On August 9, 1959, a team of riggers standing on the Michigan forest floor watched as a seven-ton bronze figure of Christ was lifted by crane into the northern sky and bolted to a fifty-five-foot cross hewn from an Oregon redwood. Thirteen bolts, each thirty inches long and two inches in diameter, anchored the twenty-eight-foot corpus in place. The arms of the figure span twenty-one feet. Workers had shipped the casting across the Atlantic from the Kristians-Kunst Metalstøberi foundry in Oslo, Norway — one of the largest bronze castings ever to make that crossing — and Marshall Fredericks, the Michigan sculptor who spent four years bringing it from sketched vision to plaster mold to finished metal, had rendered Christ not in agony but in a posture of open-armed peace.
The scene that late summer day at a small clearing along M-68 in Indian River, Michigan, was the culmination of thirteen years of effort by a parish that barely existed when the idea was first proposed. The Cross in the Woods had begun as a local church for summer vacationers and year-round residents too far from any established Catholic community to attend Mass. It became something far larger: one of the most-visited Catholic shrines in North America, drawing more than 300,000 pilgrims and visitors each year to a village of fewer than 2,000 people in the forests of Cheboygan County.
On September 15, 2006, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops designated the Cross in the Woods as a National Shrine — one of roughly 120 such designations in the United States and one of only two in the state of Michigan. The forest clearing where Father Charles Brophy once imagined a simple outdoor gathering space now holds a thousand-seat church, multiple chapels and outdoor shrines, the Holy Stairs, and the towering crucifix that is visible from across the surrounding pinewoods.
📜 History & Spiritual Significance
The story begins in April 1946, when Bishop Francis J. Haas of the Diocese of Grand Rapids recognized that Catholics in the Indian River area were traveling prohibitive distances to attend Mass. He authorized the creation of a new parish and assigned Father Charles D. Brophy as its first administrator in June 1946. While searching the newly forested land for the right site, Father Brophy was drawn to both the beauty of the woods along the highway and the example of a seventeenth-century Mohawk convert named Kateri Tekakwitha, who had made small wooden crosses and placed them among the trees of the northeastern forests as personal shrines. The parallel was natural: a church born in these Michigan woods would carry something of her spirit.
Securing land proved difficult. Early petitions to use state park property were rejected, and the fledgling parish held its first Masses in the Indian River Township Hall. The turning point came when a parishioner, retired businessman James J. Harrington, attended a family wedding in Buffalo, New York, and witnessed an outdoor Mass celebrated for shut-in members of his host community. He returned convinced that an outdoor shrine was not merely possible but necessary. His advocacy, combined with continued negotiations with the Michigan Conservation Commission, eventually secured a land grant in May 1948.
The wooden Cross itself was raised on August 5, 1954, lifted into place by McCready and Sons of Gaylord and contractor William A. Porter of East Jordan. Bishop Allen J. Babcock of Grand Rapids dedicated it the following day. But the Cross was not yet complete. Father Brophy had envisioned a corpus worthy of the scale — not a small figure dwarfed by the wood but a monumental bronze presence that could be seen from hundreds of feet away. For that task he turned to Marshall Fredericks, the Birmingham, Michigan sculptor whose public works already included commissions for the Detroit Zoo and the Cleveland War Memorial. Fredericks spent four years on the project: sketching, modeling in plaster, overseeing the casting in Oslo, and supervising the transatlantic shipment. When workers secured the bronze Christ to the Cross on August 9, 1959, and Bishop Allen Babcock celebrated the formal dedication seven days later, the transformation of a simple outdoor station into a major pilgrimage destination was complete.
The Cross in the Woods sits within the Diocese of Gaylord, which was itself carved from the Diocese of Grand Rapids in 1971. The shrine, originally known as the Indian River Catholic Shrine, was renamed Cross in the Woods in 1983. The shrine was staffed by Franciscan friars from 1989 until their withdrawal in 2021; it is now served by diocesan clergy and maintains a year-round parish life alongside its pilgrimage function. The 1997 reconstruction of the main church, which replaced an earlier structure with a building seating nearly a thousand and featuring walls of windows framing the crucifix from the interior, deepened the visual and spiritual unity between the enclosed liturgical space and the outdoor monument it was built to honor.
