Third Precinct Police Station
The Third Precinct Police Station is a police building from 1897 in Detroit designed by Edward Van Leyen in the Beaux-Arts style. The structure of yellow brick and limestone dominates the corner of Hunt and Dubois Streets with projecting and recessed sections, while the curved main entrance features limestone columns and pilasters carved with police shields and officer portraits.
The building was completed in 1897 and served as Detroit Police's main station for the Hunt Street area. In 1911 it opened the first police academy in the country, where officers trained in evidence handling, court procedures, and firearms, while Henderson Turpin became the station's first Black officer in 1927.
The station carries the name Hunt Street Station from its location at the corner of Hunt and Dubois Streets. For many decades, it served as a gathering point where residents came for help or to file reports, shaping the McDougall-Hunt neighborhood as a symbol of law and order.
The building sits at a prominent corner with clear visibility from the busy Gratiot Avenue, making it easy to locate. The site lies in the McDougall-Hunt neighborhood and offers views of the local surroundings with markets and street activity.
The building still contains bullet holes and spent rounds embedded in its walls from the early days of the police academy training. These physical marks from firearms practice serve as direct reminders of the intensive hands-on preparation officers underwent over a century ago.
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