Detroitej72 Member Username: Detroitej72
Post Number: 44 Registered: 05-2006 Posted From: 66.184.3.44
| Posted on Tuesday, July 11, 2006 - 4:04 pm: | |
Read with much interest the chronicals of St. Cyrils near Harpper and Van Dyke on this sight. Anyone have any memories or pictures of St. Thomas on Miller and Townsand. It closed in 1989 and sat mothballed for a few years, then untimately was demolished, replaced by (hers a shock)a vacant lot. Interesting the original church building still stands and was the gym for the long gone school. The former convennt also remains I belive as a youth home. Any memories? |
Fleamarket Member Username: Fleamarket
Post Number: 1 Registered: 05-2006 Posted From: 68.61.77.231
| Posted on Tuesday, July 11, 2006 - 10:16 pm: | |
My dad & his brothers attended St. Thomas, he even has a video of the (sad) demo of the parish. I will dig up some photos and send them along. I remember aimlessly driving one Sunday afternoon from Hamtramck. Looking around the hood (Vandyke & Harper), I felt as if I had been there before. What it really was, I was in the neighborhood of St. Thomas, where my dad grew up, and from hearing all the stories as a kid, made me feel as if I spent some time ther myself. |
Detroitej72 Member Username: Detroitej72
Post Number: 54 Registered: 05-2006 Posted From: 66.184.3.44
| Posted on Wednesday, July 12, 2006 - 5:39 pm: | |
bump |
Rjk Member Username: Rjk
Post Number: 396 Registered: 11-2003 Posted From: 68.41.145.5
| Posted on Wednesday, July 12, 2006 - 7:28 pm: | |
No info on St. Thomas parish, but my grandmother lived on Miller (Closer to Mt. Elliot) from the early 30's to the early 80's. Starting about 10 years ago I use to make a yearly trip down Miller until my grandmothers apartment building was torn down a few years back. Actually I was kind of glad that it came down as the ride down that street got to be depressing as hell. |
Detroitej72 Member Username: Detroitej72
Post Number: 64 Registered: 05-2006 Posted From: 66.184.3.44
| Posted on Wednesday, July 12, 2006 - 7:35 pm: | |
Rjk, Did your grandmother live in Detroit or Hamtown? Have to ask because my grandfather grew up on Dorthy Street in Hamtramck until he married my grandmother and moved to Winfield St. in Detroit. |
Rjk Member Username: Rjk
Post Number: 397 Registered: 11-2003 Posted From: 68.41.145.5
| Posted on Wednesday, July 12, 2006 - 8:32 pm: | |
She lived in Detroit, just a short distance east of Mt. Eliott on Miller. She attended Resurrection Catholic Church. Is Mt. Eliott the dividing line between the two cities? |
Hamtramck_steve Member Username: Hamtramck_steve
Post Number: 3089 Registered: 10-2003 Posted From: 68.252.125.198
| Posted on Wednesday, July 12, 2006 - 9:15 pm: | |
Not Mt. Elliott, but basically in between that and Conant. |
Detroitej72 Member Username: Detroitej72
Post Number: 72 Registered: 05-2006 Posted From: 66.184.3.44
| Posted on Wednesday, July 12, 2006 - 9:43 pm: | |
Thanks Hamtramck_steve... Did you grow up in this hood? |
Hamtramck_steve Member Username: Hamtramck_steve
Post Number: 3091 Registered: 10-2003 Posted From: 68.252.125.198
| Posted on Wednesday, July 12, 2006 - 9:49 pm: | |
Not me, but my mom's family has been living in Hamtramck since it was a village. I spent half of my time helping my grandparents around the house in the 80's and in 1995 moved into the house my great-grandfather built. (Message edited by Hamtramck Steve on July 12, 2006) |
Detroitej72 Member Username: Detroitej72
Post Number: 73 Registered: 05-2006 Posted From: 66.184.3.44
| Posted on Wednesday, July 12, 2006 - 10:59 pm: | |
Thats great, love to see families keep thier homes in the family. Do yoy still live there? Have you eaten at Under The Eagle Restaraunt? Great Polish food... |
Hamtramck_steve Member Username: Hamtramck_steve
Post Number: 3092 Registered: 10-2003 Posted From: 136.181.195.17
| Posted on Thursday, July 13, 2006 - 10:39 am: | |
I prefer Polish Village now, but Under the Eagle was where we always went when Busia was too tired/too hot to cook for us. The last few times I hit Under the Eagle for carry-out, they were trying to pass off some Jimmy Dean-esque sausage as kielbasa on their combination plate. I do miss the mushroom gravy on the golabki, though. |
Formerspringgardener Member Username: Formerspringgardener
Post Number: 1 Registered: 07-2006 Posted From: 68.85.136.144
| Posted on Thursday, July 13, 2006 - 5:18 pm: | |