The connection to St. Kateri Tekakwitha, which Father Brophy invoked at the very founding, acquired new resonance when Pope Benedict XVI canonized her on October 21, 2012 — making her the first Native American to be declared a saint. A shrine dedicated to Kateri stands on the grounds, honoring the woman whose practice of placing crosses in the forest trees gave the shrine its character and its name.
☩ Pilgrimage Sites in Indian River
National Shrine of the Cross in the Woods
The central feature of the shrine grounds is the 55-foot redwood cross bearing its seven-ton bronze corpus by Marshall Fredericks — the figure of Christ with arms extended in peace, head inclined, cast in a foundry in Oslo and secured by thirteen bolts of extraordinary dimension. The cross faces east and is visible from a wide grass lawn that serves as an outdoor nave during the warm-weather season, when the thousand-seat interior church opens its glass rear wall so that worshippers inside see the crucifix framed between the pines.
The shrine complex includes the main church, the Long House Chapel seating 250, the Holy Stairs (modeled after the Scala Sancta in Rome, which tradition holds were climbed by Christ on the way to Pilate), and multiple outdoor devotional stations distributed across the landscaped grounds near Burt Lake State Park. The gift shop and visitor centre are operated year-round.
Shrine of St. Kateri Tekakwitha
An outdoor shrine honouring the Mohawk woman whose forest piety inspired the founding of the Cross in the Woods. Born in 1656 in the Mohawk village of Ossernenon, near present-day Auriesville, New York, Kateri was orphaned as a child and baptised in 1676, enduring persecution from her own community for her faith. She died in 1680 and was canonized in 2012. The shrine at Indian River carries the devotion she practiced — small crosses among the trees — into the memory of pilgrims who may not know her name until they arrive.
Shrine of Our Lady of the Highway
A roadside shrine within the grounds dedicated to the patroness of travellers, this station invites pilgrims to pause and commend their journey — from wherever they have come and to wherever they are going — to the Mother of God. The shrine reflects the pastoral character of the Cross in the Woods, which has always served not only the devout but the traveller, the curious, and the exhausted.
Shrine of St. Peregrine
Dedicated to the Servite friar canonized in 1726 who is invoked as patron of those suffering from cancer and other serious illness, this shrine draws pilgrims seeking healing prayer alongside those whose pilgrimage is purely devotional. St. Peregrine is said to have been miraculously cured of a cancerous leg wound following a vision, and his intercession has been sought by the sick for centuries.
🕯️ Annual Feast Days & Celebrations
Feast of the Triumph of the Holy Cross — September 14
Each year on the Feast of the Exaltation of the Holy Cross, approximately 1,500 Chaldean Catholics journey from the Detroit metropolitan area to Indian River to celebrate their patronal feast at the Cross in the Woods. Masses are offered in the Chaldean liturgical rite, with prayers in Aramaic and Arabic, filling the grounds with a form of Catholic devotion rooted in the ancient churches of the Middle East. The gathering is one of the most distinctive annual events at any American national shrine.
Annual Pilgrimage Walk — Late July
Each summer, pilgrims from across Michigan assemble for an 11-mile walking pilgrimage through the surrounding forest, roughly following the course of the Sturgeon River, to the Cross in the Woods. Organized in the tradition of medieval penitential pilgrimage, the walk concludes with Mass at the shrine. Groups from parishes throughout the state have participated, and the pilgrimage has grown steadily since its revival in recent years.
