The Olivet Baptist Church (OBC), founded on April 6, 1850, was at one time the largest Protestant church in the world, reaching 20,000 members under the leadership of Pastor Lacey Kirk Williams. It is the second oldest black church in Chicago, Illinois and the oldest … Read MoreOlivet Baptist Church, Chicago, Illinois (1850- )
“Image Ownership: Joseph C. Yaroch (CC BY-SA 4.0)” In 1911 a group of African Americans and Hispanics joined to build a small chapel, one of the first for the town of Las Cruces, New Mexico Territory. Their church, Phillips Chapel Colored Methodist Episcopal (now Christian … Read MorePhillips Chapel CME Church, Las Cruces, New Mexico (1911- )
Arriving in Albuquerque, New Mexico Territory, in 1898, Mrs. Tabytha Watson began the organization of a Baptist church with prayer meetings which included her two children, in her home. By the following year the church was named Mt. Olive Baptist and members raised $135 to … Read MoreMt. Olive Baptist Church, Albuquerque, New Mexico (1899- )
“Image Ownership: Public Domain” Mt. Calvary Missionary Baptist Church began its ministry to the black community of Tucson, Arizona in 1900 when Baptist missionary Rev. John B. Bell arrived, conducted services, and with ten other devoted men and women organized the Baptist Mission. Rev. Bell … Read MoreMt. Calvary Missionary Baptist Church, Tucson, Arizona (1900- )
Founded in 1886 by Pastor John Andrew Parker, a freedman, Ebenezer Baptist Church of Atlanta, Georgia had only 13 members and no church building upon Parker’s passing in 1894 and when Alfred Daniel Williams became its second pastor. Williams’ powerful sermons and strong leadership skills … Read MoreEbenezer Baptist Church, Atlanta, Georgia (1885- )
Instituted in 1808 by enslaved blacks, St. Bartley Primitive Baptist Church of Huntsville, Alabama, exemplifies 206 years of black religious independence. It was located originally outside the city limits of Huntsville near present day Governors Drive and Madison Street, among the tombstones, dogwoods, and flowering … Read MoreSt. Bartley Primitive Baptist Church, Huntsville, Alabama (1808- )
Mother African Methodist Episcopal Zion (AME) Church, founded in 1796, is currently located in Harlem, New York. It is the oldest African American church in the state of New York and was established when black parishioners left John Street Methodist Church in that city. The group, … Read MoreMother African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church, New York City (1796- )
Zion Baptist Church was founded on November 15, 1865 by an intrepid group of black pioneers who settled in Denver, Colorado Territory when the city’s total population was less than 5,000 people. Among its founders was Barney Ford who would later become one of Denver’s … Read MoreZion Baptist Church, Denver, Colorado (1865- )
Grant Chapel African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church was the first black church in New Mexico and was organized during the state’s territorial period. Although New Mexico Territory had a few slaves before the Civil War, African Americans began arriving in the region in significant numbers … Read MoreGrant Chapel AME Church, Albuquerque, New Mexico (1883- )
St. Mark African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church, the first African American church in Wisconsin, was founded in Milwaukee as the First African Methodist Episcopal Church by Ezekiel Gillespie and seven other men and women. Gillespie desired to establish a “Church of Allen,” referring to Richard … Read MoreSt. Mark African Methodist Episcopal Church, Milwaukee, Wisconsin (1869- )