My wife went to St. Thomas until they closed the high school in 1969. She ended up going to Nativity Diocesan which was one of the magnet schools on the East Side. They pulled in kids from the Patronage of St. Joseph and Assumption Grotto. Before they tore down the church we were able to get a tour. The gym and school had deteriorated terribly in just a few years. Holes in the roof, trash everywhere. I may have some pictures I could scan if any one is interested. The wife's family lived on Helen just down the street from the fire house. They used to talk to those guys all the time. I believe it may still be active but there isn't a lot around that area worth saving. |
Tarkus Member Username: Tarkus
Post Number: 61 Registered: 04-2006 Posted From: 69.222.98.86
| Posted on Thursday, July 13, 2006 - 5:33 pm: | |
Try Polonia across the parking lot from Polish Village. Very beautiful Polish waitresse's. |
Rjk Member Username: Rjk
Post Number: 399 Registered: 11-2003 Posted From: 68.41.145.5
| Posted on Thursday, July 13, 2006 - 5:58 pm: | |
Does anyone have any info about the large factory at Mt. Elliott and Heintz? I was just looking at this area on a satellite map and I never realized that it was that massive of a factory. |
Detroitej72 Member Username: Detroitej72
Post Number: 77 Registered: 05-2006 Posted From: 66.184.3.44
| Posted on Thursday, July 13, 2006 - 5:58 pm: | |
Formerspringgardener, Yes , I would love it if you could scan and upload some pictures. By the way, is your handle such because you used to live on Spring Garden Street? Just wondering. |
Mikem Member Username: Mikem
Post Number: 2678 Registered: 10-2003 Posted From: 68.43.15.105
| Posted on Thursday, July 13, 2006 - 8:17 pm: | |
Rjk, the factory was The R.C. Mahon Co. They were steel fabricators, builders of buildings, factories, bridges, etc. They later moved up to Eight Mile & Mt Elliott. |
Krawlspace Member Username: Krawlspace
Post Number: 264 Registered: 04-2004 Posted From: 69.246.59.170
| Posted on Thursday, July 13, 2006 - 11:59 pm: | |
I salvaged a lot of plaster from St. Thomas the Apostle when they demolished it. I also have some pics I will try to scan and post later. We found a bottle with the plaster workers names on it stuck inside one of the column capitals. I also have a slot of the copper dome from the bell tower. The church was one of my first scrounges. Also have a ton of plaster ornamentation and terra cotta from St. Cyril. I even managed to snag the small kneeling shelves from the confessionals. Here is a quick pic from St Cyril:
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Taj920 Member Username: Taj920
Post Number: 119 Registered: 01-2004 Posted From: 68.42.252.205
| Posted on Friday, July 14, 2006 - 12:08 am: | |
This picture makes you cry. |
Detroitej72 Member Username: Detroitej72
Post Number: 79 Registered: 05-2006 Posted From: 66.184.3.44
| Posted on Friday, July 14, 2006 - 3:46 pm: | |
I too saved a large chunk of plaster from the walls of St. Thomas as well as a large piece of marble from the communion rail. Also salvaged a large column from the front door of St. Cyril's. They now are prominately displayed in my parents gardens among the flowers. |
Formerspringgardener Member Username: Formerspringgardener
Post Number: 6 Registered: 07-2006 Posted From: 68.85.136.144
| Posted on Friday, July 14, 2006 - 5:29 pm: | |
Detroitej72, We did live on Spring Garden between Chalmers and Celestine, if you are familiar with the area. My sister-in-law got a pew from the church before they tore it down. Her and my wife went to the last mass. It was a very sad day in her life. I will get the pix of the high school uploaded when I can figure out how to get them smaller. |
Jiminnm Member Username: Jiminnm
Post Number: 894 Registered: 02-2005 Posted From: 68.35.85.184
| Posted on Friday, July 14, 2006 - 6:34 pm: | |
My grandparents attended St. Thomas for their entire lives after coming to Detroit. They were especially fond of the masses in Polish. My parents were married at St. Thomas in 1946. They attended there until moving north and east, to St. Raymond's parish. |
Detroitej72 Member Username: Detroitej72
Post Number: 94 Registered: 05-2006 Posted From: 66.184.3.44
| Posted on Sunday, July 16, 2006 - 10:51 pm: | |
bump |
Swiburn Member Username: Swiburn
Post Number: 3 Registered: 07-2006 Posted From: 35.10.67.132
| Posted on Friday, July 28, 2006 - 8:40 am: | |
Two interesting books on Detroit churches are: "The Catholic Church in Detroit" and "The Archdiocese of Detroit(?)" by Roman Godzak. They are part of the Images of America Series-pictures with historical commentary. Very nicely done and I recommend them for learning interesting facts of Detroit Catholicism. |