5202 Commonwealth Street ~ Detroit, Michigan

Welcome to 5202 Commonwealth Street in Detroit, Michigan! This home is among the oldest and largest in Detroit's Woodbridge neighborhood. It is a stunning residence that remained vacant for nearly 5 years before the first family moved in. It's fitting that this story is shared in March, during Women's History Month, as a member of that first family often found herself as the 'first woman' in various aspects of her life and career!

General Facts about 5202 Commonwealth

Year Built: 1899

Original Address: 436 Commonwealth (1899-1923)

City, County, State: Detroit, Wayne Co, Michigan

Neighborhood: Woodbridge

Size: 2,800 sq. feet

Style: Historic Tudor - maybe?

# of Families from 1899 - 1940: 3

• 1903: Emma D. Whiting

• 1906: George E. Williams

• 1907- 1940: Dr. Willard and Amelia Woodford

Historic Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps

By examining Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps, the precise age of the house can be easily identified. According to the 1889 and 1897 maps, [436] 5202 Commonwealth had not yet been constructed. The subsequent digitized Sanborn map from 1906 shows [436] 5202 Commonwealth present.

To determine the exact year the home was built, I researched the Detroit City Directories. In 1898, [436] 5202 Commonwealth was absent from the directory, but it appeared in 1899. Real estate records suggest the house was constructed in 1898, likely later in the year, which is why it wasn't listed in the city directory until the following year.

Although the home was built in 1898, it remained vacant for five years before the first family moved in during 1903.

I wrote a brief history of the Woodbridge neighborhood in the blog post about 4806 Avery St. This home is one of the oldest and largest homes still standing in the Woodbridge neighborhood and yet it's not considered a historic home. Actually, there are no homes in the Woodbridge neighborhood listed as a historic home according to www.historicdetroit.org.

Family # 1: Emma D. Whiting

Emma D. Rogers

Born: June 18, 1854; Stockbridge, Ingham Co, Michigan

Died: November 4, 1940; Royal Oak, Oakland Co, Michigan

Father: Joseph (b. 1826; New York - d. 1904; Michigan)

Mother: Elcina Amy Sweet (b. 1832; New York - d. 1918; Michigan)

Spouse: Albert P. Whiting

Married: November 1875; Chelsea, Washtenaw Co, Michigan

Children: 1 - Nina J. Whiting; Born 1878

Years Lived @ [436] 5202 Commonwealth St: 1 year - 1903

Emma D. Whiting is the earliest recorded resident of [436] 5202 Commonwealth. Her stay in the house was brief, lasting only one year. The reasons for her short residency and whether others lived with her remain unknown.

Information about Emma D. Whiting is scarce, but it is known she was born in 1854 in Stockbridge, Michigan, a small rural town northwest of Ann Arbor. Her father, Joseph Rogers, was a farmer and a Civil War veteran, having enlisted in Company D, 27th Infantry in 1863 in Ingham County, Michigan.

Emma Rogers married Albert P. Whiting in 1875 in Chelsea, Michigan. They had one daughter, Nina Whiting, born in 1878. Around 1892, Emma, Albert, Nina, and Emma's parents relocated from Jackson County, Michigan to Detroit. However, digital records from this period are incomplete and confusing.

The 1900 Census shows Emma, then 45, living with her parents and three boarders at 759 Third St, prior to the current address numbering. This residence was at the corner of Third St and Alexandrine St, north of Selden St, and only 1.3 miles southeast of 436 Commonwealth. Emma's husband, Albert, does not appear in the 1900 Census. A potential match for Albert was found in Mt. Clemens, Michigan, but details are unclear.

Emma resided in the Woodbridge neighborhood around 1900, but her connection to the Commonwealth home is uncertain. She was listed as the 'head of the house' in the Detroit City Directory in 1903.

Family # 2: George E. Williams

George E. Williams

Years Lived @ [436] 5202 Commonwealth St: 1 year - 1906

According to the 1905 Detroit City Directory, [436] 5202 Commonwealth was vacant. The next year, the directory listed George E Williams as the owner of the home. He only lived there for one year.

