Portage Street Baptist Church

1030 Portage Street

The marquee sign near the entrance of 1030 Portage Street reads “DEFINITELY NOT A CHURCH,” but for the first 130 years of its existence, it definitely was. Visitors are more likely to see sketch comedy and local band performances than church services nowadays, but several different congregations worshipped in the unique Victorian building throughout its history. 1030 Portage Street’s history reflects local trends in architecture, immigration, and religion. 

Architectural Features

Sitting on the northwest corner of the Lake Street and Portage Street intersection in the Edison Neighborhood, the building’s colorful shingles and stained-glass windows set it apart from the neighboring businesses. During the Victorian era of architecture, which lasted from about 1860 to 1900, industrialization allowed for the mass-production of house components that previously had to be crafted by hand. These components could then be shipped throughout the country by railroad. New construction methods also freed architects to create more complicated designs than in years past. This led to the popularity of styles like Queen Anne, which is characterized by the use of complex designs and elaborate details to avoid a smooth-walled appearance. The asymmetrical façade, shingled gables, varied window shapes, steeply pitched roof, and towers of 1030 Portage St are typical of the Victorian Queen Anne style.

Portage Street Baptist Church: 1893-1965

The population of Kalamazoo grew rapidly in the late nineteenth century, and the area south of Vine Street experienced substantial residential development. In 1887, the First Baptist Church of Kalamazoo sponsored a mission in what became the Edison Neighborhood. Congregants initially led a Sunday School in an old cooper shop on Jackson Street, but later began construction of their own church on Portage Street in 1888. 38 of the First Baptist Church’s members were granted permission to turn the Sunday School into a church after a series of popular revival services were hosted there in 1893. They held the first meeting of the Portage Street Baptist Church on December 31 of the same year. The congregation grew over the next several decades, and they voted to relocate to a property that could accommodate a larger parking lot in 1957.

Kalamazoo Latvian Evangelical Lutheran Church: 1965-1994

In 1965, the former Portage Street Baptist Church was sold to the Kalamazoo Latvian Evangelical Lutheran Church and became a tool in their fight against assimilation into American culture. 

In the 1940s, the Latvian community in Kalamazoo began growing significantly after Janis Laupmanis, a Latvian immigrant and Methodist pastor, organized a successful sponsorship program that brought approximately 1500-2000 Latvian post-war refugees to the area. Lutheran Latvian immigrants who arrived in Kalamazoo flocked to St. John Evangelical Lutheran Latvian Church for community support as they adjusted to their new country. Eventually, many grew dissatisfied with the leadership of their reverend, Janis Turks. Many Lutheran Latvians thought of assimilation as a “vicious enemy” and believed their church helped keep their language, traditions, and culture alive. When rumors spread that Reverend Turks’ church would join an American Lutheran church synod, those who were unwilling to sacrifice their cultural heritage broke off and formed the Kalamazoo Latvian Evangelical Lutheran Church (KLELC) on August 12, 1950. 

KLELC grew to 570 like-minded members by 1960. The congregation initially rented the Zion Lutheran Church on Pine Street to hold their services until Bronson Hospital bought the building and cleared the land in 1965. At this point, 1030 Portage Street was for sale, and KLELC purchased it for $33,500. Church members gladly paid extra dues to support the purchase of their own building, and the full cost was paid off within three years. The building was in need of major repairs, and church members donated time and money to renovate and refurnish it. They ensured their new church reflected their heritage by hiring local craftsmen to make a new altar, sanctuary, and light fixtures with Latvian style and ornamentation. For the next few decades, KLELC members worked to preserve their culture and pass their traditions down to their children through church programs and Latvian Christian education.

Despite the church’s best efforts, the younger generations steadily assimilated into American culture. KLELC membership dropped to just over 200 people by 1990. The two Latvian Lutheran churches voted to consolidate their dwindling congregations in 1994, and they chose to use St. John’s building at 100 Cherry Hill St as their meeting place. KLELC did not make the decision lightly to merge and leave 1030 Portage Street, which had become a “treasure to the congregation.” The older members had spent nearly 30 years caring for the building so they could have a place to worship in their native language, and they mourned the end of “an era of total immersion” in an authentically Latvian Lutheran church. The last service of the KLELC at 1030 Portage Street was 21 November 1994. After their departure, the building was bought and sold several times by various Christian worship groups until it came under its current ownership in 2017.

The Dormouse Theatre: 2017-Present

1030 Portage Street was purchased by Stephen Dupuie in 2017 and reopened as the Dormouse Theatre in 2021. According to its website, the Dormouse Theatre “produces its own unique brand of sketch comedy, as well as original, and non-traditional works. In addition, The Dormouse hosts and produces an array of performance artists throughout the season.” Altars and pews were traded for a performance stage and an eclectic variety of chairs. Though no longer used for its original ecclesiastical purpose, 1030 Portage Street retains the architectural features that make it a fixture of the Edison Neighborhood.

Written by Veronica Treece, Kalamazoo Public Library staff, May 2025. Last updated 1 October 2025.