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49-662: GM Building may refer to: Cadillac Place in Detroit, commonly known as the GM Building General Motors Building (New York) , commonly known as the GM Building GM Building (Mobile) Topics referred to by the same term [REDACTED] This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the title GM Building . If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change

98-550: A 20-year lease agreement approved in 1998. At the end of the lease, the State had the option to purchase the structure for $ 1. In 2011 the Michigan Economic Development Corporation (State of Michigan) purchased the building. The building's 2000-2002 renovation, to house State offices, was one of the nation's largest historic renovation projects. When the renovation project was completed it

147-480: A lawsuit against a lawyer in Castelsarrasin that caused him financial difficulties. In addition, he had lost financial support following the death of Cardinal Mazarin and suffered the current intolerance against Protestants. Laumet may have immigrated illegally, as historians have not found his name on any passenger list of ships departing from a French port. In 1683, Antoine Laumet arrived at Port Royal ,

196-501: A lawyer in the Parliament of Toulouse . In 1652 Jean was appointed lieutenant to the judge of Saint-Nicolas-de-la-Grave by Cardinal Mazarin . He was appointed as a judge in 1664. Antoine's mother, Jeanne Péchagut, was the daughter of a merchant and landowner. La Mothe's adult correspondence reveals that his youth included rigorous study at a Jesuit institution where he learned theology, the law, agriculture, botany and zoology. In

245-498: A modest beginning in Acadia in 1683 as an explorer, trapper, and a trader of alcohol and furs, achieving various positions of political importance in the colony. He was the commander of Fort de Buade in St. Ignace, Michigan , in 1694. In 1701, he founded Fort Pontchartrain du Détroit (which became the city of Detroit ); he was commandant of the fort until 1710. Between 1710 and 1716, he

294-605: A permanent headquarters in Detroit for the company he formed in 1908. The corporation purchased the block between Cass and Second on West Grand Boulevard and removed the 48 structures from the site to begin work. Groundbreaking was held June 2, 1919, and the Cass Avenue wing was ready for occupancy in November 1920 while the remainder of the building was under construction. The building was originally named for Durant, but an internal power struggle led to his ouster in 1921 and

343-801: A record of service he filled out in 1675, he said that he had enlisted in the military as a cadet at the age of 17 in the Dampierre regiment, in Charleroi , nowadays Belgium. Two years later in personal letters, however, he reported that he had been an officer in the Clérambault regiment in Thionville , and in 1682 he had joined the Albret regiment, in Thionville. At the age of 25, Antoine Laumet fled from France for North America. His father lost

392-464: A ship owned by his brothers-in-law Guyon. In 1689, he was sent on an expedition in the vicinity of Boston. Upon his return, he asked the governor of Acadia, Louis-Alexandre des Friches de Méneval , for a job as notary, to bring in a minimum income; his request was turned down. Then, Cadillac was introduced to the governor Louis de Buade de Frontenac in Quebec, who sent him on an exploratory mission along

441-698: Is the first document that records his new identity. He identified as " Antoine de Lamothe, écuyer, sieur de Cadillac ", and signed as " De Lamothe Launay ". Like many immigrants, he took advantage of emigrating to the New World to create a new identity, perhaps to conceal the reasons that drove him from France. This new identity " ne sort pas de son sac " ("I did not create this identity out of nowhere"), as he wrote later. Antoine Laumet likely remembered Sylvestre d'Esparbes de Lussan de Gout, baron of Lamothe-Bardigues , lord of Cadillac , Launay and Le Moutet ; adviser to

490-622: The Bastille for five months. They were released in 1718, and Cadillac was decorated with the Order of Saint Louis to reward his 30 years of loyal services. He settled in the paternal home, where he dealt with his parents' estate. He also made many trips to Paris to have his rights to the concession on the straits recognized. He prolonged his stay in Paris in 1721, giving another general power of attorney to his wife to sign documents in his absence. He

539-615: The Cadillac auto company and paid homage to him by using his name for their company and his self-created armorial bearings as its logo in 1902. Various places bear his name in America, in particular Cadillac Mountain in Maine and the town of Cadillac, Michigan . He was widely hailed as a hero until the 1950s and the rise of liberal scholarship, but more recent writers have criticized him. One, W. J. Eccles, claims that "he most definitely

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588-673: The Chevrolet Central Office . In 2009 when the Argonaut Building was sold, a fourth-floor pedestrian bridge connecting the two was removed and the Annex facade was restored. Between 2000 and 2002, the General Motors Building was thoroughly renovated to house the State of Michigan offices. Architect Eric J. Hill participated in the redevelopment which was headed by Albert Kahn and Associates,

