VINTAGE POINT: Quaker meetinghouse

This home at 34196 State Street, one lot south of the Quaker cemetery on Gill, was once the site of an 1832 Quaker meetinghouse. Subsequent owners built around it rather than tear it down; in the top photo (1957), you can see part of the original structure in the built-in garage. It’s gone now — the current house was built in 1993.

See the then-and-now slider here.

Historic photo from the Farmington Community Library Heritage Room. Contemporary photo by Maria Taylor.

Addendum, 3-25-17: Someone asked in the comments if the Quaker meetinghouse is still “standing” inside the current home. It’s pretty unlikely. Take a look at the aerial shots below, via the Oakland County Property Gateway website, for a little extra history lesson.

From 1963. You can see the house is the red box. The land above it, where there aren’t any houses, is the old Quaker cemetery:

From 1990. The house is still the same as above. That little rectangular part sticking up at the top of the house is the side of the one-time Quaker meetinghouse, which appears to have faced Gill Road on the left:

From 2000. The old house has been torn down. Notice that the new house is slightly south of the original spot, and another house has been added to the right of it, on the same lot:

Hope this clears it up!

VINTAGE POINT is Preservation Farmington’s photo column, featuring an exclusive focus on Farmington history: a look at our city through the lens of time. Look for Vintage Point every other week in the Farmington Observer and Farmington Voice and on our Facebook and Twitter pages. We also keep an archive of all past issues on our website under the Vintage Point tab.

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3 Responses to VINTAGE POINT: Quaker meetinghouse

  1. Hi. This article is unclear. Does the current home, built in 1993, still incorporate any of the original Quaker meetinghouse?

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    • Maria Taylor says:

      Hi Chuck–Don’t believe it does. I looked at a series of aerial shots from the Oakland County website, and the current house appears to be in a different location than the one built around the meetinghouse. There are two houses on the property now, whereas prior to the ’90s, there was only the one. Hope this helps. I’ll post the aerial photos when I get a chance, so you (and anyone else who’s interested) can have a look. Thanks for your interest.

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    • Maria Taylor says:

      See updated post!

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