USA > Michigan > Wayne County > Detroit > The history of Detroit and Michigan; or, The metropolis illustrated; a chronological cyclopedia of the past and present, Vol I > Part 94
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The average attendance in 1880 was 125. The pastor's salary was $400, and total annual expenses, $800. The value of the property was $3,500, and the number of members 83.
They had no pastor until 1873; since then the pastors have been : 1873, C. H. Ward; 1874, L. D. Crosby; 1875, H. H. Wilson; 1876-1878, R. Jef- fries; 1878-1881, J. Simpson; 1881 to 1884, L. D. Crosby; 1884-1886, T. Price ; 1886- , J. H. Miller.
Zion African Church.
A society with seven members, called the First Independent M. E. Church, was organized in April, :870, by Rev. Henry Henderson, and a wooden church, on the south side of Calhoun Street, between Hastings and Prospect Streets, was dedicated October 15, 1871. Mr. Henderson remained until the fall of 1871, and was succeeded by Bishop A. R. Green, who remained five months. Rev. John Green was then pastor for two years. In 1874, and until about the close of 1875, Rev. James Simpson was pastor. The church then became disorganized, and many of the members joined other congregations.
The present Zion Church was organized in 1875, with five members. In 1880 it had nineteen mem-
EBENEZER AFRICAN M. E. CHURCH.
bers. The church was cared for by various elders until October, 1879, when Rev. A. A. Wilson, of Pontiac, began to serve as pastor. He was suc-
578
THE METHODIST EPISCOPAL CHURCHES.
ceeded by Rev. G. W. Gordon, who preached his first sermon October 16, 1881. In the winter of 1880 the building was torn down, and the society then procured, for $75, a leased lot and building on the north side of Ohio Street, between St. Antoine and Hastings Streets. The building accommodates eighty persons, and in 1880 there was an average attendance of 50.
French Church. (Extinct.)
This society was an outgrowth of the labors of Rev. Thomas Carter. The first services were held in the old Congress Street M. E. Church. Success attending these endeavors, a lot costing $300 was purchased on the east side of Rivard Street, between Croghan and Lafayette Streets, and a substantial brick building, costing $ 4,000, erected. It was dedi- cated on November 20, 1853. In this year fifteen members were reported.
In 1856 Mr. Carter was called to another field, and the church, for the next three years, formed part of the City Mission, and was supplied, for one year each, by Revs. M. Hickey, J. Levington, and J. A. Baughman. Most of the members then joined other churches, and in the summer of 1861 the church building was sold to a congregation of Jews for $3,500, and was set apart by them on August 30, 1861. It was subsequently sold to be used for business purposes.
The money received by the Methodist society from the sale of the property was invested in a lot on Jefferson Avenue, a church was erected thereon, and the name of the French M. E. Church changed to Jefferson Avenue M. E. Church on May 31, 1875.
Pine Street Protestant Methodist Church. (Extinct.)
A society of Protestant Methodists was organized on February 10, 1867, by Rev. W. H. Bakewell, and a wooden church erected on the north side of Pine Street, between Sixth and Seventh Streets. Although not completed, it was dedicated on No- vember 29, 1868. The society then had thirty members. Rev. W. M. Goodner, who served in 1869, was the last pastor. The building was sub- sequently turned into a machine shop and eventu- ally burned.
Bethel Evangelical Association Church.
This society, although not connected with the Methodist Episcopal Church, is nearly the same in its doctrines and usages as the German M. E. Churches. The society in Detroit was organized August 20, 1856, with twenty-six members, and in- corporated July 3, 1879. The wooden church on
the southeast corner of Hastings and Montcalm Streets was dedicated July 25, 1858. The three lots on Hastings Street cost $ 800; the church cost $1,700, and seated 300. The parsonage was built in 1859, and cost $300. On June 26, 1883, the prop- erty was sold for $3,180, and a lot on the northwest corner of Catharine and Dubois Streets purchased for $1,200. In the fall of 1883 a church costing $5,700 was erected thereon; it was dedicated No- vember 4, 1883. It seats 300. The average attend- ance on Sunday morning in 1880 was 60. The salary of the pastor was $500, and the other church expenses $125 per year. The number of members in 1860 was 24; in 1870, 25; and in 1880, 70.
