Kingsley Building
historic building in Grand Rapids, Michigan, United States
The Kingsley Building is a mixed use apartment building located at 1415 Lake Drive SE in Grand Rapids, Michigan. It was originally a warehouse and office building called the Grand Rapids Storage and Van Company Building. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2012.
History
In 1905, Fuller & Rice Lumber Company opened a yard at this location. In 1919, the company of Kammen & Vander Stel Packing and Storage (later Grand Rapids Storage and Van) was founded. In 1926, the company purchased the former Fuller & Rice lot, and hired architect George S. Kingsley to design a new headquarters building. The new building was intended to be a mixed-use space, combining storage facilities for household goods, offices, and commercial space. By the 1940s, the need for storage of household goods was in decline, and the company began renting out space in the building. In 1954, Zondervan Publishing began leasing several floors in the building. Over time, Grand Rapids Storage occupied a smaller and smaller percentage of the building space while Zondervan's occupancy grew.
The public source identifies “Kingsley Building” as historic building in Grand Rapids, Michigan, United States. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Kingsley, Building and historic.
Why this record matters
A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “Kingsley Building”, the useful work is to connect “historic building in Grand Rapids, Michigan, United States” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.
Place names and jurisdictional language are key evidence: both can reveal earlier catalogue descriptions and overlooked record series. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 6, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q85774539. Authority coordinates are 42.958, -85.634. None of the 1 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 1415, 2012, 1905 and 1919.
Modern boundaries and familiar names can conceal earlier jurisdictions or structures that do not align with the present site. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
- Historic place names
- Jurisdictional context
- Routes into maps and plans
Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Kingsley Building”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Kingsley Building primary sources, Kingsley Building archive and Kingsley research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Kingsley Building”?
- Which authority defined the place, boundary or structure at the relevant date?
- Which earlier names or jurisdictions may reveal additional records?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Kingsley Building” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.