Bethel Baptist Institutional Church — known for most of its history as Bethel Baptist Church — is the oldest Baptist congregation in Jacksonville, Florida, and a story of who owns a church's name.
A mixed congregation
| Year | |
|---|---|
| July 1838 | The Rev. James McDonald founds Jacksonville's first Baptist congregation. |
| 1841 | The Legislative Council of the Territory of Florida incorporates it as Bethel Baptist Church. McDonald's flock is mixed: Black and white, enslaved people and enslavers. |
| 1859 | Members number 250 Black and 40 white. |
| Early 1860s | A new church is built as the Civil War begins. Soon after it is finished, the Union Army occupies it and makes it a hospital for wounded soldiers. |
The split
After the war, racially mixed congregations across the South began to separate into white and Black churches. At Bethel, the white members tried to force the Black members out, and the two sides disputed who owned the church's name and its property.
The case went to court and was settled in 1868, in favor of the Black members, who were the majority of the congregation:
| Black members | White members | |
|---|---|---|
| The building | were paid for it | kept it — by buying the property from the Black members |
| The name | kept Bethel Baptist Church | had to change their church's name |
The Black congregation bought land in downtown Jacksonville, put up a new building, and — as the legal owners of the name — called it Bethel Baptist Church, after the church they had left.
Today
The church has changed a great deal and moved over the years; its present building dates from 1904. The community around it has kept the original congregation's legacy alive.
In November 2023, Bethel Baptist Institutional Church joined the African American Civil Rights Network. Created by the African American Civil Rights Act of 2017 and coordinated by the National Park Service, the Network recognizes the African American Civil Rights Movement and the sacrifices of those who fought discrimination and segregation, telling the movement's stories through public and private properties, facilities and programs.
Sources
Based on "Bethel Baptist Institutional Church (Jacksonville, Florida)," National Park Service, African American Civil Rights Network; a work of the United States government in the public domain. Rewritten in hubnx's own words.
Licence: CC0 1.0 (public domain) · Adapted from www.nps.gov
1
0
0
0
Comments
