This area of Detroit was settled by many immigrants from Eastern Europe, especially from Hungry and Romania, in the years before World War II. A smaller number came in that short interval after World War I when the United States welcomed immigrants. There were many industries located in or near this area including the large Cadillac Clark Avenue plant that opened in 1921.
From the crosses atop this church, you can tell that it was an Orthodox Church, not a Roman Catholic Church. I presume that this was a Hungarian language Byzantine Orthodox Church. The Hungarian community had the resources to erect the much larger Holy Cross Catholic Church, just a couple of blocks to the northeast on South Street, a church that still serves the Hungarian population of metropolitan Detroit
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The population of this area went down rapidly in the years after World War II. The homes were very modest when they were built and the area was intersected by numerous rail lines and highways used frequently by many trucks. The federal government’s housing policies made it quite easy for the residents of urban neighborhoods such as Delray—even if their incomes were low—to move to the outlying section of Detroit with their newer homes or into the booming suburban ring. I believe that this parish closed in the 1980s. So far as I know, this Orthodox Congregation did not move to a suburban location. At some points in the past, the church may have served as a home for an African-American congregation but there was never a very dense black population in the Delray neighborhood of Detroit. This is a rather unattractive section of Detroit. The Detroit Wastewater Treatment plant dominates the landscape. Just a couple of blocks to the south along Harbaugh Street stands the abandoned but beautiful St. John Cantius building, the most forlorn church in the city.
Date of Construction: 1911
Architect: Unknown to me
Architectural style: Gothic with numerous stained glass windows
Use in 2011: Abandoned church. It was listed for sale for $230,000 for the 8,600-square-foot church, the rectory and accompanying parking lots.
City of Detroit Designated Historic District: Not listed
State of Michigan Registry of Historic Sites: Not listed
National Register of Historic Places: Not listed
Photograph: Ren Farley
Description prepared: May, 2011