Originally part of a French settlement, this property's earliest recorded deed dates to 1809 and was part of land Gazet Tremble claimed from improvements dating to 1796. In the early twentieth century, William Perry and relatives and friends bought land along the north side of Defer (Nine Mile) Road between what are now Harper and Greater Mack, and the tract was platted in 1920 as part of the Lake View Gardens Subdivision. That year, Will Perry gave his daughter Gertrude the property at the northeast corner of Nine Mile Road and Harper when she graduated from high school. Gertrude Perry married Russell Richards in 1926, and within two years they bought additional lots and established a Standard Oil filling station at this site. A steady customer was Edsel Ford's chauffeur, who came every Saturday to buy gas, usually with Edsel's children Henry II, William Clay, and Benson, who according to family lore would jump from the car, let the air out of the tires, and then refill them with the air regulator and its ringing bell. The station remained open 24/7 until World War II restrictions required shorter hours, and after the war the long hours did not return, though renewed prosperity helped the business flourish. In 1946, Russ opened the Firestone Home and Auto Store, selling goods from refrigerators to toys, but it closed in 1947. At the suggestion of assistant manager Bob Blemaster, the new storefront was then used for auto parts sales and machine shop services, beginning Richards Auto Parts, and Russ added a machine shop in 1949. The gas pumps were removed in 1957, the warehouse was completed by 1958, and in 1960 the business became Richards Automotive Services. Though several additions were made, the original outline of the station remained visible in the building's final days. From the 1950s through the 1980s, Richards Automotive grew into a local chain with four east-side locations, but in the 1990s changing business conditions and competition from larger chains led it to scale back to its original St. Clair Shores location, where it remained profitable until closing in 2005. By 2007 the site had been cleared for construction of a Flagstar Bank, which remained in operation as of 2015.