Sashabaw Presbyterian Church

About this property

Sashabaw Presbyterian Church is a historic church located at 5331 Maybee Road near Clarkston, Michigan. The church is one of the oldest in the Detroit Presbytery and has served congregations for nearly 150 years. It was designated a Michigan State Historic Site in 1964 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980. In 1840, a local congregation was organized as a mission of the First Presbyterian Church in Pontiac. A schism soon resulted in the formation of the Church of Orion and Independence, which met in local schools. On January 20, 1855, the congregation organized a church-building society organized for the purpose of erecting a new church. The society chose Pratt & Tuttle as contractors, and the congregation changed its name to the "First Presbyterian of Independence Township." A lot for construction was purchased, and the building was completed in 1856 for a total cost (including furnishings) of $3000. In 1917–18, the church was renovated, replacing the foundation and removing the steeple. However, the church congregation remained small, and in 1932 it was dissolved. In 1946, the Sashabaw United Presbyterian Church was organized and began using this building as its home. In 1952, the church was lifted, and a new foundation with a basement laid. In 1958, the steeple and belfry, removed in 1917–18, were replaced. In the 1960s, a new meeting house was constructed nearby for the congregation, and the congregation moved there for worship services in the 1970s. The restoration of the historic 1856 church began in 2012 with a workshop on window restoration, held in conjunction with the DAR and the Clarkston Historical Society. Over the years, this building has served various community roles, including as a youth center, the original location of LightHouse North, and the staging area for the church's youth theater group. Unfortunately, in 2017, the building began to suffer significant vandalism. In 2018, the Clarkston School District expressed interest in using the building as part of their new building and technology program and some work began in the fall of 2018. However, the COVID-19 pandemic significantly impacted this partnership, and by 2024, it became clear that the project would not be completed. In response, the church formed a commission to determine the next steps. Sashabaw Presbyterian Church has since joined forces with the area stakes of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in a renewed effort to restore the building for the greater Clarkston community's use. This revitalized project launched on June 26, 2026, with a cleanup event that saw 87 volunteers from the two churches boarding up windows to prevent further vandalism and preparing the interior for restoration work.

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.

More in Oakland County

Historic places, battles, and census history across Oakland County.

More historic places in Michigan

Browse all historic places in Michigan.

Conflict records

Explore 19,000+ military engagements across American history.

Michigan history

Colonial settlement, territorial period, and statehood narrative.