For 15 years, Dan Austin has written thousands of articles, documenting the history of some of Detroit’s greatest structures and cultural landmarks.
Now, the Detroit historian has launched a new initiative to ensure his work will live on forever and to help future generations of Detroiters.
Austin launched The Austin Past & Future Fund Monday. The nonprofit has two goals–serving as an endowment that ensures Austin’s nonprofit architectural history website, HistoricDetroit.org, will continue to exist as a free community resource, and to raise money to offer college scholarships to Detroit youth, he told BridgeDetroit.
The fund was set up in the wake of the Detroit historian and author’s 2024 diagnosis with stage IV cancer.
“For years, I was just doing this stuff because I thought it was important,” said Austin, who is also a communications director for Michigan Central. “But it struck me that I’ve actually made a difference, so to speak, and certainly helping reduce those barriers to future generations and helping to move the city forward was a no-brainer.”
Mayor Mary Sheffield is among the Detroit leaders who have acknowledged Austin’s contributions. In September, the then-City Council president, honored Austin with a Spirit of Detroit Award. In a Monday news release, the mayor noted that Austin’s love for the city runs deep and that he has helped Detroiters see
“the beauty, strength, and soul of our city through its history.”
“The Austin Past & Future Fund is a powerful way to honor Dan’s work and legacy by creating new opportunities for young people who want to serve and uplift their communities,” Sheffield said. “It reflects the very best of Detroit: compassion, perseverance, and a commitment to future generations.”
Austin said he and his wife, Elle Tivine-Austin, board present of the fund, began discussing how they could keep Historic Detroit operating after his cancer failed to go into remission following rounds of chemotherapy and radiation. Community members jumped in, saying they could help keep the site running by volunteering to write articles or through donating.
“It became clear that we could raise enough money to do more for the city than just run a website,” Austin said. “I obviously love the city’s past and history, but I love the city’s present and I’m so optimistic about its future.”
The fund’s scholarships will be open to Detroit residents ages 16 to 26. The expanded age of eligibility is meant to include those who may have gotten a later start to seeking higher education. The scholarships can be applied toward a college, university, or trade school, and used on things such as tuition, books and room and board.
The size and number of scholarships given each year will depend on the amount raised. All tax-deductible donations will be invested into a managed endowment to grow those charitable gifts. After taking the first year to fund-raise, the board plans to begin offering scholarships in 2027. Those interested in applying for a scholarship can sign up to be notified when applications go live at www.austinfund.org.
“The scholarships for me really are what make this fund so exciting,” Austin said. “It’s about more than just keeping the website going, it’s about trying to help reduce or eliminate barriers to Detroit youth who love this city every bit as much as I do.”
Austin noted that the scholarship program is for Detroit youth who want to give back to their city in some way, whether that’s through preservation, architecture, or social work.
“I want to keep it fairly loose, but we’re hoping that all of these students who will apply for the scholarships do express a commitment to wanting to give back to the city and lift up the neighborhoods or the city as a whole,” he said.
Every building has a story to tell
Austin’s love for historic preservation grew in 2005 when the 15-story Statler Hotel downtown was in the process of being demolished. He wanted to learn more about the hotel and other abandoned buildings around Detroit.
“I wanted to get people to realize that these buildings, even the boarded up ones, weren’t just piles of brick and stone, but they were also chapters of our collective history and our collective story,” Austin said.
He first began documenting his findings on BuildingsofDetroit.com before eventually launching Historic Detroit in 2011.
The website holds more than 1,000 articles on buildings, monuments and other historic landmarks across the city, both those still standing and those that have since been demolished. Additionally, there are more than 17,000 photos, some of them taken by Helmut Ziewers, who became the site’s director of photography in 2023.
The archive has more than 100,000 followers on social media and received 1.5-million-page views from more than half a million unique visitors last year.
While Historic Detroit is receiving more page views in recent years, it’s still costly to operate, Austin said. It costs about $2,250 annually to keep the website running, which includes things like domain registration, maps, photo licensing, and newspapers.com subscriptions, as well as keeping the website ad-free.
Austin said enough money has been raised for Historic Detroit to operate on its own for at least two years.
“The main focus is going to be on raising additional money so that we can keep these scholarships going,” he said.
All donations through Austin’s Substack and Patreon pages will be transferred directly to the Past & Future Fund and become 100% tax-deductible, according to a Monday news release. Supporters are still able to give through Substack and Patreon instead of the fund’s website.
“We live heavier with our history in Detroit,” journalist and BridgeDetroit Executive Advisor Stephen Henderson said in a Monday statement. “It walks with us, celebrates and grieves with us, and shapes the way we see not only our city, but ourselves. But what would we know of Detroit, without HistoricDetroit.org? More than in any other place I’ve lived, HistoricDetroit.org lifts up our city’s history, frames it and assures it has a place in the lives we live today.”
A former DJ, Austin will be auctioning off his extensive record collection this summer with all proceeds benefitting the fund. Austin also plans to launch an online store, offering signed copies of his three published books as well as Detroit artifacts, with proceeds going toward the fund.
Since moving back to Detroit in 2006, Austin said he’s seen the city through its highs and lows, such as bankruptcy and abandoned buildings, to the restoration of places like Michigan Central and the Book Tower. He’s excited to see what the future of Detroit holds, and launching the Past & Future Fund is Austin’s love letter to the city.
“My entire adult life, all I really wanted to do was give back to the city that I loved, and to be able to do that even after I’m gone is just an incredibly rewarding and fulfilling prospect,” he said.