First Albanian Teqe Bektashiane In America

The First Albanian Teqe Bektashiane in America sits at 21749 Northline Road in Taylor, Michigan, and is widely recognized as the first Bektashi tekke established in the United States. It was founded by Baba Rexheb (Rexheb Beqiri) after the Albanian community helped purchase an 18-acre farm in Taylor in 1953, and the tekke was consecrated on April 29, 1954.

The grounds function as both a Sufi monastery and a community center. They include a ritual room for prayer, a small museum holding archives and personal belongings of Baba Rexheb, a library, a conference room, and the turbe (tomb-shrine) of Baba Rexheb, which is open daily for prayer and pilgrimage under posted summer and winter hours. The teqe historically published a magazine called The Bektashi Voice (Zëri Bektashian).

Beyond worship, the tekke plays a social role in the Albanian diaspora. Apartments on the property are rented to Albanians newly arrived in the United States or in financial need, and the meeting spaces host community gatherings. A 2019 visitor account identified Dervish Eliton Pashaj as the spiritual leader receiving visitors at that time.

The organization is registered as a 501(c)(3) at the Taylor address. Its public materials, including the @albteqeusa Instagram account titled "The Albanian-American Bektashi Monastery," state that all visitors are welcome regardless of race, ethnicity, or religion. For Albanian Bektashis across the country, the Taylor teqe remains the central pilgrimage site and the historical anchor of Bektashism in America.