SS. Peter and Paul's Church (Roman Catholic) - Detroit, MI
N 42° 19.907 W 083° 02.288
17T E 332082 N 4688626
Ss. Peter & Paul Jesuit Church is located at 438 St Antoine, Detroit, MI 48226.
Waymark Code: WM16DTM
Location: Michigan, United States
Date Posted: 07/09/2022
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66. SS. PETER AND PAUL'S CHURCH (Roman Catholic), E. Jefferson AVe. and St. Antoine St., a large brick building painted gray, is the oldest church structure int he city. For many years after its dedication in 1844 it was the diocesan cathedral. The broad three-aisled and arcaded interior has plaster barrel vaults; in the apse is a high Carrara marble altar of ornate Renaissance design. The altar's marble niche holds sculptured groups, Christ on the Cross and The Three Virgins, by Joseph Gibbel of New York. The altar proper was designed the the Detroit architect, Gustave Adolph Mueller. The church, a post-classical Roman Basilica, was designed by Francis Letourno.--excerpt from Michigan: A Guide to the Wolverine State 1941
Today, as stated on the State of Michigan historical marker on the church:
This is the oldest extant church in Detroit. Designed by Francis Letourno in the basilica form, it was built between 1844 and 1848 and served for twenty-nine years as the cathedral of the Detroit diocese under Bishop Lefevere. In 1877 Bishop Borgess gave the parish to the Jesuit Fathers to build a college here. This is now the University of Detroit. The church exterior retains its original simplicity and dignity.
The
church is still active and has two masses on Sunday throughout the summer.