History
History of First U
First Universalist Church of Minneapolis has a rich and complex history. Founded in 1859, a small group met at the Cataract House on the corner of what is now Washington and Portland Avenues in downtown Minneapolis to create the First Universalist Society of Minneapolis on October 24, 1859. Rev. Joseph Willard Keyes was the first settled minister. Originally known as the Church of the Redeemer, what we now call First Universalist was known by different names and inhabited several different buildings around the Minneapolis area before moving to the building at 3400 Dupont Ave S that we now call home.
Similar to how the church has moved around the city and evolved as a community, our understanding of our church’s history—or perhaps, histories—has developed in parallel.
As Unitarian Universalists, our understanding of the multiple strands of history is evolving. Whereas in the past, we have wanted to tell a single story, our current understanding of our histories is evolving. We are working to understand the “danger of a single story,” interwoven with a growing understanding of ourselves as (currently) a predominantly white congregation in a state where indigenous people, particularly the Dakota and Anishinaabe have a strong historical and contemporary presence.
This complexifies the story that we once told of the church’s history as being entwined with the growth of Minneapolis. It makes us curious about the role of city leaders in our congregation, and what that meant for the indigenous people, particularly those who once lived on the land that our church ancestors turned into what we know today as Lakewood Cemetery. Being that we occupy a building that was once a synagogue, we are learning too about the history of Jewish people in the Twin Cities and the antisemitism that shaped the very architecture of our building. And as a church whose foundation was created via the sale of buildings that were demolished for the creation of interstate 94 that destroyed a thriving black neighborhood across the river in St. Paul, we are working to uncover stories not just about the people who have made up the church now and in generations past, but also who was left out of our Universalist embrace that claims to be for all, but who somehow seems to have historically excluded many.
We are not alone in this effort. One of our “resident historians,” Carol Jackson, has shared that at the regional level, our Unitarian Universalist Association is promoting exactly this work. In the fall of 2024, we will be embarking on a process of uncovering and sharing a broader range of stories than we’ve known or told in the past, all with an eye toward a more holistic reckoning with our past in order to more fully embrace our role in shaping our future.
We give deep gratitude for the historical information provided from work done by John Addington, Carol Jackson, Larry LaVercombe, Mikki Morrissette, and Jessica Wicks.