First African Baptist Church

SA-106

Tracing its roots to 1780 as the First Baptist Church, the First African Baptist Church was bought and organized by freedmen and slaves in 1841. The present building was erected on the same site in 1876. The establishment of First African Baptist Church led to the organization of other local black churches. In 1865, the site hosted the first Republican State Convention held in Virginia and Jefferson Davis's last speech as president of the Confederacy, and later a lecture by Booker T. Washington. The Rev. John Jasper, Henry “Box” Brown, and Maggie L. Walker were baptized at First African Baptist Church.

Department of Historic Resources, 2013

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References/Bibliographic Citation:

Alexander, Ann Field. “Between Two Worlds: John Mitchell’s Richmond Childhood.” Virginia Cavalcade 41.3 (Winter 1991). Irons, Charles. “And All These Things Shall Be Added Unto You: The First African Baptist Church, Richmond 1841-1865.” Virginia Cavalcade. 47.1 (Winter 1998). Loth, Calder. Ed. Virginia Landmarks Register Fourth Edition. Charlottesville, VA: University Press of Virginia, 1999. p. 436 “The Minutes of the First African Baptist Church of Richmond.” First Baptist Church (Coloured) Journal. 9 January 1842. p. 13. “An Old Landmark.” Harpers Weekly. 27 June 1874. p. 545. “Our Colored Minister: Rev. Holmes.” The Planet. 31 June 1885. Richardson, Selden. Built by Blacks: African American Architecture and Neighborhoods in Richmond. Charleston, SC: History Press. (2007). pp. 90, 115, 116, 11.