the building, designed by gordon w. lloyd, was constructed for the f. j. schwankovsky company, a retailer of musical instruments. it was completed in 1891, and sat on the growing fringe of detroit's woodward avenue, between grand circus park and campus martius park. the schwankovsky company went out of business a couple of decades after the building opened; subsequently, from 1920 to 1978, the structure was occupied by the wright kay jewelry firm. its current use includes a clothing store on the first floor, a restaurant on the second floor and residential units above.