OK, Historians...
Can anyone tell me what the buildings [[Telegraph Rd and W. Chicago) were used for prior to the Church? I heard a rumor of a Jewish Synagogue?
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OK, Historians...
Can anyone tell me what the buildings [[Telegraph Rd and W. Chicago) were used for prior to the Church? I heard a rumor of a Jewish Synagogue?
While I don't know a thing about these buildings, a synogogue seems unlikely, given there was never a Jewish population anywhere near here.
Also, that would be a pretty unusual design for a synagogue.
I never encountered that one in my searches for Detroit synagogues.Quote:
Originally Posted by Bham1982
But I don't think the design is out of line for a synagogue. The Greek classic look appears in some former synagogues, most notably Temple Beth El on Woodward.
http://www.shtetlhood.com/images/Beth_El.jpg
And, in bas relief, in B'nai Moshe on Dexter.
Attachment 35517
23799 W Chicago was up until the late 80s Temple Baptist. Huge congregation. Believe to be relocated to far western Wayne county off of M-14.
Here's what I learned from searching and from previous threads here, here and here:
- The church was founded in 1914, and after several mergers became the Temple Baptist Church, with their first church on 14th street in Detroit. In 1935, they invited the controversial [[and pretty vile) J. Frank Norris to become the pastor.
- In 1952, they moved to whiter pastures on Grand River near Livernois, into what is now the Straight Gate International Church.
- They moved to the W. Chicago location in 1968. They eventually found a leader, Truman Dollar, who wasn't a segregationist. They desegregated in 1985, but Dollar was forced out in a possible sex scandal, and eventually committed suicide. Membership declined from 5000 to 1500.
- They decided what they needed was another move, so in 1997 they moved to Plymouth near M-14, and renamed themselves Northridge Church, dropping any affiliations with the Baptists. They've grown to over 12,000 members.
I also learned that the original church became the King Solomon Baptist Church, a center of the Civil Rights movement. Their auditorium hosted luminaries like Benjamin Mays and Martin Luther King, Jr. Also, Malcolm X gave his Message to the Grass Roots speech there. There's some irony here I can't articulate.
Sorry this is so long - I kept finding more information!
Very interesting archfan. Now I know the origins of that the Northridge mega-church I see on my way to Ann Arbor was one of the original mega-churches.
Some bygone King Solomon pics. I always liked the faded beauty of the architecture of the church and the across-the-street auditorium.
http://detroityes.com/webisodes/2018...2009-56847.jpg
http://detroityes.com/webisodes/2018...2009-56847.jpg
http://detroityes.com/webisodes/2018...2009-56847.jpg
http://detroityes.com/webisodes/2018...2004-15880.jpg
Interesting history of that building. As of last summer it looks like some efforts were made at cleanup and stabilization.Quote:
Originally Posted by Lowell
The announcements for the church from the October 1, 1966 and August 24, 1968 editions of the Freep.
The second Temple Baptist building at 10100 Grand River, now the Straight Gate International Church, was owned by the Detroit Board of Education for many years and operated under the name Adlai Stevenson Building as a public events center, administration building, and site for special education programs. I spoke there once when I was in the 7th grade as part of a program on the then brand-new magnet middle schools. The school board also rented the place out for events. The famous [[or infamous) Prophet Jones had a huge funeral there in 1971.
As Temple Baptist:
https://www.cardcow.com/images/set93/card00166_fr.jpg