BETHEL CHURCH OF EVANGELICAL ASSOCIATION. Original Building.
The following persons have served as pastors : 1857-1859, J. P. Schantz; 1859-1861, C. Tramer; 1861-1863, J. Meek; 1863-1866, J. M. Haug; 1866- 1868, J. C. Ude; 1868-1870, M. Speek; 1870-1872, J. M. Fuchs; 1872-1875, C. Deike; 1875-1878, J. F. Mueller; 1878, J. Frankhauser; 1879 to April, 1880, C. G. Koch; April, 1880, to 1883, Frederick Klump; April, 1883, to May, 1884, W. T. Zander ; May, 1884, to April, 1886, C. C. Staffeld ; April, 1886- , John M. Haug.
NEW BETHEL CHURCH OF EVANGELICAL ASSOCIATION.
579
EVENTS OF INTEREST TO THE DENOMINATION.
EVENTS OF INTEREST TO THE DENOMINATION.
1837 .- September 6, first session of Michigan Conference held in the church on corner of Wood- ward Avenue and Congress Street, Bishop R. R. Roberts presiding.
1839 .- July 17, Centenary celebration of found- ing of Methodism in England. Convention in De- troit.
1839 .- Sunday, September I, Rev. Bishop Soulé preached in the church corner of Congress Street and Woodward Avenue.
1845 .- September 10, Session of Michigan Con- ference held in Congress Street M. E. Church, Bishop E. S. Janes presiding.
1847 .- March 7, Sunday farewell missionary meeting on the occasion of the departure of Rev. Judson D. Collins, of Michigan, to China, at the Congress Street M. E. Church. He was the first Methodist missionary sent to that country.
1851 .- June 8, Wednesday, Procession of seven hundred Sunday school scholars. Dinner served in basement of the church corner of Woodward Ave- nue and State Street.
1853 .- September 14, Michigan Conference ses- sion held in State Street M. E. Church, Bishop B. Waugh presiding.
1854 .- November 23, Detroit Methodist Sunday School Union organized, composed of ministers, officers, and teachers of all the Methodist Sunday schools, with the design of improving the methods of instruction and increasing the membership of the schools. Quarterly meetings were held on the Sabbath at different churches at which all the children were gathered. Addresses and singing constituted the exercises, which were always enjoy- able. It was under the direction of this Union that the Sunday schools were established which resulted in the forming of the Fort Street and Simpson M. E. Churches.
1855 .- August 2, General Sunday School cele- bration of the M. E. Churches of the city. Excur- sion to Wyandotte on May Queen, and picnic there, 1,400 participants.
1856 .- May 25, Sunday, Dr. F. J. Jobson of the British Conference in Detroit. He stopped at the Biddle House. In his book on " America and American Methodism," he says, "We passed the Sabbath in Detroit, and as our Sabbaths in America had been wholly spent among the Methodists, we resolved, after a visit to the Methodist Church, to attend on that day the services of other denomina- tions."
1860 .- October 21 and 22, Anniversary exercises of the General M. E. Sunday School Union. Sermons and addresses were delivered by Rev. Dr. (after-
wards Bishop) D. W. Clark, Rev. Dr. Wise, editor of the Sunday School Advocate, Rev. J. H. Vincent, D. D., and Rev. T. M. Eddy. D. D.
1861 .- September 25, Detroit Conference session in Woodward Avenue M. E. Church, presided over by Bishop E. R. Ames.
1863 .- January 19, General Methodist Missionary Meeting at Young Men's Hall. Addresses by Rev. R. M. Hatfield, Rev. M. A. Dougherty, Rev. T. C. Gardner, Rev. B. F. Cocker, and others.
1866 .- October 25, Centenary Jubilee of founding of American Methodism. Services in chapel of Central M. E. Church, sermon by Rev. E. O. Haven, Union Love Feast, addresses, etc.
1868 .- January 31, The Sunday School and Mis- sionary Union of the M. E. Church of Detroit was organized; it made itself chiefly useful in stimu- lating the building of the Simpson M. E. Church.
