Third Baptist Church (San Francisco)

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Third Baptist Church
Third Baptist Church of San Francisco.jpg
Location1399 McAllister Street,
San Francisco, California, U.S.
Coordinates 37°46′43″N122°26′06″W / 37.778513°N 122.434922°W / 37.778513; -122.434922
Founded1852
Built1952
ArchitectWilliam F. Gunnison
DesignatedNovember 15, 2017 [1]
Reference no.275
Other nameThird Baptist Church Complex
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Location of Third Baptist Church in San Francisco County
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Third Baptist Church (San Francisco) (California)

The Third Baptist Church, formerly the First Colored Baptist Church, is an American Baptist church founded in 1852, and located in the Western Addition neighborhood of San Francisco, California. [2] [3] It is the city of San Francisco's oldest African-American church. [4] [5] The church occupied several spaces in San Francisco over the course of its history. It is affiliated with the American Baptist Churches USA.

Contents

The Third Baptist Church Complex is listed as a San Francisco Designated Landmark since November 15, 2017. [1]

History

In August 1852, the First Colored Baptist Church congregation was founded in the house of Eliza and William Davis, by Black parishioners including the Davis family, Abraham Brown, Thomas Bundy, Harry Fields, Thomas Davenport, Willie Denton, George Lewis, and Fielding Spotts. [6] [7] Prior to 1852, African American Baptist parishioners attended the primarily-white First Baptist Church, and were forced to sit in the balcony. [5] Other African American churches founded in 1852 in San Francisco included Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church (Bethel AME Church), and the First African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church (First AME Zion Church). [8]

The first location of the church building was founded in 1852 at the corner Grant Avenue and Greenwich Street in San Francisco. [6] [8] The former Grant Avenue location is listed as a California Historical Landmark (Number 1010) since February 16, 1993. [9]

In 1854, the church was moved to Dupont Street at Greenwich Street, the location was the former First Baptist Church. [4] A year later in 1855, the church was renamed as the Third Baptist Church with the name legally changed in 1908. [6]

From 1921 until 1972, the church operated the Madame C.J. Walker Home for Girls and Women, a charitable, community and social services organization for single African American woman new to San Francisco, who were not eligible to use the YWCA. [10] [11]

The church building at 1399 McAllister Street was designed by architect William F. Gunnison and completed in 1952. [1] In 1958, W. E. B. Du Bois spoke to the church congregation. [5]

From 1976 to 2025, Rev. Amos C. Brown was the pastor, and was succeeded by Rev. Devon Jerome Crawford on July 1, 2025. [12] [13] [14]

Pastors

Notable members

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Third Baptist Church Complex" (PDF). Landmark Designation Report, San Francisco Planning Department. Historic Preservation Commission. November 15, 2017.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  2. ↑ "The Third Baptist Church of San Francisco is Founded". African American Registry (AAREG). Retrieved January 19, 2023.
  3. ↑ "SF's oldest African-American church designated as landmark". SFGATE . November 16, 2017. Retrieved January 19, 2023.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Taylor, Martha C. (June 24, 2016). From Labor to Reward: Black Church Beginnings in San Francisco, Oakland, Berkeley, and Richmond, 1849-1972. Wipf and Stock Publishers. pp. 16, 38–39. ISBN   978-1-4982-3282-1.
  5. 1 2 3 "The Old Landmark: Third Baptist Church Moves Closer To Historic Status". hoodline.com. November 5, 2017. Retrieved January 19, 2023.
  6. 1 2 3 4 Adkins, Jan Batiste (2012). African Americans of San Francisco. Arcadia Publishing. p. 13. ISBN   978-0-7385-7619-0.
  7. ↑ "California Historical Landmark #1010: Third Baptist Church Site in San Francisco". noehill.com. Retrieved January 19, 2023.
  8. 1 2 3 Montesano, Philip M. (July 1, 1973). "San Francisco Black Churches in the Early 1860's: Political Pressure Group" . California Historical Quarterly. 52 (2): 145–152. doi:10.2307/25157430. ISSN   0097-6059.
  9. ↑ "Original Site of the Third Baptist Church (Formerly the First Colored Baptist Church)". CA State Parks. Retrieved January 19, 2023.
  10. ↑ Richards, Rand (2002). Historic Walks in San Francisco: 18 Trails Through the City's Past. Heritage House Publishers. p. 196. ISBN   978-1-879367-03-6.
  11. ↑ Oaks, Robert F. (May 25, 2005). San Francisco's Fillmore District. Arcadia Publishing. p. 85. ISBN   978-1-4396-3092-1.
  12. 1 2 "Amos C. Brown". SFGATE. May 22, 1996. Retrieved January 19, 2023.
  13. 1 2 3 Mitchell, Meaghan (June 24, 2025). "'A Pastor's Heart': How Rev. Amos C. Brown Shaped Faith in SF for Nearly 50 Years". KQED. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
  14. 1 2 "Why the Third Baptist Church in San Francisco has sung 'Come, Come Ye Saints' for decades". Deseret News. June 28, 2025. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
  15. ↑ The Baptist Home Mission Monthly. Vol. 29–30. American Baptist Home Mission Society. 1907. p. 79.
  16. ↑ Graham, Ruth; McGrady, Clyde (October 21, 2024). "Harris's Faith, Inside and Outside the Black Church". The New York Times.
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