St. Matthias Episcopal / Enon Tabernacle Church

In March of 1897, a group of Episcopalians met to start a new Sunday school in the vicinity of Grand River Avenue and Hudson Streets. St. Matthias Mission was originally located in the former St. Barnabas church at 14th and Breckenridge but concerns about children crossing over the busy Michigan Central Railroad line caused them to relocate to a hall on Grand River. In October of 1904, a new church was dedicated at the corner of Lawton and Stanley Streets. Two years later, the mission was incorporated as St. Matthias church.

A parish house was built on Vinewood near Grand River in 1916, where early services were held. By 1923 the parish had outgrown its quarters and plans for a new church were drawn up. Ground was broken for a permanent church and school on June 28th, 1925, which was dedicated on September 26th, 1926.

The church was extensively renovated in 1950, with a new mural entitled “Supper at Emmaus” painted over the altar. With over 2,000 members, St. Matthias was one of the largest Episcopal churches in the city. But as was common at the time, membership began to drop through the 60’s and 70’s, and the church closed in August of 1978.

More recently the building was used by Enon Tabernacle Missionary Baptist Church until sometime in the mid 2010’s, when the church was vacated and put up for sale.