1869 .- September 1, Detroit Conference met at Detroit in Central Church, Bishop Levi Scott pre- siding.
1872 .- November 25 and 26, Anniversary exer- cises of General M. E. Tract Society held at Detroit.
1874 .- August 30, Bishop J. T. Peck, while in attendance at the German Conference, preached Sunday morning at Central M. E. Church.
1876 .- April 14, Quarterly and ninth annual meetings of Northwestern Branch of Women's For- eign Missionary Society in Central M. E. Church.
1876 .- August 30, Detroit Conference session at Tabernacle Church, Bishop E. R. Ames presiding.
1878 .- July 15, The M. E. Church and Sunday School Alliance was formed to further the interests of the Methodist Church in Detroit. Soon after it was organized, the project of uniting all the churches in an effort to pay off the united debts of the Eng- lish-speaking Methodist churches was proposed, and, after various meetings, ratified by the official boards of the several churches. As a result, there was raised the sum of $35,500, and on Novem- ber 25, 1880, at a jubilee thanksgiving service, held in the Central M. E. Church, the total of the debts of the several churches was reported, not only as subscribed but actually paid in, so that the can- celled mortgages and obligations were presented to the officiary of the several churches.
1882 .- May 10, The semi-annual meeting of the Bishops of the M. E. Church began. There were present Bishops Simpson, Foster, Peck, Wiley, Hurst, Merrill, Warren, and Andrews. On Sunday, May 14, they occupied the several Methodist pulpits, and the annual missionary collections were taken up.
1882 .- September 19, Closing session of Detroit Conference at Central M. E. Church.
580
EVENTS OF INTEREST TO THE DENOMINATION.
Presiding Elders of the District, including Detroit.
New York Confer- 5 1804, Samuel Coate.
ence. -
1809, Joseph Sawyer.
1810-1813, Henry Ryan.
Genesee Confer- 1815, William Case. ence. 1816-1820, Henry Ryan. 1820, James B. Finley. 1821, John Strange. 1822, James B. Finley. 1823, John Strange. Ohio Conference. 1824, James B. Finley. 1825, William Simmons. 1826-1829, Z. H. Coston. 1829-1832, Curtis Goddard. 1832-1836, James Gilruth.
Michigan Confer- ence.
Detroit Confer-
ence.
1836-1837, William Herr. 1838-1842, George Smith. 1842-1843, E. H. Pilcher. 1844-1848, Elijah Crane. 1848-1852, James Shaw. 1852-1853, J. A. Baughman. 1854-1856, W H. Collins. 1856-1857, W. H. Collins. 1858-1859, J. F. Davidson. 1860-1864, M. Hickey. 1864-1868, S. Clements, Jr. 1868-1872, F. A. Blades. 1872-1876, E. H. Pilcher. 1876-1880, J. M. Fuller. 1880-1883, W. W. Washburn. 1883-1887, J. McEldowney. 1887- , J. L. Hudson.
CHAPTER LIX.
THE PROTESTANT EPISCOPAL CHURCHES .- BISHOPS, DIOCESES, AND CONVEN- TIONS .- ANGLO-CATHOLIC AND REFORMED EPISCOPAL CHURCHES.
PROTESTANT EPISCOPAL CHURCHES.
St. Paul's Church.
THE first organization of a Protestant Episcopal Church in Detroit dates from November 22, 1824, at which time a few persons met in the Council House on the corner of Jefferson Avenue and Randolph Street, and, aided by the Rev. Richard F. Cadle, who had arrived July 12 organized St. Paul's Protestant Episcopal Church, the first of the denomination in Michigan. In February, 1825, under a general law, the church was incorporated.
The city government seems to have specially favored Episcopalian ministers, for when it came into possession of several dwellings on the Military Reserve granted by Congress, the Council, on Nov- ember 18, 1826, reduced the rent of Rev. Mr. Wells, the Presbyterian minister, from seven to five dollars per month, while the Rev. Mr. Cadle's rent was reduced from four dollars to one dollar per month.
