First Congregational Church of Detroit

First Congregational Church of Detroit is a Michigan historical marker in Detroit, Wayne County, dedicated 1976.

33 East Forest, Detroit

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In 1801 David Bacon and his wife Alice made the first attempt to establish Congregationalism in Detroit. Sent by a Connecticut Congregational society, the Bacons failed in their efforts to build a mission. It was not until 1844 that the First Congregational Society was formed in Detroit. The society erected a building which it soon outgrew. A second structure was dedicated in 1854. The third and present church known as the “Church of the Seven Arches” was completed in 1891. Designed by John L. Faxon, it has Byzantine and Romanesque features. The tower of the church is crowned by a statue of the Angel Uriel. Both the exterior and interior of this church are rich in the colors and symbolism of the Christian religion.

Maps this old were drawn largely by eye, so places on them can sit miles from where they really are. The pin is ours and marks the marker's location today.

TodayHistorical map

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David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries

Historical maps covering this location

1796 · N. W. Territory. (David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries)
1819 · Ohio & Indiana (H. S. Tanner, 1819) (Barry Lawrence Ruderman Map Collection, Stanford Libraries)
1820 · Ohio (Bourne & Kilbourne, 1820) (Barry Lawrence Ruderman Map Collection, Stanford Libraries)
1873 · (Map of Wayne County, Michigan) (David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries)
1903 · Detroit and Vicinity. (David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries)

N. W. Territory, 1796, covering the location of First Congregational Church of Detroit, with a pin at the marker's coordinates — N. W. Territory, 1796, covering this location. David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries. The pin is ours, placed from the marker's coordinates.

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From one family's 77-marker roster

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Marker data: Michigan History Center
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On the National Register nearby

First Congregational Church70 ft

Places within about 300 feet of this marker that are listed on the National Register of Historic Places. A nearby listing is not always the marker's own subject.