St. Matthew's Episcopal Church

St. Matthew's Episcopal Church. . , The Mission Work of the Protestant Episcopal Church among Blacks in Detroit commenced with the Reverend William M. Monroe, First Pastor of Second Baptist Church, who left, and along with William Lambert, an abolitionist and a conductor on the Underground Railroad, organized St. Matthews Mission in September, 1846., In 1851 a new church building was completed at the corner of Congress and St. Antoine. This building, due to indebtedness and the effects of the fugitive enslavement law, was never consecrated. In 1859 the Parish was forced to temporarily close its doors. The property was sold and the money was put in trust while Sunday School continued to serve the community. Twenty-one years later the Mission was reorganized and a lot was purchased at St. Antoine and Elizabeth. In 1893 a new sanctuary was erected and a pipe organ installed., On October 1, 1906 St. Matthews Mission became an independent parish. During the next fifteen years, pew rents were abolished and plans were made for a much needed parish house. A lot south of the church was purchased for this purpose. The Detroit Branch of the NAACP was organized in the basement of St. Matthews Episcopal Church., In 1921 a new Rector initiated plans for the building of the Parish House which was completed in 1927. The newly completed Parish House became a Mecca for the young people's activities, educational and recreational, and St. Matthews School of Music was established. The church provided a place for African American concert artists to perform., In 1944, the balance on the Parish House was liquidated. Thirteen years later stained glass windows replaced the windows of the Nave. During the 1960's the church was a part of the Civil Rights struggle in Mississippi, Georgia, Tennessee and Selma, Alabama., In 1971, two historic congregations, St. Matthews and St. Josephs (Est. In 1883), merged in order to better serve the Detroit community. A Memorial Committee decided what could be removed from St. Matthews and what to preserve of St. Josephs. The Parish alter was made free standing so the celebrant would face the people - radical departure from tradition. The Parish was also one of the first to admit women as Chalice Ministers and girls as Acolytes., St. Matthews Church was the third oldest Black congregation in Detroit and the "Mother” Church of several other Detroit parishes. Over its more than 150 year history, the Parish played an active role in the community. In its early years, St. Matthews was a terminus of the Underground Railroad, and later, the center of much political and social activity.