First Congregational Church
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
U.S. Historic district Contributing property
Location	53248 N Avenue (at 1st St.), Lake Linden, Michigan
Coordinates	47°11′19″N 88°24′39″W / 47.18861°N 88.41083°W / 47.18861; -88.41083
Built	1886
Architect	Holabird & Roche
Architectural style	Stick/Eastlake
Part of	Lake Linden Historic District ( ID09000522)
NRHP reference  No.	80001863 [1]
Added to NRHP	November 17, 1980

The First Congregational Church (Lake Linden, Michigan) is located at 53248 N Avenue (on the corner of First Street) in the Linden Lake Historic District in Lake Linden, Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980, ^[1] and is significant for its impeccable architectural integrity. ^[2]

Description

The First Congregational Church is a spectacular example of Victorian stick architecture. ^[3] The church is a rectangular asymmetrically-massed front gable structure atop a foundation of mine rock ^[3] with a square tower and belfry in the front. ^{[2] [3]} The exterior features dramatic woodwork styling, with fishscale and flat-edged shingles ^[2] made of pine and separated into sections by stickwork. ^[3] The gable over the entrance and the tower sides are constructed with diagonal siding; focal points there and on the sides of the church are sided in herringbone and pinwheel shapes, fremed with more stickwork and carved floral rosettes. ^[3] The church has an open front porch with contrasting turned railings. ^[2]

The interior includes the pastor's office, kitchen, and meetinghall. ^[4] The meetinghall has wainscoted walls, a hardwood ceiling, and more intricate stickwork; ^[2] there are only minor alterations from the original construction. ^[4] A Garret House Pipe Organ, built in 1874 for the First Congregational Church of Calumet, ^[5] is also installed. The organ was believed to be the oldest tracker-style pipe organ in Michigan, however a search of the Organ Historical Society database reveals several original and relocated tracker-action pipe organs pre-dating the Garret House. ^[6]

History

The First Congregational Church founded in 1882 by a small group of Scottish residents, headed by Allen McIntyre, ^[3] which included a number of prominent businessmen and employees of the local Calumet and Hecla Mining Company. ^[2] It soon became apparent that the congregation would need its own church, and a building committee was formed in 1886. ^[2] The Calumet and Hecla Mining Company donated land, ^[5] and the committee procured architectural drawings from Holabird and Roche, using them to build the church for an original cost of $8325. ^[2] The building was dedicated in February 1887, three months before a devastating fire swept through Lake Linden; the church was one of the few frame buildings in the area to escape damage. ^{[2] [3]}

The church continued to be in use until the 1980s, when the congregation dwindled to the point where they were not large enough to maintain the building. ^[2] The church was deeded to the Houghton County Historical Society, which has continued to use and maintain it ^[2] as the Houghton County Heritage Center. ^[5] Limited restoration has been ongoing since 1993; the restoration included repainting the church in the original colors. ^[5]

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to First Congregational Church (Lake Linden, Michigan).

• Houghton County Heritage Center Archived August 14, 2009, at the Wayback Machine

References