First Unitarian Church of Detroit, Romanesque Revival church in Midtown Detroit, United States.
The First Unitarian Church was a Romanesque Revival church building located in Detroit's Midtown area along Woodward Avenue. It featured distinctive red sandstone walls with a four-bay porch supported by large stone columns in the Romanesque style.
The building was constructed between 1889 and 1890 by architects Donaldson and Meier as a focal point for the local congregation. It underwent major remodeling in 1931 when Woodward Avenue was widened, altering its original footprint.
The church was known for three large round stained glass windows created by John La Farge that once filled the interior with colored light. These artworks were moved to the Detroit Institute of Arts where visitors can still view them today.
The building no longer stands, so visitors cannot tour the original structure but can view the preserved stained glass windows at the Detroit Institute of Arts. The museum location offers accessible exhibits that showcase what the church's artistic elements looked like.
A major fire in May 2014 completely destroyed the building despite its listing on the National Register of Historic Places since 1982. The loss of this structure remains significant in Detroit's architectural history.
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