Bradley Indian Mission Shelbyville MI
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Who we are
Bradley Indian Mission has been a worshiping community since the mid 1800s. The members are Anishnabe who represent various Tribes. While this is an historic Indian Mission those who worship together represent various ethnic groups. All are welcome!
Street Address
Church Pastor
Ronald "Todd" Williamson
Pastor
695 128th Ave
Shelbyville,
MI
49344
United States
Phone: (616) 738-9030
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Denomination
United Methodist Church
Affiliations
Church Website
Bradley Indian Mission on Social Media
Leadership
Leader Name:
Ronald "Todd" Williamson
Leader Position:
Pastor
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Mailing Address
1146 Nicolson St
Wayland MI
49348
Wayland MI
49348
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Bradley Indian Mission Service Times
Worship 9:30am
It's been more than 3 years since the last service times update. Please make sure to contact the church to confirm service times.
Please contact the church to confirm Service Times or SUBSCRIBE to updates below
It's been more than 3 years since the last service times update. Please make sure to contact the church to confirm service times.
Please contact the church to confirm Service Times or SUBSCRIBE to updates below
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Bradley Indian Mission Church Shelbyville Photos
Bradley Indian Mission Shelbyville MI - photo courtesy of Leo Degray
Bradley Indian Mission Shelbyville MI - photo courtesy of Leo Degray
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Bradley Indian Mission History
Although the current building is turning 100, the ministry's roots extend back to 1836 with the signing of the Ottawa/Chippewa Treaty. At that time, U.S. President Martin Van Buren decided to involve five Christian denominations in the effort to “educate and civilize” Indians.
"They thought the only way to save the Indians was to Christianize them," said current tribal member Becky Baker, whose great-grandfather Selkirk Sprague and grandfather Fred Sprague both served as pastors at the mission.
At that time, Samuel Alan McCoskrey, newly consecrated Episcopal Bishop of Michigan, was provided with funds for Indian missions and schools. He appointed the Rev. James Selkirk to establish an Episcopalian mission at Bradley in 1838.
By the 1840s the mission had 38 permanent resident families and about 220 individuals. In the 1840s they opened a school and acquired a bell, which was rung for services, community events, and emergencies.
Attendance dropped after the Treaty of 1855 set aside lands for the Indians of Bradley in Oceana and Mason counties in Northern Michigan. Most went north, but returned by the 1870s and rejoined the congregation. By this time, it had transferred religious allegiance from the Episcopalian Church to the Methodist Church.
The Bradley Indian Cemetery, west of the current church building, was established in 1885. It has continued to be the burial place of both resident and nonresident descendants of Bradley-area Indian families until the present day.
Beginning in the early 1900s, the church had a series of Indian ministers. They included Joseph Shagonaby, John Pigeon, Selkirk Sprague, Fred Sprague, Sampson Pigeon, Joe Sprague, and Louis White-Eagle Church.
The Christian tribal pastors were not criticized by those who chose to keep their traditional Indian religious beliefs, according to Baker. "They respect one another's beliefs. It's a natural part of who we are," she said.
The current building was erected in 1914. In the late 1920s the Methodist Church moved to exercise stronger central supervision over the activities of local churches. Beginning in 1929, non-Indian pastors were assigned to serve the church at Bradley and at the Salem Indian Mission Church, now located at 3644 28th St. near Hopkins.
In the 1940s, the Methodist Conference attempted to merge the missions of Bradley and Salem, but the move was resisted by the members of the two churches, as members of each congregation wished to maintain their own identity and traditions.
After a severe storm damaged the building in 1979, the congregation and community members pitched in to repair it. They also added a meeting room annex.
Until 1992, the Bradley Indian Mission served as not only a religious center, but as the focus of tribal government. In that year, a provisional government called the “Bradley Settlement Elders Council” was empowered to organize Allegan County Indians.
When the Match-E-Be-Nash-She-Wish Band of Pottawatomi Indians petitioned for federal acknowledgment in 1994, it relied on church records to prove it had a sustained government-to-government relationship with the United States going back to first contact with European descendants.
"The tribe’s relationship with the Methodist Church was an integral part of achieving federal acknowledgment on Aug. 23, 1999," said tribal spokesperson James Nye.
From: https://www.mlive.com/wayland/2014/04/bradley_indian_mission_celebra_1.html
"They thought the only way to save the Indians was to Christianize them," said current tribal member Becky Baker, whose great-grandfather Selkirk Sprague and grandfather Fred Sprague both served as pastors at the mission.
At that time, Samuel Alan McCoskrey, newly consecrated Episcopal Bishop of Michigan, was provided with funds for Indian missions and schools. He appointed the Rev. James Selkirk to establish an Episcopalian mission at Bradley in 1838.
By the 1840s the mission had 38 permanent resident families and about 220 individuals. In the 1840s they opened a school and acquired a bell, which was rung for services, community events, and emergencies.
Attendance dropped after the Treaty of 1855 set aside lands for the Indians of Bradley in Oceana and Mason counties in Northern Michigan. Most went north, but returned by the 1870s and rejoined the congregation. By this time, it had transferred religious allegiance from the Episcopalian Church to the Methodist Church.
Beginning in the early 1900s, the church had a series of Indian ministers. They included Joseph Shagonaby, John Pigeon, Selkirk Sprague, Fred Sprague, Sampson Pigeon, Joe Sprague, and Louis White-Eagle Church.
The Christian tribal pastors were not criticized by those who chose to keep their traditional Indian religious beliefs, according to Baker. "They respect one another's beliefs. It's a natural part of who we are," she said.
The current building was erected in 1914. In the late 1920s the Methodist Church moved to exercise stronger central supervision over the activities of local churches. Beginning in 1929, non-Indian pastors were assigned to serve the church at Bradley and at the Salem Indian Mission Church, now located at 3644 28th St. near Hopkins.
In the 1940s, the Methodist Conference attempted to merge the missions of Bradley and Salem, but the move was resisted by the members of the two churches, as members of each congregation wished to maintain their own identity and traditions.
Until 1992, the Bradley Indian Mission served as not only a religious center, but as the focus of tribal government. In that year, a provisional government called the “Bradley Settlement Elders Council” was empowered to organize Allegan County Indians.
When the Match-E-Be-Nash-She-Wish Band of Pottawatomi Indians petitioned for federal acknowledgment in 1994, it relied on church records to prove it had a sustained government-to-government relationship with the United States going back to first contact with European descendants.
"The tribe’s relationship with the Methodist Church was an integral part of achieving federal acknowledgment on Aug. 23, 1999," said tribal spokesperson James Nye.
From: https://www.mlive.com/wayland/2014/04/bradley_indian_mission_celebra_1.html
Bradley Indian Mission Historical Photos
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"Prayer strikes the winning blow; service is simply picking up the pieces." S.D. Gordon
Bradley Indian Mission listing was last updated on the 31st of March, 2021
