.

Chesapeake Bay Foundation Headquarters, Annapolis, Maryland, 2001. The first building in the United States to earn a LEED Platinum certification.

Comerica Park, Detroit, Michigan, 2000. Home of the MLB Detroit Tigers.

1800-1900s:

Chrysler World Headquarters, Auburn Hills, Michigan, 1996

Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Urbana, Illinois, 1989

Defense Intelligence Agency Headquarters, Washington, DC, 1984

Eli Lilly and Company Biomedical Research Center, Indianapolis, Indiana, 1984

IBM Corporation Manufacturing and Engineering Complex, Tucson, Arizona, 1979

Joe Louis Arena, Detroit, Michigan, 1979. Former home of the NHL Detroit Red Wings.

Hart Plaza, Detroit, Michigan, 1978. Including the Dodge Fountain designed by Isamu Noguchi.

Harper Hospital in the Detroit Medical Center, Detroit, Michigan, 1970

Kmart Corporation International Headquarters, Troy, Michigan, 1969

National Institutes of Health Research Laboratories, Bethesda, Maryland, 1968

Whiting Auditorium, Flint, Michigan, 1967

1001 Woodward, Detroit, Michigan, 1965. The former First Federal Building.

GM Tech Center, Warren, Michigan, 1955. [Architect of Record]

Pease Auditorium, Eastern Michigan University, Ypsilanti, Michigan, 1941.

Rackham School of Graduate Studies, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, 1938

Detroit Public Library, Detroit, Michigan, 1932

Denby High School, Detroit, Michigan, 1930. Architect: Wirt C. Rowland

Pershing High School, Detroit, Michigan, 1930. Architect: Wirt C. Rowland

Guardian Building, Detroit, Michigan, 1929. Architect: Wirt C. Rowland. Current home of SmithGroup's Detroit office.

School and convent buildings, Saint Paul Catholic Church, Grosse Pointe Farms, Michigan

Music Hall Center for the Performing Arts, Detroit, Michigan, 1928. Architect: William E. Kapp

Intramural Sports Building, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, 1928. Architect: Theodore J. Hinchman.

Penobscot Building, Detroit, Michigan, 1928. Architect: Wirt C. Rowland

Michigan Bell (now AT&T), Detroit-Columbia Central Office Building, Detroit, Michigan, 1927. Architect: Wirt C. Rowland

Kelvinator Administration Building, Detroit, Michigan, 1927. Architect: Amedeo Leone. Known as Plymouth Road Office Complex (PROC).

League of Catholic Women Building, Detroit, Michigan, 1927

Country Club of Detroit, Grosse Pointe Farms, Michigan. 1927. Architect: Amedeo Leone

J. L. Hudson Department Store and Addition, Detroit, Michigan, 1946. Demolished in 1998

Jefferson Avenue Presbyterian Church, Indian Village, Detroit, 1926. Architect: Wirt C. Rowland

Meadow Brook Hall, Rochester, Michigan, 1926. Architect: William E. Kapp.

Parke-Davis Administration Building, Detroit, Michigan, 1926. Architect: Amedeo Leone

Bankers Trust Building, Detroit, Michigan, 1925. Architect: Wirt C. Rowland

The Players Clubhouse, Detroit, Michigan, 1925. Architect: William E. Kapp

Buhl Building, Detroit, Michigan, 1925. Architect: Wirt C. Rowland

Mistersky Power Plant, Detroit, Michigan, 1925. Architect: Amedeo Leone

Yost Ice Arena, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, 1923. Architect: T. J. Hinchman. Formerly Yost Field House.

Fyfe Building, Detroit, Michigan, 1919. Architect: Amedeo Leone

Hilberry Theatre, Detroit, Michigan, 1917. Architects: Field, Hinchman and Smith. Originally the First Church of Christ Scientist.

Central Power Plant, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, 1914

Dodge Main Factory, Detroit, Michigan, 1910

Ford Piquette Avenue Plant, Detroit, Michigan, 1904

Detroit Opera House, Detroit, Michigan, 1868

Central United Methodist Church, Detroit, Michigan, 1866

All-Things-Design3 (talk) 21:56, 9 February 2026 (UTC)

Hi, All-Things-Design3. Thanks for disclosing your conflict of interest. If you add {{Edit CoI}} here, uninvolved editors will be alerted to the changes you want to make and can review them. But you will need to provide references (not external links) to reliable, independent sources for anything you want to add. WP:BOSS may be helpful to you. Tacyarg (talk) 22:43, 9 February 2026 (UTC)

{{Edit CoI}}

Proposed revisions:

SmithGroup is an architectural, engineering and planning firm. Established in 1853 by architect Sheldon Smith, SmithGroup is the longest continually operating architecture and engineering firm in the United States that is not a wholly owned subsidiary.

As of 2025, SmithGroup ranks #7 among the top 100 architecture engineering firms according to Building Design + Construction. SmithGroup ranked as the 15th in World Architecture 100 of the world’s largest practices ranked by the number of fee-earning architects they employ.

The firm is composed of client industry-focused practices serving Cities, Corporate, Commercial & Civic, Cultural, Health, Higher Education, and Science and Technology. Other markets include Data Centers, Forensics, Hospitality, Mixed-Use, Multifamily Residential, Parks & Public Spaces, Senior Living, and Waterfronts.

The firm has offices in 20 cities: Ann Arbor, Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Cleveland, Dallas, Denver, Detroit, Houston, Los Angeles, Madison, Milwaukee, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Pittsburgh, Portland, Sacramento, San Diego, San Francisco and Washington, D.C. All-Things-Design3 (talk) 14:55, 10 February 2026 (UTC)

The user below has a request that an edit be made to SmithGroup. That user has an actual or apparent conflict of interest. The requested edits backlog is very high. Please be extremely patient. There are currently 414 requests waiting for review. Please read the instructions for the parameters used by this template for accepting and declining them, and review the request below and make the edit if it is well sourced, neutral, and follows other Wikipedia guidelines and policies.