637-564: The Illinois Country (Upper Louisiana), where they claimed to have discovered a copper mine, although there is no copper ore in that area. They established a farm and founded the settlement of St. Philippe on the east side of the Mississippi River. Cadillac directed the first mining of lead in present-day Missouri at what is now called Mine La Motte on the west side of the river. The French brought in slaves to work at

686-563: The New Center Building . They allow employees and visitors to traverse between the three buildings without going outdoors into inclement weather. To the south of the main building is the five-story Annex which served as the original home of General Motors Research Laboratory . In 1930, the laboratories moved across Milwaukee Avenue to the Art Deco Argonaut Building . For many years after the Annex housed

735-516: The English admiral William Phips had seized the city, and that his wife, daughter, and son were being held captives. They were released in exchange for some English prisoners. In 1691, Cadillac repatriated his family to Quebec, but their ship was attacked by a privateer out of Boston, who took possession of all their goods. Cadillac was promoted to lieutenant in 1692. He was sent with the cartographer Jean-Baptiste-Louis Franquelin to draw charts of

784-491: The Native Americans with his alcohol trading, and he was imprisoned for a few months in Quebec in 1704, and again in the Bastille on his return to France in 1717. Upon his arrival in America, La Mothe adopted his title after the town of Cadillac, Gironde in southwestern France. The city of Detroit became the world center of automobile production in the 20th century. William H. Murphy and Henry M. Leland founded

833-537: The New England coastline in preparation for a French attack on the English colonies. He set out again for France to hand over the charts, together with a report, to the Secretary of State Pontchartrain . In 1693, he got an allowance of 1500 pounds for his work and was sent back on a further mission to supplement his observations. Frontenac promoted him to captain, then lieutenant commander in 1694. Cadillac

882-401: The Parliament of Toulouse . He knew him for at least two reasons: Bardigues , Cadillac, Launay and Le Moutet are villages and localities close to his birthplace, Saint-Nicolas-de-la-Grave, and Antoine's father Jean Laumet was a lawyer in the Parliament of Toulouse . The sons likely encountered each other during their studies. Second son in his family, Laumet identified with the second son of

931-750: The Toulouse-born financier Antoine Crozat to invest in Louisiana. In June 1713, the Cadillac family arrived at Fort Louis , Louisiana (now Mobile, Alabama), after a tiring crossing. In 1714, Crozat recommended the construction of forts along the Mississippi River , whereas Cadillac wished to strengthen defenses at the mouth of the River and to develop trade with nearby Spanish colonies . In 1715, Cadillac and his son Joseph prospected in

980-528: The area of the Great Lakes and to draw up charts. He had the idea of starting a fort in the straits between Lakes Erie and Huron to compete with the English. In Michilimackinac, he came into conflict with the Jesuit fathers, such as Étienne de Carheil , who accused him of supplying alcohol to the Native Americans. This was prohibited by a royal decree. In 1696, to mitigate the difficulties of fur trading,

1029-745: The baron. He used the phonic similarity between his own name and that of Launay, creating the name: Antoine de Lamothe-Launay. He took the title of écuyer (squire), the rank held by a family's second son, followed by the title sieur (sire) of Cadillac. This accorded with the Gascon custom whereby the junior family member succeeds the elder son upon the latter's death. Laumet created a new name, identity and noble origin, while protecting himself from possible recognition by persons who knew him in France. In addition, he presented his own titles of nobility, as illustrated by armorial bearings that he created by associating

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1078-463: The building. The building rises 15 stories to a total height of 220 feet (67 m), with the top floor at 187 ft (57 m). The building has 31 elevators. It was originally constructed with 1,200,000 sq ft (110,000 m ) and expanded to 1,395,000 sq ft (130,000 m ). Designated a National Historic Landmark on June 2, 1978, it is an exquisite example of Neoclassical architecture . Designed by architect Albert Kahn ,

1127-504: The capital of Acadia . During the next four years, he wandered from New England to New Holland , pushing south to the Caroline, now North Carolina and South Carolina, and while learning some Native American languages and habits. He probably entered into a business relationship with Denis Guyon , a merchant of Quebec . On June 25, 1687, at the age of 29, he married Guyon's daughter, Marie-Thérèse, 17, in Quebec. The marriage certificate

1176-433: The city of New Orleans , near the mouth of the Mississippi River, in 1718, and it became a major port and city of New France. The straits became a strategic location. Fort Pontchartrain du Détroit enjoyed an ideal location between the Great Lakes and the river basins. The fort would be succeeded by Fort Detroit and Fort Wayne and by Fort Amherstburg and Fort Malden on the opposite shore. The car brand Cadillac

1225-473: The coasts of New England, aboard the frigate L'Embuscade ( The Ambush ). Strong head winds forced the ship to return to France. In 1690, Cadillac was in Paris. He became part of the circle of the Secretary of State for the Navy, the marquis de Seignelay , then of his successor Louis Phélypeaux, comte de Pontchartrain , who appointed him officer of marine troops. On his return to Port Royal, LaMothe learned that

