Cass Gilbert cladding a steel frame became the model for decades. Modernists embraced his work: John Marin painted it several times; even Frank Lloyd Wright praised the lines of the building, though he decried the ornamentation. Gilbert was one of the first celebrity architects in America, designing skyscrapers in New York City and Cincinnati, campus buildings at Oberlin College and the University of Texas at Austin, state capitols in Minnesota and West Virginia, the support towers of the George Washington Bridge, railroad stations (including the New Haven Union Station, 1920), and the United States Supreme Court building in Washington, D.C.. His reputation
Cass District Library Places and Michigan Register of Historic Places. Constructed in 1874-1875, at a cost of $3,000.00, the building is atypical for its era, with Italianate architecture. The building is noted in the registry for its unusual size and architectural distinction. The LaGrange Library closed its doors in 1993 when the Cass County Library joined with the LaGrange Township Library to form the Cass District Library. The Local History Library has a unique and original collection of books and information on the history of the area, with the primary focus being on Cass County. The history branch specializes in genealogy and research.