Due the commonality of his name, digitized information on George E. Williams, was very difficult and time consuming to research.

Family # 3: 

Dr. Willard C., Amelia, and Zaio Woodford;

Eliza Woodford;

Servants: Caroline Peetz, Hannah Rakestraw, and others;

Renters: Sarah Maguire and others;

Dr. Willard Chauncy Woodford

Born: September 12, 1861; Clio, Genesee Co, Michigan

Died: October 2, 1940; Detroit, Wayne Co, Michigan

Father: William W. (b. 1836; New York - d. 1910; Michigan)

Mother: Eliza A. Heath (b. 1835; New York - d. 1916; Michigan)

Years Lived @ [436] 5202 Commonwealth St: 32 years; 1907-1940

Dr. Willard C. Woodford was born in 1861, five months after the Civil War began. He was the first child of William and Eliza Woodford, newlyweds from New York who had recently relocated to Clio, Michigan. According to census records, Willard's father worked as a shoemaker throughout his life. When Willard was four, his father joined the Civil War, serving in the 24th Infantry from March 1865 to June 1865. During his service, he suffered three "disabilities" (as noted in the 1890 Veterans Schedules Census): Bronchitis, Hernia, and a type of poisoning (the specific term is illegible).

After his father returned from the war, Willard and his family moved northeast to Osceola County, Michigan. Nine years later, Willard's brother, Robert, was born. Willard's parents stayed in Osceola County until his father passed away in 1910. His mother, Eliza, moved to Detroit with Willard and lived at [436] 5202 Commonwealth until her death in 1916.

The exact date and location of Willard's marriage to Amelia Metz cannot be confirmed without further research. However, there is a 1895 marriage record in New York City with matching names, birthplaces, and birth years. While I cannot confirm it is the correct record, it seems plausible, as their first and only child was born in New York in 1901.

Amelia Metz

Born: November 19, 1861; Jackson, Jackson Co, Michigan

Died: February 26, 1945; Grosse Pointe, Wayne Co, Michigan

Father: Marshall (b. 1822; France - d. 1872; Michigan)

Mother: Barbara Hook (b. 1835; France - d. 1895)

Years Lived @ [436] 5202 Commonwealth St: 32 years; 1907-1940

Names Also Used: Emma, Emily

Amelia Metz was born in 1861 in Jackson, Michigan, located 80 miles west of Detroit. She was the 10th of 11 children born to her parents, Marshall and Barbara. Both Marshall and Barbara Metz immigrated from Sedan, Ardennes, Champagne-Ardenne, France, around 1850. They initially settled in Lockport, New York, where their first six children were born. By 1860, they had moved west to Jackson, Michigan, where Marshall found work as a stone mason.

In April 1879, Emily Metz, as recorded, allegedly lied about her age to marry 23-year-old James A. King in Jackson, Michigan. The record stated she was 20, but other historical records of Emily [Amelia] show she would have been 17. Emily and James had no children and divorced 8 years later in 1887.

This newspaper article suggests Emily deserted James. Does this support the previous marriage record indicating she lived in New York City and married Dr. Willard Woodford in 1895? Since marrying Dr. Willard Woodford, she has consistently used the name Amelia. Did she change her first name to hide from her first husband or family, or was Amelia simply her middle name? Perhaps there's no real connection.

Zaio Woodford

Born: September 4, 1901; New York

Died: August 9, 1970; Grosse Pointe, Wayne Co, Michigan

Spouse: Gerald Ernest Schroeder (1899-1963)

Married: 1925; Detroit, Wayne Co, Michigan

Years Lived @ [436] 5202 Commonwealth St: 18 years; 1907-1925

The exact year when Dr. Willard, Amelia, and Zaio moved from New York back to Michigan is unknown but the first record of them in Detroit is in 1907 when the family bought the home at 436 [5202] Commonwealth.

1910 U.S. Census

This image of the 1910 Census is small and difficult to read. The main findings of the census are the following:

• Household consisted of Willard C. Woodford - 48 years old; Amelia Woodford - 44 years old; Zaio Woodford - 8 years old; and Martha Stann - 25 years old - rented a room in the house.

