Christ Church (Detroit, Mich. : United Church of Christ)

Christ Church was organized on the west side of Detroit in 1886, and was originally called Christ Evangelical Lutheran Church. This new congregation was formed by a group of people who split from the Lutheran Church at Ash and 23rd Street. After holding services in a Michigan Avenue store, the new congregation built a sanctuary located at the corner of Roosevelt and Myrtle. The first members of the church were ethnic Germans from East Prussia, and in fact records were kept in German until as late as 1926. Denominationally, Christ Church was maintained as a member of the Evangelical and Reform Church. In 1961, the Evangelical and Reform Church merged with the Congregational Church to form the United Church of Christ (UCC), and Christ Church became part of the UCC system. In 1977, Christ Church merged with a nearby UCC congregation, the Boulevard Church. The merged congregation was renamed Joy Church, and meets at the Boulevard sanctuary on Joy Road. The Church at Roosevelt and Myrtle was subsequently sold.

From the guide to the Christ Church (Detroit, Mich. : United Church of Christ) records, 1886-1966, (Bentley Historical Library, University of Michigan)

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