[5] In 1852, Albert Jordan and his brother Octavius arrived in Detroit from Hartford, Connecticut, and soon established a place among the leading architects of the city.

[4] The construction cost prevented the congregation from fully finishing the interior until 15 years later, when it installed the gallery and pews conforming to the original design.

The Fort Street Presbyterian Church is an ornately detailed Gothic Revival structure built of limestone ashlar from Malden, Ontario.

The facade features a 265 feet (81 m) tall square tower with spire on one side with a shorter octagonal turret (modeled after King's College Chapel in Cambridge) on the other.

There are seven bays along the side of the church with flying buttresses, crocketed finials, lacy stonework and tall windows, designed to give the impression of lightness.

The pews are of hand-carved black walnut and the baptismal font is constructed of Caen stone, supported by onyx columns imported from Mexico.

American architects of the mid-19th century imported and re-interpreted the English Gothic Revival style, based on the visually lush details of Medieval cathedrals.

[4][9] In the early 20th century, the church began focusing more on social service programs, as people of more modest incomes moved into the surrounding, formerly aristocratic, area.