These historical church profiles grew out of my first research paper as a student in the Missiology and Church Growth program at Calvin Theological Seminary. This was to have been the core of my M.A. research paper, but when I determined that the degree would not be marketable for me, I quit the program - but not my research.
The goal of this research is to determine the normal membership curves for churches in urban and isolated environments, with a strong focus on Reformed and Christian Reformed congregations in metropolitan Grand Rapids, Michigan. I hope others will find this information enlightening, and perhaps someone will want to carry the work beyond the point I have.
At this point (March 2013), most of the data has not been updated in 15 years.
Maps use the excellent terrain maps from Stamen under Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Ported license as their background.
- Daniel Knight
Reformed Church in America
- First Reformed, Grand Rapids, MI, 1840-1918
- Second Reformed, Grand Rapids, MI, 1849-1918
- Third Reformed, Grand Rapids, MI, 1875-
- Fourth Reformed, Grand Rapids, MI, 1875-
- Fifth Reformed, Grand Rapids, MI, 1886-
- Oakdale Park Reformed, Grand Rapids, MI, 1889-1974
- Seventh Reformed, Grand Rapids, MI, 1890- (left RCA in 1995)
- Eighth Reformed, Wyoming, MI, 1891-
- Ninth Reformed, Grand Rapids, MI, 1892-1978
- Bethany Reformed, Grand Rapids, MI, 1893-1994
- Grace Reformed, Wyoming, MI, 1897-
- Bethel Reformed, Grand Rapids, MI, 1906-2000
- Immanuel Reformed, Grand Rapids, MI, 1907-
- Trinity Reformed, Grand Rapids, MI, 1908-
- Knapp Street Reformed, Grand Rapids, MI, 1914-
- Common Ground Community (formerly Calvary Reformed), Grand Rapids, MI, 1915-
- Garfield Park Reformed, Grand Rapids, MI, 1917-1990
- Fairview Reformed, Grand Rapids, MI, 1918-1994
- Central Reformed, Grand Rapids, MI, union of First and Second, 1918-
- Aberdeen Reformed, Grand Rapids, MI, 1927-
- Richmond Reformed, Grand Rapids, MI, 1927-
- Hope Reformed, Grand Rapids, MI, 1942-
- Everglade Reformed, Grand Rapids, MI, 1951-1975
- Standale Reformed, Grand Rapids, MI, 1952-
- Remembrance Reformed, Grand Rapids, MI, 1956-
- Oakview Reformed, Grand Rapids, MI, 1957-
- Pleasant Hill Reformed, Grand Rapids, MI, 1960-1967
- New Life Reformed, Grand Rapids, MI, union of Oakdale Park and Everglade, 1974-
- Thornapple Community Reformed, Grand Rapids, MI, 1980-
- Servant's Community Reformed, Grand Rapids, MI, 1981-
- Orchard Hill Reformed, Grand Rapids, MI, union of Bethany and Fairfiew, 1994-
- Providence Reformed Church, Grand Rapids, MI, 2000?
Christian Reformed Church
- First Christian Reformed, Grand Rapids, MI, 1857-
- Eastern Avenue CRC, Grand Rapids, MI, 1876-
- Alpine Avenue CRC, Grand Rapids, MI 1881-1992
- Beckwith Hills CRC (formerly Coldbrook), Grand Rapids, MI, 1882-
- LaGrave Avenue CRC, Grand Rapids, MI, 1887-
- Franklin Street CRC, Grand Rapids, MI, 1887-1966
- West Leonard CRC, Grand Rapids, MI, 1889-
- Oakdale Park CRC, Grand Rapids, MI, 1890-
- Grandville Avenue CRC, Grand Rapids, MI, 1891-1994
- Westview CRC (formerly Broadway Avenue), Grand Rapids, MI, 1893-
- Mayfair CRC (formerly Dennis Avenue), Grand Rapids, MI, 1893-
- Burton Heights CRC, Grand Rapids, MI, 1905-2005
- Sherman Street CRC, Grand Rapids, MI, 1907-
- Bethel CRC, Grand Rapids, MI, 1912-1994
- Creston CRC, Grand Rapids, MI, 1915-
- Neland Avenue CRC, Grand Rapids, MI, 1915-
- Twelfth Street CRC, Grand Rapids, MI, 1917-1994
- East Leonard CRC, Grand Rapids, MI, 1925-
