page_title: National Shrine of the Little Flower Basilica
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: National Shrine of the Little Flower Basilica / History
caption_attribution_description: English: National Shrine of the Little Flower Roman Catholic Church (Royal Oak, Michigan) - exterior
context_page_description: National Shrine of the Little Flower Basilica Catholic Church in Royal Oak, Michigan is a well-known Roman Catholic church and National Shrine executed in the lavish zig-zag Art Deco style. The structure was completed in two stages between 1931 and 1936. The sanctuary stands at 2100 West Twelve Mile Road at the northeast corner of Woodward Avenue and is a parish of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Detroit. Construction was funded by the proceeds of the radio ministry of the controversial Father Charles Coughlin who broadcast from the tower during the 1930s.
  Father Coughlin was an early supporter of the New Deal programs of Franklin D. Roosevelt before becoming one of Roosevelt's harshest critics. In 1934 he announced a new political organization called the National Union for Social Justice. For a few years, the American public responded strongly: "Contributions which have flooded into his bank account as a result of these talks run into thousands of dollars weekly." The membership ran into the millions, but it was not well-organized at the local level.
context_section_description: Named in honor of Saint Thérèse of Lisieux (who was known as "the Little Flower"), the church was first built in 1926 in a largely Protestant area. It was founded in 1925, a year before construction started.  Two weeks after it opened, the Ku Klux Klan burned a cross in front of the church.  The original wood structure was destroyed by a fire on March 17, 1936.  Construction of the new building started in 1931 and ended in 1936.  Its completion was spurred by the destruction of the old structure and it employed large amounts of copper and stone to execute the designs of architect Henry J. McGill, of the New York firm of McGill and Hamlin.
  Pope Francis designated the Shrine a minor basilica on January 31, 2015.
caption: View of the National Shrine from Woodward Avenue
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