SmithGroup is an architectural, engineering and planning firm. Established in 1853 by architect Sheldon Smith, SmithGroup is the longest continually operating architecture and engineering firm in the United States that is not a wholly owned subsidiary.(Source already linked in current version).

As of 2025, SmithGroup ranks #7 among the top 100 architecture engineering firms according to Building Design + Construction. SmithGroup ranked as the 15th in World Architecture 100 of the world’s largest practices ranked by the number of fee-earning architects they employ.

The firm is composed of client industry-focused practices serving Cities, Corporate, Commercial & Civic, Cultural, Health, Higher Education, and Science and Technology. Other markets include Data Centers, Forensics, Hospitality, Mixed-Use, Multifamily Residential, Parks & Public Spaces, Senior Living, and Waterfronts.

The firm has offices in 20 cities: Ann Arbor, Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Cleveland, Dallas, Denver, Detroit, Houston, Los Angeles, Madison, Milwaukee, Philadelphia, Phoenix, Pittsburgh, Portland, Sacramento, San Diego, San Francisco and Washington, D.C. All-Things-Design3 (talk) 15:09, 10 February 2026 (UTC)

Part of an edit requested by an editor with a conflict of interest has been implemented. [see below]

Founded in 1853 by Sheldon Smith, SmithGroup is the longest continually operating architecture and engineering firm in the United States. He moved his practice from Ohio to Michigan in 1855 to be a part of the burgeoning opportunity in the growing city of Detroit. Through three generations – Sheldon Smith (1818-1868) followed by his son, Mortimer L. Smith (1840-1896), and grandson, Fred L. Smith (1862-1941) – the Smiths and their successors made an imprint on Detroit, the Midwest and beyond. Mortimer Smith took over the practice after Sheldon Smith’s passing in 1868. In addition to his architectural skills, Mortimer L. Smith was an artist, contributing to Detroit’s arts community.

Fred L. Smith assumed the leadership role in 1896, at the passing of his father, Mortimer L. Smith, and continued to lead the firm for the next 45 years. At this time, Fred brought in two University of Michigan College of Engineering graduates, Henry G. Field and Theodore H. Hinchman, Jr. Modern Michigan Source; Historic Structure Source.

The firm's name was changed to Field, Hinchman & Smith in 1903, and became one of the first integrated design firms. In 1907 H.J. Maxwell Grylls, a British-trained architect, joined the firm, and the name changed to Smith, Hinchman and Grylls (SH+G) - a name that would be with the organization for most of the 20th century – from 1907 to 2000.U Michigan Source

In the 1920s, Smith, Hinchman and Grylls, and architect Wirt C. Rowland, designed some of Detroit’s most notable skyscrapers. In 1945, Minoru Yamasaki, American architect best known for designing the original World Trade Center, joined the firm as Director of Design.    

The 1970s and 1980s represent years of growth through mergers and geographic expansion. In 1971, the firm merged with Johnson, Johnson & Roy (JJR), expanding the firm’s capabilities in landscape architecture, civil engineering and environmental science. In 1974, the firm established an office in Washington, D.C. During the same era, an office was established in Phoenix, Arizona.

In 1996, Keyes, Condon, Florance, an award-winning Washington, DC firm merged with Smith, Hinchman and Grylls. Smith, Hinchman and Grylls next merged with Stone Marraccini & Patterson of San Francisco and Los Angeles in 1998.

In 2000, Tobey + Davis, Reston, Virginia, joined Smith, Hinchman and Grylls. In 2000, the firm changed its name to SmithGroup, emphasizing the firm's evolution from several regional organizations to a national practice. In 2009, SmithGroup merged with F&S Partners. In 2011, the firm incorporated its sister firm, JJR, into its name, becoming SmithGroupJJR.

As of August 1, 2018, the firm changed its name back to SmithGroup and acquired Boston-based healthcare design firm, TRO, followed by the acquisition of higher education campus strategy and analytics firm, Paulien & Associates in Denver in 2019. This same era saw the addition of offices in San Diego (2017), Pittsburgh (2018) and Milwaukee (2019). Expansion continued in Portland, Houston, Atlanta and Sacramento in 2022 and Cleveland in 2023, bringing to the firm to 1,600 people spanning 20 locations. All-Things-Design3 (talk) 15:34, 10 February 2026 (UTC)

Hi, All-Things-Design3 - you are putting in external links, not references. Please see referencing for beginners. Tacyarg (talk) 15:55, 10 February 2026 (UTC)

Yes, the citing capabilities in the Talk tab aren't as intuitive as they are when editing the page directly. I will review the links sent. Thanks ~2026-92017-4 (talk) 17:39, 10 February 2026 (UTC)

I like the idea of a history section, but some of the paragraphs above are not supported by the citations provided in the paragraph itself (but may be supported via other citations?). I will attempt to adapt the suggested language above. Andrew Jameson (talk) 00:34, 12 March 2026 (UTC)

I have incorporated some of the section above into the article. I eliminated some of the suggested changes that I felt were puffery ("the Smiths and their successors made an imprint on Detroit, the Midwest and beyond") or minutia (adding offices and minor mergers). However, if you feel these are more deserving of inclusion, please add another edit request with specifics. Thank you for using the COI edit request process. Andrew Jameson (talk) 01:26, 12 March 2026 (UTC)

Thank you Andrew for your attention to this. ~2026-15955-27 (talk) 15:46, 13 March 2026 (UTC)