Our Parish History

The Church of Our Saviour was founded on July 30th, 1924 with the encouragement of the diocesan Bishop, the Rt. Rev'd Judah Mikell, specifically to provide a place of worship within a diocese that was uniformly "low church," for those who embraced the teaching and practices of the Anglo-Catholic movement.

After worshipping for a year in rented premises, the congregation in 1925 moved to its present location at the corner of Los Angeles and Highland Avenues in the heart of the Virginia Highland neighborhood. The original building is incorporated into the larger present structure, its wooden walls covered by brick facing added as the buildings were expanded in the 1950s.

The interior of the church was renovated in the 1980s, moving the choir behind the altar to make it free-standing and allow celebration facing the people. The present 23-rank pipe organ, built by Rieger of Vienna for the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, was rebuilt by Redman of Fort Worth, Texas  and installed in 1995.

The church was consecrated on the 1st Sunday of Advent in 1944 by the Rt. Rev'd John Moore Walker.

The parish hall, Pettway Hall, named to honor Our Saviour's rector of 38 years, Fr. Roy Pettway, is located under the church. The church offices are in Griffith Hall, a building behind the church at 985 Los Angeles Avenue, which originally served as its rectory. Opposite the church stands Garrison Hall, a facility used by a variety of community groups. Its lower level, Randolph Hall, houses the church's nursery. All these facilities are named in honor of assistant clergy now deceased.

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