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House of worship, Detroit., since 1849

Mariners Church

Still standing, photographed 2024

Built in 1849, this Gothic Revival-style building, known as the Mariners Church, was designed by Calvin N. Otis and..., 2022 Photo: Warren LeMay, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Opened
1849
Style
Gothic Revival
Standing
177 years

Designed by Calvin N. Otis

Mariners Church has stood on E. Jefferson Ave. in Detroit. since 1849, 177 years and counting. Who built it, what makes it special and how to see it for yourself.

On the map

More photos of Mariners Church

Built in 1849, this Gothic Revival-style building, known as the Mariners Church, was designed by Calvin N. Otis and..., 2024 Photo: Warren LeMay, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Built in 1849, this Gothic Revival-style building, known as the Mariners Church, was designed by Calvin N. Otis and..., 2022 Photo: Warren LeMay, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Mariners' Church bell tower, Detroit, Michigan, 2007 Photo: I, Mikerussell, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

What is there now

Standing and open

We checked building permits, sales, listings and the city's blight and demolition files on October 25, 2026. Nothing new at this address in the last two years.

The story

By Victoria Jackson, Editor in Chief Updated

Mariners Church opened in 1849, in the years when roads in from Detroit were plank and mud.

The design came from Calvin N. Otis, in the Gothic Revival style.

The National Register of Historic Places listed it in 1971.

It still stands and still opens its doors.

Next time you are nearby, stop at 170 E. Jefferson Ave., Detroit and look up.

Mariners' Church of Detroit is a church with worship services adhering to Anglican liturgical traditions located at 170 East Jefferson Avenue in Downtown Detroit. It was founded in 1842 as a special mission to the maritime travelers of the Great Lakes and functioned as a parish of the Episcopal Diocese of Michigan until 1992, when the Michigan Court of Appeals ruled it was incorporated as an independent congregation.

From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Timeline

  1. 1849 Built Designed by Calvin N. Otis
  2. 1971 Listed on the National Register March 11, 1971
  3. 2026 Today 177 years and still standing

Where it is

170 E. Jefferson Ave., Detroit., Detroit.

On this map

  1. Mariners Church This place
  2. Biddle House 240 ft
  3. Renaissance City Apartments 480 ft
  4. Coleman A. Young Municipal Center 510 ft
  5. Ford Auditorium 0.1 mi
  6. Renaissance Center 0.1 mi
  7. William Cotter Maybury Monument 0.1 mi
  8. Light Guard Armory 0.1 mi
  9. Avenue Theatre 0.1 mi

Street map from OpenStreetMap contributors

Who made it

Architect

Calvin N. Otis

American architect, 1814 to 1883. Designed Mariners Church (1849) and Church of the Messiah

Also by Calvin N. Otis

More from Detroit. in the 1840s

Around the block

Photo credits

Every photo on this page is used under its license, named here with its author and a link to the original.

  1. Built in 1849, this Gothic Revival-style building, known as the Mariners Church, was designed by Calvin N. Otis and..., 2022 Photo: Warren LeMay, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
  2. Built in 1849, this Gothic Revival-style building, known as the Mariners Church, was designed by Calvin N. Otis and..., 2024 Photo: Warren LeMay, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
  3. Built in 1849, this Gothic Revival-style building, known as the Mariners Church, was designed by Calvin N. Otis and..., 2022 Photo: Warren LeMay, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
  4. Mariners' Church bell tower, Detroit, Michigan, 2007 Photo: I, Mikerussell, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
  5. Mariners' Church at 6 Woodbridge Street at Woodward Avenue, Detroit, Michigan, showing shops on ground floor, before..., 1936 Photo: Victor Stankiewitz, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
  6. Mariners' Church at 6 Woodbridge Street at Woodward Avenue, Detroit, Michigan, 1936 Photo: Victor Stankiewitz, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Sources

Facts only, gathered from these sources. The story above is written by Rebuild Detroit. Every photo names its author and license where it appears.