FIRST AFRICAN BAPTIST CHURCH

The First Masonry Building Owned by African Americans in Savannah

First African Baptist Church is considered the oldest, continuous black congregation in North America, constituted under Rev. George Leile in 1777. In 1832, the congregation became divided on doctrinal matters. As a result, Rev. Andrew C. Marshall and a large group of members moved in 1832. This site where the current edifice is located on Franklin Square within the Savannah Landmark Historic District was purchased in 1832 from (white) Savannah Baptist Church. The current edifice was built from 1859-1861, for the most part by enslaved members of the congregation, utilizing local materials. The building marked the first brick building in the state completely owned by African Americans. The structure was expanded to coincide with the 1888 Centennial Celebration of the African Baptist Church, which brought thousands of attendees from the southeast.

In 2019, the First African Baptist Church (FABC) commissioned Landmark Preservation LLC (Landmark), to perform a thorough building assessment of the First African Baptist Church on Franklin Square in Savannah, Georgia. The purpose of the assessment was to provide a master plan for future treatment of the structure. The master plan provides a framework for the short and long-term maintenance, care, and preservation of the building. Overall the First African Baptist Church was found to be in sound structural condition; the historic characteristics and details are predominantly intact. This significant structure also stands out as a rare example of a building that has maintained its original use - continuously carried out by its original occupants since 1859. 

Countless hours of architectural study, archival research, and investigative removals culminated in a master plan that included:

  • Complete First African Baptist Church Timeline and Architectural Chronology

  • Period of Significance and Interpretation

  • Comprehensive Conditions Assessment and Recommendations

  • Prioritization Schedule

  • Capital Budgets for Restoration and General Maintenance

In 2023, FABC hired LPC to complete their application for the National Trust for Historic Preservation’s African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund Preserving Black Churches Grant. The application was submitted in August and will be reviewed between September - December. The Trustee’s of FABC sought the full grant amount in order to protect the historic stained glass windows as well as to repair the attic structural framing and roofing deficiencies. Landmark’s master plan recommended the removal of non-historic protective acrylic panels which were causing deterioration of the historic stained-glass windows. In 2021, FABC had these panels removed for the restoration of the historic stained glass windows and intend to use funds from the Preserving Black Churches Grant to install sympathetic and properly vented removable storm windows.