St. James Episcopal Church

St. James, the oldest church building on Grosse Ile, is an example of the better church architecture of the nineteenth century. It is located within the site of the original landing of Cadillac in 1701, when he overnighted on Grosse Ile before coming back upstream to land at Detroit. The historic plaque commemorating Cadillac's landing is a few hundred feet away from the church. St. James owes its existence to the generosity of Elizabeth Denison Forth. Mrs. Forth (Lisette) was born to slavery, achieved freedom about 1815, joined the John Biddle household in 1831, and became devoted friends with Mrs. Biddle. In their later years, the two became determined to build a chapel as a joint act of faith. Lisette bequeathed her life savings to William Biddle, stipulating that the fund be used in the erection of a 'fine chapel for the Protestant Episcopal Church.' However, her savings were insufficient for her intended purpose. William and James Biddle honored their mother's intentions and supplemented Lisette's legacy. James Biddle contributed a highly desirable wooded riverfront site. Gordon W. Lloyd, the noted English-trained architect, drew the plans. Construction began during the summer of 1857. James Biddle used his woodworking ability to build an altar, reading stand, and a minister's kneeling bench, all of which were embellished with carved panels illuminated in red and gold. He also constructed a crude but sturdy oaken cross for the altar, probably intending to enhance it with carvings, but that was never accomplished. The building was completed in the spring of 1868. On June 23, 1957, the Lisette Denison Doors were dedicated to perpetuate her memory. The growth in the island population necessitated the erection of a larger facility in 1957-58. Since that time, the little church consecrated over ninety years earlier has served as the chapel. There is a service in the chapel at least once a week, thus it remains the oldest Episcopal frame church in continuous use in Michigan.

St. James Episcopal Chapel, built in 1867 and designed by Gordon W. Lloyd, is a Carpenters' Gothic edifice with vertical monochrome board and batten, gingerbread vergeboards, and steep pointed gables. Wooden buttresses support each of the side walls. There is a wooden bell cote above one end of the facade topped by a steeple and spire. The main entrance is in the gable facade of the one-story projection. It is a double-leaf, three-panel door with plain, recessed panels. The door and its structural opening have a center pointed arch. There are flush side panels on either side of the architrave with two stained glass windows in the top sections and two bronze memorial plaques in the lower sections. Three additions have been added to the original chapel, and it has undergone extensive repairs several times. The spire was snapped off the belfry by an airplane in 1945. During the 1940s the church was painted and redecorated, beams were replaced, and parts of the roof and belfry repaired. Three stained glass windows in the south wall and a large window in the east wall were presented in 1947. The Tiffany window 'Angel of Praise' was presented in 1898. A new pulpit was installed in 1949.