Although the skyline of the city has changed with the competition to build the tallest building in Grand Rapids, one item remains the same – the many steeples of the churches that are the foundation of our ancestors who settled along the banks of the Grand River.
Each of these represents our past and the immigrants that settled in our area to give Grand Rapids the nickname “Furniture City”.
In this series you will follow the Steeple Chase throughout this great city and view the awe inspiring architecture of our forefathers. The distinct architectural styles represent the great churches of Europe from which these immigrants fled to find a new life in the United States.
This is not meant to promote any one religion, but to show how all have blended together within the City of Grand Rapids to make this one great place to live.
The First Netherlands Reformed Congregation
This magnificent church’s steeple is especially beautiful when seen at night as it lights up the sky on the Northeast side of Grand Rapids.
Originally known as the “The Christian Reformed Congregation of Grand Rapids”, the First Netherlands Reformed Congregation was established in 1870 by Dutch immigrants. Initially the members met in the Swedenborgian Church located on the corner of Division Avenue and Lyon Street. In 1873, the congregation purchased a house on Division Avenue which served as the parsonage and a new church building was constructed also on the site. In 1896, the name was changed to the “Nederduitsch Reformed Church of Grand Rapids, Michigan” to distinguish the congregation from the Christian Reformed denomination. The church continued to grow and extensions were added in both 1906 and 1907.
In the 1920’s, there was pressure in the church to also offer services in English. To meet this demand, a new church was established on Ottawa Avenue just for the English services. The Dutch-speaking and English-speaking congregations continued to worship in separate facilities until the Ottawa Avenue congregation grew too large. For Sunday evening (English) services, the group rented the Fountain Street Church until a new structure was built on Crescent Street to accommodate both the Dutch and English services. On May 9, 1951 the new building was completed.
Following an internal struggle with denominational beliefs within the church from 1986-93, the church was dissolved and two new congregations were formed. In 1993, the First Netherlands Reformed Congregation relocated to the current location on Beckwith Avenue and Heritage Reformed Netherlands Congregation remained at the Crescent Street location.
(source: http://dutch-reformed.wikia.com/wiki/First_Netherlands_Reformed_Congregation,_Grand_Rapids,_Michigan )