First African Baptist Church

Tracing its roots to 1780 as the First Baptist Church, 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. Its establishment 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 there.

Richmond, Virginia · United States