The church services were held in the Council House and Fort for some four years, and then, under Mr. Cadle's ministrations, it was determined to erect a church. The First Protestant Society, at this time, had become a regularly organized Presbyterian Church, but retained possession of the entire prop- erty of the old society. The members of St. Paul's Church claimed a portion of the land, on the ground that they were a part of the original owners; and on August 7, 1827, a lot sixty by one hundred was deeded to the rector, wardens, and vestrymen of St. Paul's, on condition that they would move the wooden church, then owned by the Presbyterians, from the middle of the lot to the corner of Larned Street. This was done at a cost of $150, and on August 10, 1827, the corner-stone of St. Paul's Church, on Woodward Avenue, was laid. The church was completed and pews sold on July 26, 1828, and on August 24 it was consecrated. It was a very plain brick building, forty by sixty feet, cost- ing, with its furnishings, $4,500. Rev. Eleazer Williams, the reputed Dauphin of France, read the consecration service. The sermon was by Bishop John H. Hobart, of New York.
In June, 1829, Mr. Cadle left on account of failing
health, and on March 30, 1830, Rev. Richard Bury was installed as his successor. In August, 1831, an organ was procured. Mr. Bury was compelled to resign the rectorship on account of illness in March, 1833, and was succeeded in April by Rev. Addison Searle. In 1834 the church had sixty-eight com- municants and a Sunday school of one hundred and eighty members, with an average attendance of 120. This year an addition forty-seven feet in length was made to the rear of the building ; galleries were also put in, and a tower one hundred and fifteen feet high added. The total cost of these improvements was $3,000. (See picture given in a general view in connection with history of First Presbyterian Church.)
Mr. Searle served as rector until January, 1835. Rev. Hugh Smith, of New York, then came and preached, but declined a call. On June 29, 1836, Rev. S. A. McCoskry was made rector. He arrived at Detroit in August.
Mrs. Jameson, who was in Detroit in July, 1837, thus speaks of the church and its services at the time of her visit :
On entering, I perceived at one glance that the Episcopal Church is here, as at New York, the fashionable church of the place. It was crowded in every part ; the women well dressed, but, as at New York, too much dressed, too fine for good taste and real fashion. I was handed immediately to the " strangers' pew." a book put in my hand, and it was whispered to me that the bishop would preach. Our English idea of the exterior of a bishop is an old gentleman in a wig and lawn sleeves, both equally de rigueur. I was therefore childishly surprised to find in the Bishop of Michigan a young man of very elegant appear- ance, wearing his own fine hair, and in a plain black silk gown. The sermon was on the well worn subject of charity as it consists in giving,-the least and lowest it may be, of all the branches of charity, though indeed that depends on what we give, and how we give it.
We may give our heart, our soul, our time, our health, our life, as well as our money ; and the greatest of these, as well as the least, is still but charity. At home I have often thought that when people gave money, they gave counters ; here when people give money they are really charitable ; they give a portion of their time and their existence, both of which are devoted to money- making.
On closing his sermon, which was short and unexceptionable, the bishop leaned forward over the pulpit, and commenced an extemporaneous address to his congregation. * * * I have never heard anything more eloquent and more elegant than this address. It was in perfect good taste besides being very much to the purpose. He spoke in behalf of the domestic missions of
[58x]
582
THE PROTESTANT EPISCOPAL CHURCHES.
his diocese. I understood that the missions hitherto supported in the back settlements are, in consequence of the extreme pressure of the times, likely to be withdrawn, and the new, thinly peopled districts thus left without any ministry whatever. He called on the people to give their aid towards sustaining these domestic missionaries, at least for a time, and said, among other things, that if each indi- vidual of the Episcopal Church in the United States subscribed one cent per week for one year, it would amount to more than $300,000.
This address was re- sponded to by a subscrip- tion on the spot, of above $400,- a large sum for a small town, suffering, like all other places, from the present commercial difficulties.
In October, 1842, the services at St. Paul's were. so largely attended that the bishop com- menced holding ex- tra services in the City Hall, and in November, 1 842, the following appeared in a daily paper :
Owing to the want ot room in St. Paul's Church, Detroit, the Bishop of the Diocese has organized a chapel in connection with said church, and has pro- cured the use of Mechan- ics' Hall, where Protest- ant Episcopal services will be held morning and afternoon each Sabbath, at the usual hours.