- Fuller Avenue CRC, Grand Rapids, MI, 1925-
- Seymour CRC, Grand Rapids, MI, 1939-
- Boston Square CRC, Grand Rapids, MI, 1942-
- Calvin CRC, Grand Rapids, MI, 1946-
- Highland Hills CRC, Grand Rapids, MI, 1950-1992
- Plymouth Heights CRC, Grand Rapids, MI, 1951-
- Alger Park CRC, Grand Rapids, MI, 1952-
- Millbrook CRC, Grand Rapids, MI, 1953-
- Riverside CRC, Grand Rapids, MI, 1953-
- Arcadia CRC, Grand Rapids, MI, 1958-1986
- Brookside CRC, Grand Rapids, MI, 1959-
- Faith CRC, Grand Rapids, MI, 1960-1978
- Shawnee Park CRC , Grand Rapids, MI, 1961-
- Grace CRC, Grand Rapids, MI, 1962-
- Bristolwood CRC, Walker, MI, 1966-1985
- Woodlawn CRC, Grand Rapids, MI, 1968-
- Madison Square CRC, Grand Rapids, MI, 1970-
- Sunshine Community CRC, Grand Rapids, MI, 1971-
- Church of the Servant CRC, Grand Rapids, MI, 1972-
- Christ's Community CRC, Grand Rapids, MI, 1978-1989
- Westend CRC, Grand Rapids, MI, union of Alpine Ave. and Highland Hills, 1992-
- Roosevelt Park Community CRC, Grand Rapids, MI, union of Grandville Ave. and Bethel, 1994-2015
Not Yet Organized
- Gold Avenue CRC, Grand Rapids, MI, begun 1929
- Hillcrest Community CRC, Grand Rapids, MI, begun 1942
- Coit Community CRC, Grand Rapids, MI, 1967
Christian Schools
Christian schools have played a huge role in educating the children of the Christian Reformed Church, as well as other Christians in their neighborhoods.
- West Side Christian Schools, 1883-
- Baxter Christian School, 1884-1969
- Franklin Street Christian School, 1890-
- Creston Christian School, 1891-
- Oakdale Christian School, 1892-20??
- Southwest Christian School, 1901-19??
- Baldwin Street Christian School, 1910-
- Mayfield Christian School, merged with Creston to form Creston-Mayfield
- Seymour Christian School, 1916
- East Parist Christian School, 1923-
- Sylvan Christian School
- Millbrook Christian School
- Grand Rapids Christian High, 1920-
- Potter's House, 1981-
Netherlands Reformed Congregations
- First Netherlands Reformed Congregation, Grand Rapids, MI, 1870-
- Covell Avenue Netherlands Reformed Church, Grand Rapids, MI
Christian Schools
- Plymouth Christian Elementary School, 1908-
- Plymouth Christian High School, 1982-
Protestant Reformed Churches
- First Protestant Reformed, Grand Rapids, MI, begun 1879 as Eastern Avenue CRC, separated 1925
- Hope Protestant Reformed, Walker, MI, 1915-
- Creston Protestant Reformed, Grand Rapids, MI, 1932-1962
- Southeast Protestant Reformed, Grand Rapids, MI, 1944-
Christian Schools
- Hope Protestant Reformed Christian School, 1947-
- Adams Christian School, Wyoming, MI, 1950-
- Covenant Christian High, Grand Rapids, MI, 1968-
- East Side Christian School, Grand Rapids, MI, 1997-
Free Reformed Churches
- Free Reformed, 1929-44
- Free Reformed, 1944-
Orthodox Protestant Reformed Churches
- First Orthodox Protestant Reformed, Grand Rapids, MI, 1953-1961
- Fourth Orthodox Protestant Reformed, Grand Rapids, MI, 1953, became Faith CRC in 1961
American Reformed Churches
- Dutton, MI, 1955-
Christian Schools
- Dutton Christian School, 1955-
United Reformed Churches
- Walker United Reformed, Walker, MI, begun 1917 as Walker CRC
- Dutton United Reformed, Caledonia, MI
- Zion United Reformed, Grand Rapids, MI
Heritage Reformed Churches
- Heritage Netherlands Reformed, Grand Rapids, MI, begun 1870 as First Netherlands Reformed, separated 1993
Independent Offspring of Reformed Churches
- Calvary Undenominational, Grand Rapids, MI, 1929-
- New Community, Grand Rapids, MI, 1991-