These six churches I explored on my way around Detroit I didn't get enough photos from to warrant separate threads, so instead here is a grab bag compilation of some of the multitude of abandoned churches Detroit has to offer. Some of these are well known, others less so, all were interesting in their own ways.
First up, and the first stop when in the city, was a revisit to a church I first visited back in 2019. On that visit the weather was abysmal, and so the interior of the church was very dark and difficult to shoot and it's such a spectacular church we all wanted to shoot it. Known affectionately as simply 'The Hungarian Church', it once served the sizeable Hungarian community in one of the west side Detroit neighbourhoods and, whilst the exterior is relatively plain, the interior features a series of stunning murals across the ceiling. Sadly, like with many historic churches, it probably faces a sad ending as the city struggles to sell on churches to reuse in communities which have shrunk so much it's what forced their closure in the first place. The condition inside hadn't worsened too bad in the three years between my visits which was a big surprise on entering the place again.
The next church was - quite literally - a short walk across the road. This one was, amazingly, in use when I was here in 2019 although it must have been at the very end of it's life. It's difficult to find out any solid history for it, as it's gone through so many different relatively shortlived ownerships and different names over the years. One thing is certain though by the end of the church's life it must have been falling apart inside, a lot of churches in the city have such tight budgets they carry on holding services even as the building falls apart around them. Unlike the previous one, this building was well stripped, but it was still a cool one to see.
Another one with an affectionate name 'The Green Church', which becomes obvious when you step inside. It is, without doubt, one of the finest derelict churches in the city and has a very tranquil, calming atmosphere inside. It's very heavily watched over by the owners who own and live in the building opposite so we were very lucky to get in and out without being collared by them - when we went past the next day we saw them sealing up the access point we had used. As such, with it being so heavily watched over, we didn't spend nearly as long in here as I'd have liked to, but at least I got to see it!
I also paid a revisit to one of the more often-trodden, well known derelict churches. East Grand Boulevard Methodist Church occupies a prominent position on a major crossroads on East Grand Boulevard, one of the main roads heading into or away from Detroit. As such it's obviously received a lot of attention, so is a mess, however it's a very photogenic mess and has become even more of a death trap since I visited in 2019, and it was in a bad way even then.
Assumption Greek Orthodox Church is located on the east side of the city, and is one I first tried in 2019 but found it sealed. It looks in OK condition from the outside, until you look to the roof and see that the entire cupola has been stripped of it's copper coating which, on the inside, has lead to an absolutely catastrophic case of water damage. It really is shocking how bad the damage in here is, the entire ceiling around the cupola and a large amount of the wall plaster running along above the windows has been completely removed from the brick structure.
Lastly in this random assortment of Detroit churches is a place that I actually found, by accident, way back in 2019 but we had no time to check the place out. Fast forward to 2022 though and, at the very end of the trip, I suggested to two of the group that we should check it out on the way back to the hotel before splitting and saying our goodbyes. Unlike every other church here, this one is comparatively modern, being built in the 1960s, however it's stunning coloured glass window is what made me take notice. It closed a few years ago and is right in the middle of a very active cluster of buildings including a tall apartment block, larger older church and other buildings so I wasn't holding out much hope of finding a way in. In all honesty given how ridiculously overlooked the building was if we did get in, I wasn't planning on staying long because the likelihood of a nosey neighbour calling the police was very high, the neighbourhood was not at all friendly. After a false start I spotted a way in that had been staring me in the face the two times I'd walked around the church and so we were in, and immediately I realised I'd discovered something pretty special. The whole building was totally stripped, and stunk of damp, except the church which had everything left inside it as if they were going to hold a service tomorrow - but the carpet was soaking wet from water coming in, and there were cobwebs everywhere. We spent at most ten minutes inside due to us both feeling very uneasy given the neighbourhood, but were able to shoot what we wanted and leave without a fuss.
Thanks for looking
First up, and the first stop when in the city, was a revisit to a church I first visited back in 2019. On that visit the weather was abysmal, and so the interior of the church was very dark and difficult to shoot and it's such a spectacular church we all wanted to shoot it. Known affectionately as simply 'The Hungarian Church', it once served the sizeable Hungarian community in one of the west side Detroit neighbourhoods and, whilst the exterior is relatively plain, the interior features a series of stunning murals across the ceiling. Sadly, like with many historic churches, it probably faces a sad ending as the city struggles to sell on churches to reuse in communities which have shrunk so much it's what forced their closure in the first place. The condition inside hadn't worsened too bad in the three years between my visits which was a big surprise on entering the place again.
The next church was - quite literally - a short walk across the road. This one was, amazingly, in use when I was here in 2019 although it must have been at the very end of it's life. It's difficult to find out any solid history for it, as it's gone through so many different relatively shortlived ownerships and different names over the years. One thing is certain though by the end of the church's life it must have been falling apart inside, a lot of churches in the city have such tight budgets they carry on holding services even as the building falls apart around them. Unlike the previous one, this building was well stripped, but it was still a cool one to see.
Another one with an affectionate name 'The Green Church', which becomes obvious when you step inside. It is, without doubt, one of the finest derelict churches in the city and has a very tranquil, calming atmosphere inside. It's very heavily watched over by the owners who own and live in the building opposite so we were very lucky to get in and out without being collared by them - when we went past the next day we saw them sealing up the access point we had used. As such, with it being so heavily watched over, we didn't spend nearly as long in here as I'd have liked to, but at least I got to see it!
I also paid a revisit to one of the more often-trodden, well known derelict churches. East Grand Boulevard Methodist Church occupies a prominent position on a major crossroads on East Grand Boulevard, one of the main roads heading into or away from Detroit. As such it's obviously received a lot of attention, so is a mess, however it's a very photogenic mess and has become even more of a death trap since I visited in 2019, and it was in a bad way even then.
Assumption Greek Orthodox Church is located on the east side of the city, and is one I first tried in 2019 but found it sealed. It looks in OK condition from the outside, until you look to the roof and see that the entire cupola has been stripped of it's copper coating which, on the inside, has lead to an absolutely catastrophic case of water damage. It really is shocking how bad the damage in here is, the entire ceiling around the cupola and a large amount of the wall plaster running along above the windows has been completely removed from the brick structure.
Lastly in this random assortment of Detroit churches is a place that I actually found, by accident, way back in 2019 but we had no time to check the place out. Fast forward to 2022 though and, at the very end of the trip, I suggested to two of the group that we should check it out on the way back to the hotel before splitting and saying our goodbyes. Unlike every other church here, this one is comparatively modern, being built in the 1960s, however it's stunning coloured glass window is what made me take notice. It closed a few years ago and is right in the middle of a very active cluster of buildings including a tall apartment block, larger older church and other buildings so I wasn't holding out much hope of finding a way in. In all honesty given how ridiculously overlooked the building was if we did get in, I wasn't planning on staying long because the likelihood of a nosey neighbour calling the police was very high, the neighbourhood was not at all friendly. After a false start I spotted a way in that had been staring me in the face the two times I'd walked around the church and so we were in, and immediately I realised I'd discovered something pretty special. The whole building was totally stripped, and stunk of damp, except the church which had everything left inside it as if they were going to hold a service tomorrow - but the carpet was soaking wet from water coming in, and there were cobwebs everywhere. We spent at most ten minutes inside due to us both feeling very uneasy given the neighbourhood, but were able to shoot what we wanted and leave without a fuss.
Thanks for looking
