Historic Detroit

Every building in Detroit has a story — we're here to share it

Iroquois Avenue Christ Lutheran Church

Members of St. Marks Lutheran Church in Detroit held a meeting on Feb. 8, 1911 to begin a mission congregation on the growing east side of the city. Indian Village, “a first class residential neighborhood on a generous scale” was selected as an ideal location. The name Christ Lutheran was chosen and a temporary home was rented on Canton and Kercheval for the newly organized church.

In the late summer and fall of the same year, a parsonage was built on the corner of Iroquois and Waterloo (now Vernor) on land which had been purchased by member John S. Sherman. On Nov. 5, 1911, the Reverend John A. Dietzer was installed as the first pastor. Iroquois Avenue was added to the name in Jun. 1913 to distinguish it from other area churches with similar names.

Ground was broken for a permanent church in February of 1913. As soon as the basement of the new church was completed, the congregation vacated the temporary church building and moved into the partially built structure. The first worship service was held there on Oct. 19, 2013. The main church building was completed and dedicated to the glory of God in three services, with capacity attendance on Nov. 13, 1913.

The church sanctuary including furnishings was designed by Louis Keil, a church member who designed the interiors of marine steamers, and built by Henry C. Malow, also a member of the congregation. In one of his travels abroad, Mr. Keil captured the essence of a European church that he liked. The dominant characteristics is Gothic, with influences from the Arts & Crafts Movement. The cost of the church building unfurnished and without an organ came to $25,000, the equivalent to about $800,000 in 2025.

In keeping with medieval architectural tradition, the church's floor plan is in the form of a cross, reminding the worshipper that the sacrifice of Jesus Christ is central to the faith.

The church contains 13 sets of stained glass windows — highly descriptive of Bible stories and Christian themes and truly vibrant in color. The windows, donated by church members, surround the congregation creating a constant picture of Christ's life and the congregation's ministry.

The Easter window in the chancel, a floral design of Easter lilies, is representative of the Arts & Crafts Movement that flowered in Detroit between 1886 and 1906 — a desire to return to the beauty and simplicity of the Middle Ages. The lily is symbolic of purity and the Resurrection.

The remaining windows in Christ Church are painted in Renaissance pictorial style which was popular in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. In addition to the Easter window, the chancel contains a Nativity window in this style.

Clockwise from the altar the other windows represent the Crucifixion, the Resurrection, Jesus calling Peter and Andrew to the Apostate, saying "Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men", Peter's failed attempt to walk on water after his boat capsizes, the Angel (God's messenger to the people), God's word (represented by the lamb and the cross of St. Paul, the sword of the spirit, and a cup symbolizing communion), "Suffer the little children to come unto me," (a biblical scene of Christ blessing children from Matthew 19:13-15), Christ knocks, the Good Shepherd, and Gethsemane.

The church's first organ was a three-manual Roosevelt. In 1952, the Roosevelt was replaced by the present four-manual organ built by Austin Company of Hartford, Connecticut. The 1921 Austin was purchased for $20,000 from Wesley Methodist Church in Detroit which was being torn down for an expressway. It was installed by the Toledo Pipe Organ Co.

The console comprises four sets of manual keys and a 32-note pedal keyboard. There are 32 adjustable combination pistons effecting the various organs as well as 6 toe pistons and 8 masters controlling all divisions. Every movable part in the organ is accessible from this chamber which is about 7 feet high with a floor space of 12 x 35 feet. Built at a time when master crafters as well as select woods and metals were available to the organ industry, it was possible to create tone qualities requiring quantities of choice metals and thousands of feet of select lumber. The shipping weight of the Austin was 15 tons.

The organ contains a genuine double bourdon 32ft tone, a 32ft resultant, many 16ft. sets as well as an unusual proportion of large-scale diapasons, flutes, strings and choruses of reed pipes for a deep, rich sound. Cathedral Chimes are tubular, made from bell metal and operated by direct electric action. Placement is in the echo chamber near the main entrance to the sanctuary. The total number of pipes is 2,336 or 39 ranks. Austin's full scale harp contains 61 bells and resonators.

Parish House

In 1928, the parish house center of adult and youth religious and social activities was added to the church building. This building has four stories. The basement was planned for an assembly hall, over 20 classrooms, kitchen and a handball court. Going up one story to the main floor, the early congregation used this space for offices, a lounge, a fellowship hall, a nursery, and a kitchen. On the second floor, there is a gynmasium for the church's basketball teams and theater groups, along with a full size kitchen. On the top floor is a set of locker rooms.

The majority of the rooms are used today by the congregation and area community groups. The parish house was designed by Beckett and Akin and built by Clarence Figel, a church member. The cornerstone was placed on Aug. 26, 1928 and was dedicated on Jan. 13, 1929. It was completed at a cost of $98,000 unfurnished, which is equal to $1,800,000 in 2024.

In 1990, the congregation started a childcare program in the parish house basement. The Indian Village Childcare Center serves children 2-5 years of age. The parish house basement was renovated completely in 1992 as a Cornerstone School. This Cornerstone School campus serves children in kindergarten through grade 5.