The attendance did not warrant their continuance, and they were given up; but the growth of the church and the pro- gress of the times made it necessary to erect a larger building, and ac- cordingly a new site was selected on the northeast corner of Congress and Shelby Streets. In March, 1851, and 1852, the property on Woodward Avenue was sold to several parties for a total of $12,642, and in April, 1852, the old church was demolished. The
last service was held on Easter Monday. Services were then held in Firemen's Hall until the church was completed.
The new building and its furnishings cost $43,000, it was dedicated December 19, 1852. Its size is seventy by one hun- dred and thirty- three feet. It has one hundred and sixty-six pews and seats eight hundred and fifty persons. The lots cost $4,400. The rectory near the church, built in 1852, cost $3,000, and the lot $4,500.
ST. PAUL'S PROTESTANT EPISCOPAL CHURCH.
Rev. Dr. Mc- Coskry resigned the rectorship in 1863, and was succeeded on October I by Rev. Milton C. Lightner. He was followed in October, 1867, by Rev. Dr. T. C. Pitkin, who served the parish until April, 1877, and during his pas- torate, on Novem- ber 22, 1874, the semi-centennial of the organization of the church was ap- propriately observ- ed. Rev. Rufus W. Clark became rector September 12, 1877.
The rector's sal- ary, in 1880, was $2,500 and the use of the rectory. The cost of the choir was $1,600, the sex- ton's salary, $475, and the total an- nual expenses, $7,000. The re- ceipts from pew rents were $5,000. Value of the prop- erty $100,000. The average attendance at Sun- day morning service in 1880 was 500. Number of members in 1830, 40; in 1840, 291 ; in 1850, 250; in 1860, 265 ; in 1870, 296; in 1880, 448. In 1883 the three missions of All Saints, St. Barnabas, and
THE PROTESTANT EPISCOPAL CHURCHES.
583
St. Thomas, were under the care of St. Paul's Church. The former rectory, now known as St. Paul's building, is occupied by a variety of business offices.
CHRIST PROTESTANT EPISCOPAL CHURCH, ORIGINAL BUILDING.
Christ Church.
This, the second parish of the denomina- tion in Detroit, was organized on May 26, 1845. The articles of association were signed by sixty-seven persons. As the State law under which it would have been necessary to incorporate was then unsatisfactory, the so- ciety was not incorporated until March 27, 1857.
In 1845 a lot on the south side of Jefferson Avenue, between Hastings and Rivard Streets, was procured, and a frame church, forty-two by seventy-two feet, erected at a cost of $1,500. It seated 300, and was consecrated May 31, 1846. The first rector was Rev. W. N. Lyster. He served until April, 1849, and was succeeded in July by Rev. Charles Aldis, who remained until June, 1851. During that summer the church was enlarged by an addi- tion of thirty feet on the rear, at a cost of about $3,000. The seating capacity was thus increased to 500.
In November, 1856, Rev. T. R. Chipman became rector, and remained until November, 1859. In February, 1860, Rev. B. H. Paddock took charge of the parish, and on October 19 following, the corner-stone of the stone chapel on the rear of the lot was laid. The chapel was fully completed and consecrated on June 9, 1861. It seats 300 persons and cost $5,706. The old church was then torn down and the erection of a new edifice begun.
On April 9, 1863, it was consecrated. The cost of the building and its furnishings was $28,150. It is built in the form of a Latin cross. The total length inside is one hundred and twelve feet, the width across the nave forty-four feet, and across the tran- sept seventy-seven feet; height from floor to ridge of roof, fifty-five feet. It seats 900 persons.
In October, 1864, a chime of nine bells was placed in the tower, at an expense of $5,409. The several bells were contributed by the following parties : Bell No. I, by the Ladies' Society; No. 2, by Mrs. C. C. Trowbridge; No. 3, by the Sanger family; No. 4, by the children of the Sunday school; No. 5, by the young men of the parish as a testi- monial to the senior warden, Mr. C. C. Trowbridge ; No. 6, by J. N. Ford; No. 7, by J. E. Pittman; No. 8, by Edward and Martha Lyon ; No. 9 by Mary S. Mandlebaum.