🛏️ Where to Stay
Waterway Inn (guesthouse) — Clean, affordable roadside inn directly in Indian River on M-68, adjacent to the North Central State Trail and within easy walking distance of the shrine grounds. Dog-friendly, with contactless check-in and trail access. Website ∙ Reserve this hotel
Best Western River Terrace ⭐⭐⭐ — Riverfront hotel in Cheboygan, 20 miles northeast of the shrine, with indoor pool, complimentary breakfast, and comfortable rooms overlooking the Cheboygan River. Convenient for pilgrims combining Indian River with a visit to the Straits of Mackinac. Reserve this hotel
Apple Tree Inn; SureStay Collection by Best Western ⭐⭐⭐ — Full-service hotel in Petoskey, approximately 30 miles southwest of the shrine on Little Traverse Bay, with indoor pool, hot tub, fitness centre, and free breakfast. A popular base for pilgrims extending their time in northern Michigan. Reserve this hotel
🚗 Getting There
By Air: Pellston Regional Airport of Emmet County (PLN) is approximately 20 miles northwest of Indian River and offers seasonal connections from Detroit and Chicago. Cherry Capital Airport (TVC) in Traverse City is 75 miles southwest and provides year-round service with more frequent connections from major US cities.
By Car: Indian River sits on M-68 just east of I-75, approximately 5 miles from Exit 310. From Detroit, the drive is approximately 260 miles (roughly 4 hours via I-75 north). From Chicago, the distance is approximately 360 miles via I-94 east to I-75 north (5.5 hours). From the Mackinac Bridge, Indian River is 30 miles south on I-75. The shrine is well-signed from the highway; parking on site is free and ample.
By Bus: Indian Trails operates seasonal bus service from Traverse City to northern Michigan communities, with a stop in Alanson a short drive from Indian River. Rental car or taxi is recommended for the final segment.
Local Transport: The shrine complex is compact and walkable once on site. The North Central State Trail, a paved rail-trail, passes near the shrine and connects Indian River to Petoskey (approximately 30 miles) and Gaylord (approximately 30 miles south), offering an alternative arrival on foot or bicycle.
📚 Further Reading
Online Resources:
National Shrine of the Cross in the Woods — Official History — The shrine's own account of the founding, the construction of the Cross, and the USCCB national designation.
Diocese of Gaylord — Cross in the Woods Parish Page — Diocesan listing with pastoral and pilgrimage information.
Michigan's National Shrine of the Cross in the Woods — Spiritual Travels — Detailed descriptive overview from a Catholic travel resource.
🔗 Useful Links
Cross in the Woods — Official Website — Shrine information, pilgrimage planning, live-stream Mass, and visitor resources.
Diocese of Gaylord — The diocese within which the shrine is located, created from the Diocese of Grand Rapids in 1971.
Experience Indian River — Local tourism information for the Indian River area, including the shrine and surrounding region.
🥾 Pilgrim Routes
Annual July Pilgrimage Walk — Each summer pilgrims gather to walk an 11-mile route through the Michigan forest, roughly following the Sturgeon River, arriving at the Cross in the Woods for a concluding Mass. The route passes through the same wooded landscape that Father Brophy crossed when he first imagined a shrine in these woods. Information on dates and departure points is available through the shrine's annual calendar.
🧭 Nearby Pilgrimage Destinations
Champion (261 km southwest) — The National Shrine of Our Lady of Champion in Champion, Wisconsin, is the only Marian apparition site in the United States to receive formal Church approval. In 1859 the Blessed Virgin appeared to Adele Brise, a young Belgian immigrant, in the forests northeast of Green Bay, delivering a mission to catechize the children of the frontier.
Solanus Casey Center, Detroit (420 km southeast) — The final resting place of Blessed Solanus Casey, the Capuchin friar known for his healing ministry at St. Bonaventure Monastery from 1924 to 1945. Beatified in 2017, Blessed Solanus drew hundreds of thousands to his simple window in the monastery during his lifetime; his tomb continues to draw pilgrims from across the world.
🪶 Closing Reflection
"The cross of Christ is the supreme sign of God's love for every man and woman... At times of trouble, when our families have to face pain and adversity, let us look to Christ's cross. There we can find the courage and strength to press on." — Pope Benedict XVI, Way of the Cross at the Colosseum, Good Friday, April 6, 2012
