St. Lawrence Parish of Utica
Inscription
In May 1866 the Reverend Amandus VanDenDriessche of Detroit recited Utica’s first Catholic mass. Forty Irish families at Utica Junction (present-day Roseville) formed what became a mission of Sacred Heart Parish. On August 15, 1874, Bishop C. H. Borgess dedicated St. Lawrence Parish’s first church.
Four years later a cemetery was consecrated one-half mile north of here. In 1904 a fire swept through Utica, destroying the church. Parishioners worshipped in homes and a rented hall until a new church was built in 1908. The present Neo-Romanesque church was designed by Detroit architect Arthur DesRosiers and erected in 1951.
The broad nave seats 800 people. St. Lawrence Parish remains the oldest religious community in Utica.
Location
Sources
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