• Willard and Amelia have been married for 14 years [marriage year 1896]

• Willard C Woodford worked for himself as a Book Publisher

• Martha Stann worked as a dressmaker

• The Woodford family owned the home without a mortgage

Starting in 1909, the Woodford family placed several ads in the Detroit Free Press for maids. The following is a sample of those ads:

Dr Willard Woodford's father, William, passed away in 1910 and soon after, his mother, Eliza, moved in with the family in Detroit. Eliza Woodford passed away in the home in 1916.

Also around this time in 1914-1915, there is a shift in Dr Willard Woodford's occupation from a book publisher to doctor. As seen from the image above from the 1914 Detroit City Directory, he is listed as a Chiropractor. In 1915, Dr Willard Woodford is listed as a new member of 'The Detroiter' and his oocupation is Chiropractor:

1920 U.S. Census

Again, this image of the 1920 Census is small and difficult to read. The main findings of the census are the following:

• Household consisted of Willard C. Woodford - 58 years old; Amelia Woodford - 54 years old; Zaio Woodford  - 18 years old; and Caroline Peetz - 30 years old - Servant to the family.

• Willard C Woodford occupation is 'Druggist' in the medicine industry

• The Woodford family still owned the home without a mortgage

*Additional information about Caroline Peetz cannot be confirmed through available digital records. However, I do think the last name is spelled 'Petz'.

Dr. Willard and Amelia's daughter, Zaio Woodford, led an extraordinary life and was a pioneer for women in various fields. A significant achievement occurred in 1922 when she graduated from the Detroit College of Law, becoming one of the youngest female attorneys in the United States at the age of 20.

On May 23, 1925, Zaio married Gerald E. Schroeder. Gerald was also an attorney and an alum of the Detroit College of Law from 1921.

*More information about Zaio Woodford will be talked about further down but here are some of her most important articles:

1930 U.S. Census

Again, this image of the 1930 Census is small and difficult to read. The main findings of the census are the following:

• Household consisted of Willard C. Woodford - 68 years old; Amelia Woodford - 64 years old; and Hannah Rakestraw - 53 years old - Servant to the family.

• Willard C Woodford occupation is 'Physician' in the medical industry

• The Woodford family still owned the home without a mortgage and the value of the home was $15,000 - $285,000 in 2025 dollar

*There isn't much information about Hannah Rakestraw available digitally. She was born in Ohio in 1877 and died in 1964. She worked as a housemaid most of her life and worked for the Woodford family for at least 12+ years until the family moved in 1940.

1940 U.S. Census

The main findings of the census are the following:

• Household consisted of Willard C. Woodford - 79 years old; Amelia Woodford - 75 years old; and Hannah Rakestraw - 62 years old - Housekeeper to the family.

• Willard C Woodford occupation is 'Chiropractic' - Private Practice.

• The Woodford family still owned the home without a mortgage and the value of the home was $3,800 - $85,000 in 2025 dollar.

• Dr Willard salary in 1939 was $400 - $9,000 in 2025 dollar.

Something to note from this 1940 Census, the Woodford family rented part of the house. Not sure on the size of that apartment, but on the census, it was a different dwelling within the home.

Sarah Maguire lived in that rented apartment for $16/month - $358 in 2025 dollar.

• Sarah Maguire was 47 years old, single, white female from Massachusetts. She lived in this same apartment in 1935.

• She owned her own dressmaking business that made her $175 in 1939 - $4,000 in 2025 dollar.

The 1940 Census was completed in April of 1940 - five months later on October 2, 1940 - Dr Willard Woodford passed away in the family home. This sudden death marked the end of the Woodford family era at 5202 Commonwealth.

After Dr Willard Woodford's death, Amelia sold the family home and moved in with her daughter, Zaio, in Grosse Pointe - just outside the city. Amelia passed away 5 years later in 1945.

Additional Familes of 5202 Commonwealth

Because some of the people mentioned below may still be living - only the historical documents will be uploaded. Details were not research much passed these documents.

Additional Articles about Zaio Woodford