1274-409: The governor Jacques-René de Brisay de Denonville gave him the concession of the seigniory (estate) of Les Douacques (which later became the town of Bar Harbor, Maine , well known today as a tourist town, but then for fishing and lobsters). His concession brought him no income, even from agriculture. Lamothe entered into a trading partnership with officers of Port Royal, an activity facilitated by using

1323-430: The ground level are gray Tennessee marble . The arcade was originally lined by stores and an auditorium which could be used for corporate functions or by community groups. The auditorium space was later converted into an auto showroom. On the upper stories, floors are also gray Tennessee marble, while corridor walls are covered in the original white Alabama marble . On the lower level two swimming pools were located, one

1372-410: The king ordered the closing of all trading posts, including Michilimackinac. Cadillac returned to Montreal . In 1697, he was authorized to return to France to present his project of a new fort on the strait to the Secretary of State Pontchartrain ; Frontenac requested that he be promoted to lieutenant commander. However, Canadian notables strongly opposed the project which, they believed, would lead to

1421-531: The last of its employees into the Renaissance Center on the Detroit River . In 1999, General Motors transferred the property to New Center Development, Inc., a non-profit venture controlled by TrizecHahn Office Properties which acted as developer and began renovation on the upper floors which GM vacated in 2000. The Annex was constructed shortly after the main building, and in the 1940s, it

1470-549: The link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=GM_Building&oldid=932847157 " Category : Disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages Cadillac Place After much pressure by the General Motors Board of Directors, William C. Durant agreed in 1919 to construct

1519-622: The mine; they were the first people of African descent in the future state of Missouri. The production of lead was important for ammunition in the colonies. The Southeast Missouri Lead District is still a major source of that metal. After many arguments, Crozat withdrew any authority Cadillac had in the company. The following year, he ordered Cadillac removed from colonial office. The Cadillac family returned to France and, in 1717, settled in La Rochelle . Cadillac went to Paris with his son Joseph. They were arrested immediately and imprisoned in

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1568-529: The monopoly of all fur-trading activities and the transfer to his authority of the American tribes in the area of the straits. He became a shareholder in the "Company of the Colony." After return to the straits, he helped in welcoming and settling the native tribes formerly installed at Michillimakinac. A fire devastated Fort Pontchartrain in 1703. This disaster destroyed all the registers and records. Cadillac

1617-446: The original architects. In addition to upgrading existing systems, reconfiguring some spaces and redecorating, the project installed central air conditioning. When the building was first occupied, it was cooled in the warmer months by opening windows. Later, General Motors installed window units to cool various offices and work areas. During the renovation, large-scale systems replaced almost 1,900 window units that were left when GM vacated

1666-580: The ruin of Quebec and Montreal. Only in 1699 did Cadillac get the support of Pontchartrain to implant the new fort; this was authorized in 1700 by the king, who entrusted its command to Cadillac. On July 24, 1701, Antoine de La Mothe-Cadillac founded Fort Pontchartrain and the parish of Sainte-Anne on the straits (" le détroit " in French). He was helped by Alphonse de Tonti. Their wives joined them in October. In 1702, Cadillac went back to Quebec to request

1715-617: The shield with the three «  merlettes  » (birds with no legs or bill) of the baron de Lamothe-Bardigues and that of the Virès family (of France's Languedoc region). The marriage proved to be a fertile one. The Lamothe-Cadillac couple had six daughters and seven sons: Judith (1689), Magdeleine (1690), Marie Anne (1701), ? (1702), Marie-Thérèse (1704), Marie-Agathe (December 1707) and Joseph (1690), Antoine (1692), Jacques (1695), Pierre-Denis (1699–1700), Jean-Antoine (January 1707 – 1709), François (1709), René-Louis (1710–1714). In 1688,

1764-413: The structure consists of a two-story base with four parallel 15-story wings connecting to a central perpendicular backbone. Kahn used this design to allow sunlight and natural ventilation to reach each of the building's hundreds of individual offices. The entire building is faced in limestone and is crowned with a two-story Corinthian colonnade . In 1923, it opened as the second largest office building in

1813-534: The structure was renamed the General Motors Building . However, the initial "D" had already been carved above the main entrance and in several other places on the building where they remain today. The structure was completed in 1922, and served as General Motors world headquarters from 1923 until 2001. It is approximately 2 miles (3.2 km) to the southwest of Detroit/Hamtramck Assembly , where Cadillacs are currently built. In 2001, GM moved

