Encyclopedia Of Detroit
Most Holy Trinity Catholic Church
Founded in 1834, Most Holy Trinity was the first English-language Roman Catholic parish in Detroit. The earliest parishioners of the church were Irish immigrants who had settled in the Corktown area. The new parish purchased the wooden meetinghouse of the First Protestant Society at Woodward Avenue and Larned Street. It was carefully deconstructed and rebuilt at the corner of Bates Street and Michigan Avenue. Before the first service could be held, the national cholera epidemic of 1834 struck, and the little church was transformed into a hospital, making it the first hospital in Detroit. A small memorial in the rear of the nave shows some artifacts from the clinic. Dedication of the church was on Trinity Sunday, June 14, 1835. A parish school was established on August 30, 1837, making it one of the oldest continuously-operated Catholic schools in the country.
In 1849, the building was hoisted onto rollers and hauled by horse power to its present location at Porter and Sixth streets. By 1855 a larger building was needed. Architect Patrick Charles Keeley drew up plans, constructing the new church around the walls of the old one, which were later demolished. The Gothic Revival church was completed in 1866.
Throughout the interior, references to the number three symbolically identify the church and refer to the Trinity. The tracker organ built in 1867 by Andreas Moelleris is reputed to be oldest church organ in Michigan still in its original location. The stained glass windows date from 1870. A balcony was added in 1890 to increase the seating capacity. After a fire in 1985 the sanctuary wall was redesigned in a floral pattern to represent the makeup of the multicultural congregation: shamrock (Irish), hibiscus (Maltese) and red rose (Latino). In 2008, Maltese artist Edwin Campbell redecorated the entire church interior including restoration of the old wood-carved communion railing.
Father Clement Kern, who served the parish for 34 years is portrayed in a statue at the nearby corner of Porter and Bagley streets.
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