Chene Street was named after the Chene Family, who settled in Detroit early in its French history. At this time Detroit was a smaller farming community whose central hub was located along the Detroit River. Most of the city's farms were ribbon farms, which consisted of long strips of land beginning at the water, assuring every farmer had access to irrigation and transportation. The Chene family operated a large farm for a number of years with help from slaves and servants. There were Chene relatives all over the city, but the farm located where Chene Street currently lies was the most well-known. This land had been granted to the family by Louis XIV of France and eventually would also be home to the Alexander Chene House, a home that was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1985 and demolished in 1991 to make way for the E. Jefferson IHOP.

The Rosenbaum family began immigrating to American just after the turn of the century. They were a Jewish family from Poland and they left their home country to escape persecution by the Germans. The oldest son, Max, moved into a home on Chene Street on Detroit’s east side. This area was becoming more and more Polish, also housing some of Detroit’s rising black population. Chene Street started to become a commercial mecca, housing some 200 storefronts, most of which were owned by the influx of Polish Immigrants and black Detroiters who came from the south. Although the Polish and black communities were discriminated against at the time, this area began to thrive because of the unique skills and trades these merchants possessed.