History of Oakland County Michigan a narrative account of its historic progress, its people, its principal interests / compiled from the official records of the county, the newspapers and data of personal interviews, under the editorial supervision of Thaddeus D. Seeley.

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HISTORY OF OAKLAND COUNTY

1908, the church was consecrated by the Rt. Rev. C. D. Williams, D. D.,
Bishop of Michigan. At this time the church has 355 communicants.
and a thriving Sunday-school organization. Rev. Herbert H. H. Fox
became rector of the parish on November I2, I905, and is still serving
On September 23, I912, the church celebrated the seventy-fifth anniversary of its organization.
ST. TRINITATIS LUTHERAN CHURCH
In was about the year 1891 that missionary work was first taken up
at Pontiac by the Mission Board of the Lutheran church of the Synod
of Missouri, Ohio, and other states. For years divine services were held
at private houses, and in 1892 the first church edifice was erected on
Jackson street. Since 1907 the St. Trinitatis church has been located
on Auburn avenue, after having absorbed the other Lutheran church, and
in I908 the modern parsonage near the church on Auburn avenue was
built.
The society is experiencing a wonderful growth, the membership
having doubled itself from January I, I9II, to the close of the year.
The church membership is about two hundred, being represented by about
forty-four families. The Ladies' Society of the church has a membership of twenty-four, and the Concordia Young People's Society counts
twenty-six members.
The children of the church are instructed in religion and the German
language by the pastor on Saturdays. Since its organization, the church
has been served by the following pastors: Rev. M. Toewe, Rev. A. Donner, Rev. W. Bunnester, Rev. H. Pottberg, its present pastor being Rev.
F. Haeuser, who came to the church in June, I906. His work has been
of the most unremitting character, and under his care and guidance the
society is in a prosperous and growing condition.
THE AFRICAN M. E. CHURCH
The African Methodist Episcopal church was organized in Pontiac
in I86I by Rev. Augustus R. Green, and the following persons comprised
the original membership of the organization: Mr. and Mrs. George Newman, Harriet Washington, Henry Parker, Samuel Stephens and wife,
John Jones, Ellen Hoffman and Mrs. Canady. The first resident minister was Rev. J. Warren. They met for a time in houses in the village;
in the basement of the old Methodist Episcopal church on Perry street;
on the corner of Lawrence and Saginaw streets; at the old school house
on Mt. Clemens street, and other places. Before the appointment of
Rev. Warren, the church was variously supplied by pastors from outside. It was not until I873 that negotiations were started for the purchase of the present site.
In the later seventies there was a falling off in the membership of the
church, due to the reduction in the colored population, but in later years
the influx of colored people from Canada has brought up the membership to a considerable extent. With the coming of Rev. C. J. Dean some
eleven years ago new life was brought into the church, and to him is