Bringing Historic Fort Wayne Online
WITH THE CITY OF DETROIT
Design and development of a new website for a historic Detroit treasure.Historic Fort Wayne is a significant Detroit landmark with a history that spans centuries. Originally built in the 1840s for military defense, the site never saw battle but played a key role in major historical movements. It served as a training ground during the Civil War and both World Wars, housed the Tuskegee Airmen’s 1837th Aviation Engineer Battalion, and was an important location along the Underground Railroad. Long before the fort was built, the land was home to the Anishinaabe peoples, and the Treaty of Springwells (1815) was signed nearby, reaffirming Native land rights.
In 2019 and 2020, the City of Detroit led a strategic planning process to revitalize Historic Fort Wayne, seeking to improve recreational, cultural, and educational opportunities at the property. As an outcome of that effort, the City sought partners to rehabilitate and adaptively reuse the site’s 30 historic buildings. However, their ability to inform residents about ongoing planning and provide prospective partners with detailed inventories of each property was limited by constraints of the City’s main website.
Working with the City of Detroit General Services Department (GSD), we designed and built a new website for Historic Fort Wayne. Our goal was to make the fort’s rich history and future opportunities more accessible to three key audiences: Detroit residents interested in visiting the fort; residents looking to get involved in the planning process; and potential partners interested in rehabilitating a building.
We opted to build the site on Squarespace, a platform that would make it easy for City staff to easily manage the site independently. The design extends from the City of Detroit’s brand, allowing Historic Fort Wayne to have its own distinct, but related identity. With a neutral palette and spacious layout, high quality images add warmth and visual interest while clear typography ensures readability. The site balances historical character with modern usability, making it welcoming, informative, and easy to navigate.
The site now serves as a hub for visitors to explore Historic Fort Wayne and learn about ongoing preservation efforts. It also supports the fort’s long-term leasing program, which invites businesses, nonprofits, and community groups to rehabilitate and repurpose historic buildings for modern use while preserving their integrity. This initiative ensures that Fort Wayne remains a part of Detroit’s landscape for generations to come.
Visit the Historic Fort Wayne website here.
