Pulpit Chair, 1860-1890
Donor: The People’s Church, 1968
In 1863, the First Unitarian Society of Kalamazoo (later called the People’s Church) installed this chair in the sanctuary of their building on Park and Lovell Streets. It was given to the Museum in 1968 when the church built a new modern edifice on 10th Street. Two companion chairs were given to the Civic Theatre.
Gothic Style
The large, heavily carved chair is an excellent example of Gothic revival furniture fashionable in the mid-19th century. Soaring spires, steeples, and towers of medieval cathedrals like Notre Dame characterized the Gothic style.
“An experiment station . . .”
Caroline Barlett Crane served as the pastor of the People’s Church from 1889 to 1898. She advocated a liberal Protestantism known as the Social Gospel. Crane saw the Church as “an experiment station in social progress” and “a church for humanity, not for theology.”
Under her direction, the People’s Church organized one of the first free public kindergartens in Michigan. It also offered a vocational training school for men and boys, a women’s gymnasium program, and the Frederick Douglass Club for African Americans.
Caroline’s Legacy
Caroline Bartlett Crane (1858-1935) was one of Kalamazoo’s leading citizens in the early 20th century. A reformer and community activist, she became a nationally recognized leader in the Progressive Movement by undertaking a variety of projects to promote social change. She wrote for several newspapers and spoke to audiences all over the country.
