[3] The arsenal's main purpose was to serve as a supply depot for the United States army; storing, maintaining, and repairing arms and ammunition.

[2] The first commandant of the arsenal, Colonel Joshua Howard, proposed naming the surrounding area after Major General Henry Dearborn, a New Hampshire physician and hero of the war of Independence.

Sawn lumber was prepared in Detroit and barged up the Rouge River to a specially constructed dock, and slate for the roofs was imported from New York.

[3] These eleven buildings were the following:[6] The powder magazine was located outside the walled square, approximately 300 yards to the east.

[6] After 1877, the armory was adapted as a civic center named the "Liberty Hall," hosting events such as dancing, lodge meetings, and roller skating.

The structure was used as a lumber mill and later by the Detroit-Dearborn Motor Car Company and by a paint shop.

[6] The last remaining structure of the original eleven, the commandant's quarters, served as a social and cultural center in Dearborn until 1875.

[2] The Commandant's Quarters is a two-story, square, red-brick building on a raised piano nobile.

The low pitched hipped roof is covered with slate, and has gabled dormers and a balustrade.

[2] A two-story verandah with square columns extends around the rear and sides of the building, which was recreated in the 1970s to the original design.

There are four bedrooms upstairs off the center hall, and a large walk up attic which was finished as a servants quarters.