1862-509: The structure. Antoine Laumet de La Mothe, sieur de Cadillac Antoine de la Mothe, sieur de Cadillac ( / ˈ k æ d ɪ l æ k / , French: [kadijak] ; March 5, 1658 – October 16, 1730), born Antoine Laumet , was a French explorer and adventurer in New France , which stretched from Eastern Canada to Louisiana on the Gulf of Mexico . He rose from

1911-457: The troops stationed on the straits were given the order to return to Montreal. In 1710, the king named Cadillac governor of La Louisiane , the expansive Louisiana (New France) territory, and ordered him to take up his duties immediately, traveling via the Mississippi River . Cadillac did not obey. He drew up a general inventory of the straits, and then, in 1711, boarded a ship, with his family, bound for France. In Paris, in 1712, he convinced

1960-690: The world (behind the Equitable Building in New York City ). The base of the building is surrounded by an arched colonnade supported by Ionic columns. The entrance is set into a loggia behind three arches of the Grand Boulevard facade. It intersects the arcade to form a large elevator lobby with a coffered ceiling. The interior features a vaulted arcade . An Italian marble from quarries near Chiampo , Vicenza, Veneto, known as tavernelle , covers its walls. Floors on

2009-599: Was appointed commander of all the stations of the Pays d'En-Haut (the upper countries). He left France at the peak of his career to take up his command of Fort de Buade or Michilimackinac , which controlled all fur trading between Missouri, Mississippi, the Great Lakes, and the Ohio valley. Cadillac gave his wife power of attorney to sign contracts and notarize documents in his absence. In 1695, Cadillac traveled to explore

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2058-441: Was connected to the adjacent Argonaut Building with a pedestrian bridge on the fourth floor. A parking structure was constructed to the east across Cass Avenue and also connected with a pedestrian bridge. A third bridge was constructed across Grand Boulevard in the early 1980s, to connect the building with New Center One and the St. Regis Hotel . The building now houses several Government of Michigan agencies, originally, under

2107-479: Was converted into a cafeteria. Tile with a water theme gives a hint to the original use of the cafeteria space. A depressed driveway extending between Cass and Second divides the lower level of the main building from the lower level of the Annex. When the Fisher Building was constructed across Grand Boulevard in 1927, the two were connected with an underground pedestrian tunnel that also connects north to

2156-714: Was finally vindicated in 1722. He sold his estate on the straits to Jacques Baudry de Lamarche , a Canadian. The French government appointed Cadillac as governor and mayor of Castelsarrasin , close to his birthplace. Antoine de Lamothe-Cadillac died on October 16, 1730, in Castelsarrasin ( Occitanie ), "around the midnight hour", at the age of 72. He was buried in a vault of the Carmelite Fathers' church. Some of Antoine de Lamothe-Cadillac's far-reaching visions were developed after he had left New France . For instance, Jean-Baptiste Le Moyne de Bienville founded

2205-506: Was named after him, and its headquarters was in Detroit, where Cadillac himself explored. Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac was honored with a 3-cent stamp on July 24, 1951, to commemorate the 250th anniversary of his landing at Detroit in 1701. The stamp's background design depicts Detroit's skyline as it appeared in 1951 and the foreground shows Cadillac's landing at Detroit in 1701. A museum in his birthplace opened in 1974, conceived of and funded by historians in Detroit. On April 20, 2016,

2254-523: Was not one of the 'great early heroes' and probably deserves to be ranked with the 'worst scoundrels ever to set foot in New France'." Cadillac was born Antoine Laumet on March 5, 1658, in the small town of Saint-Nicolas-de-la-Grave in the province of Gascony (today in the Tarn-et-Garonne , Occitanie ). His father, Jean Laumet, was born in the village of Caumont-sur-Garonne . He became

2303-495: Was recalled to Quebec in 1704 to face charges of trafficking in alcohol and furs. Although he was imprisoned as a preventive measure for a few months, his name was cleared in 1705. The king guaranteed him all his titles and granted him the fur-trading monopoly he sought. Two years later, Cadillac was charged with multiple counts of abuse of authority; Pontchartrain appointed a representative, Daigremont , to investigate. He formulated an indictment against Cadillac in 1708. In 1709,

2352-557: Was renamed Cadillac Place as a tribute to Detroit's founder, Antoine Laumet de La Mothe, sieur de Cadillac . Cadillac Place currently houses over 2,000 State employees including the Michigan Court of Appeals for District I. The building's former executive office suite serves as the Detroit office for Michigan's governor and attorney general, and several Justices of the Michigan Supreme Court have offices in

2401-477: Was the governor of Louisiana , although he did not arrive in that territory until 1713. His knowledge of the coasts of New England and the Great Lakes area was appreciated by Frontenac , governor of New France, and Pontchartrain , Secretary of State for the Navy. This earned him various favors, including the Order of Saint Louis from King Louis XIV . The Jesuits in Canada, however, accused him of perverting

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