First Baptist Church (Charleston, South Carolina)
Encyclopedia
First Baptist Church is a historic Baptist
church in Charleston, South Carolina
. The congregation was founded in 1682 under the leadership of William Screven
. It is one of the oldest Baptist congregations in the American South. The church was originally organized in Kittery, Maine
(then part of Massachusetts) under the guidance of the First Baptist Church of Boston. In 1696 twenty-six congregants followed Pastor Screven and moved to Charleston after being pressured by the New England authorities. The relocated congregation became the First Baptist Church of Charleston and is currently affiliated with the Southern Baptist denomination. The current Greek Revival
sanctuary was designed by Robert Mills
and built in 1820.
Baptist
Baptists comprise a group of Christian denominations and churches that subscribe to a doctrine that baptism should be performed only for professing believers , and that it must be done by immersion...
church in Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston is the second largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. It was made the county seat of Charleston County in 1901 when Charleston County was founded. The city's original name was Charles Towne in 1670, and it moved to its present location from a location on the west bank of the...
. The congregation was founded in 1682 under the leadership of William Screven
William Screven
William Screven was a 17th-century Baptist preacher from England who founded the first Baptist church in the South.William Screven was born in England, in 1629 and immigrated to New England in the 1640s...
. It is one of the oldest Baptist congregations in the American South. The church was originally organized in Kittery, Maine
Kittery, Maine
Kittery is a town in York County, Maine, United States. The population was 9,543 at the 2000 census. Home to the Portsmouth Naval Shipyard on Seavey's Island, Kittery includes Badger's Island, the seaside district of Kittery Point, and part of the Isles of Shoals...
(then part of Massachusetts) under the guidance of the First Baptist Church of Boston. In 1696 twenty-six congregants followed Pastor Screven and moved to Charleston after being pressured by the New England authorities. The relocated congregation became the First Baptist Church of Charleston and is currently affiliated with the Southern Baptist denomination. The current Greek Revival
Greek Revival architecture
The Greek Revival was an architectural movement of the late 18th and early 19th centuries, predominantly in Northern Europe and the United States. A product of Hellenism, it may be looked upon as the last phase in the development of Neoclassical architecture...
sanctuary was designed by Robert Mills
Robert Mills (architect)
Robert Mills , most famously known for designing the Washington Monument, is sometimes called the first native born American to become a professional architect, though Charles Bulfinch perhaps has a clearer claim to this honor...
and built in 1820.
External links
- Official Church Website
- Two centuries of the First Baptist Church of South Carolina, 1683-1883 by Henry Allen Tupper (R. H. Woodward, 1889)