First Baptist Church (Augusta, Georgia)
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First Baptist Church of Augusta
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| Location | Greene and 8th Sts., Augusta, Georgia |
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| Coordinates | 33°28′21″N 81°58′3″W / 33.47250°N 81.96750°WCoordinates: 33°28′21″N 81°58′3″W / 33.47250°N 81.96750°W |
| Area | 1 acre (0.40 ha) |
| Built | 1902 |
| Architect | Denny, Willis Franklin |
| Architectural style | Beaux Arts |
| NRHP reference # | 72000397 |
| Added to NRHP | March 23, 1972 |
First Baptist Church of Augusta is a Southern Baptist church in Augusta, Georgia. The original location is now a historical site. The church of the 21st century is located on Walton Way.
According to the earliest church records, the Baptists Praying Society was established when
In the year 1817, Jesse D. Green, a layman, was active in gathering together the few scattered Baptists in Augusta, and, after holding one or more preliminary meetings, the brethren and sisters, to the number of eighteen, had drawn up and adopted a covenant, to which they affixed their names.
In May 1817, they met in the court house for worship. A few years later in 1820, Rev, Wm. T. Brantly was chosen for the pastoral office, and he undertook erecting a brick house at 802 Greene St., at a cost of $20,000. It was dedicated on May 6, 1821.
The Southern Baptist Convention was formed at a meeting May 1845 in this church, marking the separation between Northern and Southern Baptists before the American Civil War over issues of slavery and governance.
A historical marker was erected in 1956 outside the church by the Georgia Historical Commission (Marker Number 121–29.) It is inscribed as follows:
In March 1817, eight men and two women meeting in an Augusta home formed "The Baptist Praying Society of Augusta" - the forerunner of the First Baptist Church. Two months later the society was constituted a church under the leadership of the first minister, Wm. T. Brantley, this property was purchased in 1870. A church on this site was dedicated May 26, 1821. In 1845, after serious friction arose in the national Triennial Convention, 327 delegates from eight southern states and the District of Columbia met here to form the Southern Baptist Convention. This building was erected in 1902.
In 1975 the congregation moved to a new church on a site in Augusta on Walton Way. They sold their former church building to the Southern Baptist Non-Profit Historical Society.
The Southern Baptist Convention erected an identification marker on the grounds in 1984, noting this as the site of the convention's founding. By 2003, the building was owned by the Southern Baptist Restoration Foundation. The Southern Bible Seminary had started using the building to hold classes.
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