History

The original building - dedicated in 1916, enlarged in 1924 and razed in 1962 to make way for Fellowship Hall.

 ^  Jesus, when he began his ministry,
 was about thirty years of age.
Luke 3:23

   The original Tudor Gothic church building was replace by an understated modern Gothic structure, in soft grey limestone, giving the Royal Oak First Presbyterian sanctuary an aspect of maturity well beyond its first twenty-five years.  Inside and out it has the appearance of a long-lived religious structure frequently used and respectfully maintained.
   Its architect was Harold E. Wagoner of Philadelphia; its builder, Walter L. Couse of Detroit.  Its design also was the esthetic statement of an eighteen-member Building Committee, five of whom are presently members of the congregation.
   Fittingly, one of the building's memorial windows was contributed by the membership and dedicated to the late Dr. Rudolph G. Riemann, who first occupied the royal Oak pulpit January 16, 1949.  Under his wise and energetic guidance the sanctuary building project was begun together with a renewed membership drive.  By 1958, when he was named Pastor Emeritus, the project was completed and membership doubled.
   The 1955 sanctuary dedication was followed by additional construction - Fellowship Hall and its upstairs Sunday School rooms (1963), Evans Chapel and a second Christian Education building containing the Cornell and Teen lounges (1969) - all during the Reverend Kirkman's ministry.  Mr. Wagoner participated throughout the building program, maintaining the sanctuary's architectural continuity.
   These four major interconnected structures give Royal Oak First Presbyterian the physical facilities to serve a membership which at times surpasses 3,000.  Since its May 17, 1914, founding with a charter membership of seventy-nine, the church's official registry now includes more than 8,700 names.  No charter member scurvies, but three of them participated in the sanctuary ground breaking November 22, 1953.