First Congregational Church
About this property
The First Congregational Church is located at 33 East Forest Avenue (on the corner of Forest and Woodward Avenue) in Midtown Detroit, Michigan. It was designated a Michigan State Historic Site in 1974 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979. The First Congregational Church of Detroit was established on December 25, 1844. Two church buildings were built near the Detroit River. The third building was constructed at the present site in 1891, and was designed by architect John Lyman Faxon. An addition to the church, known as the Angel's Wing, was constructed in 1921 by Albert Kahn. Gaius Glenn Atkins served twice as minister of the church in the early 20th century. The church is designed in a blend of the Romanesque and Byzantine styles, using rough-hewn, warm red limestone. The Woodward facade has a five-bay loggia, with a parapeted front gable. Above that are rounded windows with tracery framed by a rounded arch. The church also features a 120-foot campanile with many narrow arcades. The church is topped by an 8-foot copper figure of the Archangel Uriel. The church is patterned after churches found in Venice and Ravenna. The sanctuary, which resembles the lower church of St. Francis of Assisi, boasts carved wood, ceiling portraits, rose windows and sumptuous colors. The interior murals were designed and executed by Lyle Durgin, completed in December, 1891. The church offers exhibits about the historical and architectural aspects of the church, its buildings and activities. Visitors can go on self-guided tours of the historic facilities and buildings. The church also hosts the Underground Railroad Living Museum, a storytelling simulation of the original Underground Railroad. Willard, Frances Elizabeth; Livermore, Mary Ashton Rice (1897). American Women: Fifteen Hundred Biographies with Over 1,400 Portraits : a Comprehensive Encyclopedia of the Lives and Achievements of American Women During the Nineteenth Century (Public domain ed.). Mast, Crowell & Kirkpatrick. p. 265.
Location
Categories
Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).
Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
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Questions about this property
When was First Congregational Church listed on the National Register?
First Congregational Church was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on June 3, 1979.
What type of historic resource is First Congregational Church?
First Congregational Church is classified as a building in the National Register of Historic Places.
What is the period of significance for First Congregational Church?
The period of significance for First Congregational Church is recorded as the industrial era.
Can I research the history near First Congregational Church?
Yes. Aubrey Research reports search National Register listings, battlefield records, land patents, and other primary historical sources within any radius of a US address. A report for an address near First Congregational Church will include this listing and all other historical records in the area.
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