Dearborn Mosque
Dearborn Mosque is a mosque belonging to the American Muslim Society (الجمعية الإسلامية الامريكية) in Dearborn, Michigan. It was built in 1937 by the nascent Islamic community (then mostly Sunni Muslims from the Bekaa Valley in Lebanon), and was only the second mosque constructed in the United States.[1] The building is three stories high and almost an entire city block on the intersection of Vernor and Dix Streets.
American Muslim Society (Dearborn Mosque) | |
---|---|
الجمعية الاسلامية الامريكيى (مسجد ديربورن)٠ | |
Masjid Dearborn | |
Religion | |
Affiliation | Sunni |
Leadership | Imam(s):Sheikh Hamood Afif |
Location | |
Location | Dearborn, Michigan, United States |
Geographic coordinates | 42°18′15.9″N 83°08′37.0″W |
Architecture | |
Completed | 1937 |
Specifications | |
Capacity | 2,000 |
Dome(s) | 1 |
Minaret(s) | 2 |
Website | |
amsdearborn |
The number of people attending grew rapidly through the 1960s to 1980s. In the early 1980s, the mosque obtained a court order permitting it to broadcast the call to prayer using loudspeakers, overruling objections from some of its neighbors; it was the first mosque in America to do so. The court ruled that it was the Muslim equivalent of church bells.[1][2]
The mosque is led by Sheikh Hamood Afif; before him, it was led by Sheikh Mohamed Musa for many years.
Dearborn Mosque is not to be confused with the Islamic Center of America, also in Dearborn, which was the nation's largest mosque when it opened in 2005.[3]
References
- "In the Way of the Prophet: Ideologies and Institutions in Dearborn, Michigan, America's Muslim Capitol". The Next American City magazine. October 2003. Archived from the original on 2010-05-15. Retrieved March 23, 2010.
- "About us". Official site. Archived from the original on 16 May 2009. Retrieved 23 April 2011.
- New Dearborn mosque to be the nation's largest. Michigan Daily, January 7, 2004. Retrieved February 16, 2009.