In 1864 the rectory on Woodbridge Street, in rear of the church, was purchased for $2,500, and in 1866 it was enlarged at a cost of $3,000.
SPARMARTENS
CHRIST PROTESTANT EPISCOPAL CHURCH.
584
THE PROTESTANT EPISCOPAL CHURCHES.
In April, 1869, Rev. Mr. Paddock resigned his rectorship. His successors have been : 1870-1876, Rev. J. W. Brown; August, 1876. to December, 1881, Rev. W. J. Harris; December, 1881, to July, 1885, Rev. C. B. Brewster. Since November 14, 1886, Rev. J. H. Johnson has been rector.
In 1877 the tower of the church was completed, at a cost of $4,000.
A short time before his death the senior warden, Mr. C. C. Trowbridge, presented the church with an elegant memorial window, bearing a repre- sentation of the Good Shepherd, with this inscrip- tion, "I am the Good Shepherd. In memory of Rev. William N. Lyster, first rector of this parish, and of Ellen E., his wife."
The rector's salary in 1880 was $3,000. The annual expenses for the choir are $1,000. The sexton is paid $300. The total yearly expenses in 1880 were about $5,000, and the receipts from pews $4,500. The average attendance at the morning service was from 250 to 300. Number of com- municants in 1850, 94; in 1860, 149; in 1870, 399; in 1880, 500. Value of property in 1880, $120,000. Amount of debt, $2,700.
Mariners' Church.
This church owes its existence to the liberality of Miss Charlotte Ann Taylor and her sister, Mrs. Julia Ann Anderson. Miss Taylor died February I, 1840, bequeathing all her property to her sister, but with a verbal and well-understood agreement between them that Mrs. Anderson would eventually bequeath it, with her own property, to establish a mariners' church. Both ladies were, at the time of their death, communicants of St. Paul's.
Mrs. Anderson died October 28, 1842, aged forty- nine years. Her will, dated eight days before her death, gave the lot fifty by one hundred feet on northwest corner of Woodward Avenue and Wood- bridge Street, as a site for a church, to be called the Mariners' Church of Detroit, and directed that it be built of stone. For the purpose of building and maintaining the church, she gave a lot of land in Monroe, and a lot in the rear of the church, on Woodbridge Street, extending through to Griswold, with a front of forty feet on that street, together with $13,100 in cash.
On March 29, 1848, by special Act of the Legis- lature, C. C. Trowbridge, who had been appointed a trustee by the executors, and eight others who were to be appointed, were constituted a corpora- tion under the title of Trustees of the Mariners' Church of Detroit. The Act provided that the pews in the church to be erected should be forever free.
The erection of the church was begun in the spring of 1849. On October 24, Rev. Horace Hill
was chosen rector, and on December 23, 1849, the church was consecrated. It is fifty by one hundred feet in size, and seats about 500 persons. The entire cost was $15,000. The lower story has always been used for business purposes; it was first occupied by the post-office, and has since been rented to various business firms.
Mr. Hill resigned in December, 1856, and was succeeded by Rev. Rufus Murray. He remained until March 27, 1860, and on April 28 of this year, Rev. A. L. Brewer became rector. He resigned in December, 1864, and the parish was cared for by the bishop until November, 1865, when Rev. A. M. Lewis began his term. In May, 1872, he resigned, and on October 1, Rev. E. W. Flower was appointed. He resigned October 1, 1876, and was succeeded on February 14. 1877, by Rev. William Charles, who served until 1885, and was followed by Rev. Paul Ziegler.
The revenue of the church from rents amounts to about $2,500 per year, and is used in its main- tenance. The rector's salary is $1,400; the annual expenses of the choir and sexton are $200 each ; and the total expenditures, about $2,000. The average attendance at the church in 1880 was 130. Number of members in 1850, 63; in 1860, 134; in 1870, 136; in 1880, 52. Value of the property in 1880, $100,000.
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