Alden B. Dow

Beginning in the 1930s, he designed more than 70 residences and dozens of churches, schools, civic and art centers, and commercial buildings during his 30+ year career.

He attended the University of Michigan to study engineering in preparation to join his father's chemical manufacturing company.

After working for a year and a half with the architectural firm of Frantz and Spence in nearby Saginaw, he and Vada studied with architect Frank Lloyd Wright at his Taliesin studio in Spring Green, Wisconsin, for the summer in 1933.

Following his brief ("a few months" [1]) apprenticeship with Frank Lloyd Wright, Dow opened his own studio in 1934 in Midland.

The residential layout was notable for its lack of straight streets; Dow felt that winding roads would provide "something of a surprise around each turn.

[4] In 1963, he changed the business name to Alden B. Dow Associates, Inc., to reflect taking on more employees to accommodate growth.

Its narrow windows (all located above the first floor) and fortress-like exterior led to a campus rumor that it was designed in the wake of the student activism of the 1960s to be riot-proof.

[5] As time passed, Dow began to delve into other types of architecture, designing many commercial and community buildings, especially in and around his hometown of Midland.

Housed in a 7500 square foot custom building, designed by Alden B. Dow AIA in 1955, complete with two floors of gift ware excellence and even a large indoor fish .