Bethel A.M.E. Church (Indianapolis, Indiana) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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Bethel A. M. E. Church
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 Location in Indianapolis
Location in Indiana
Location in the United States
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| Location | 414 W. Vermont St., Indianapolis, Indiana |
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| Area | less than one acre |
| Built | 1869 |
| Architect | Adam Busch |
| Architectural style | Modern Movement, Romanesque, Post Modern |
| NRHP reference No. | 91000269 |
| Added to NRHP | March 21, 1991 |
The Bethel A.M.E. Church in Indianapolis, Indiana, is a very old and important church. It was also known as Indianapolis Station or the Vermont Street Church in its early days. This church is part of the African Methodist Episcopal Church (AME).
It started in 1836 and is the oldest African-American church group in Indianapolis. The main church building on West Vermont Street was built in 1869. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1991. This list recognizes important historical places in the United States.
The area around the church used to be the center of the African-American community downtown. After World War II, the neighborhood changed a lot. New hotels, apartments, offices, and museums were built. The Indiana University–Purdue University at Indianapolis (IUPUI) campus also grew nearby.
In 2016, the church group sold their old building because it needed many repairs. They built a new church at 6417 Zionsville Road in Pike Township, in northwest Indianapolis. The old building will be used for new businesses.
The Bethel AME church has always helped the African-American community in Indianapolis. It was very active in the fight against slavery before the American Civil War. It also supported the Underground Railroad, which helped enslaved people escape to Canada. The church was also dedicated to education and helping the community.
Bethel was like a "mother church" to other AME churches in Indiana. It was also a public meeting place for people working for social change. Important groups like the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and the Indiana State Federation of Colored Women's Clubs started at the Vermont Street church in the early 1900s.
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History of Bethel AME Church
Indianapolis has several African Methodist Episcopal Church groups. But Bethel is the oldest African American church group in the city. It began in 1836 and was first called Indianapolis Station. By 1869, it was known as Bethel AME Church.
How Bethel AME Church Started
In 1836, a local barber named Augustus Turner started a small group of African American Methodists. They first met in Turner's log cabin on Georgia Street. In 1841, they built their first church building on Georgia Street.
The group wanted to join the African Methodist Episcopal Church. William Paul Quinn, an AME traveling preacher from Cincinnati, Ohio, helped them. He later became an AME bishop. Quinn was the first AME minister to serve the Indianapolis Station. He also helped them become part of the AME Church's Western Circuit.
Elisha Weaver became the church's first full-time minister in 1850. The group officially became Bethel AME Church in the late 1860s. Even though the church grew and helped more people, it often had money problems in its early years.
The Georgia Street Church Buildings
In 1841, the church built its first building on Georgia Street. It was between the Central Canal and Mississippi Street (now Senate Avenue). The Bethel AME group used this small wooden church until 1857.
Then, they bought the first Christ Church building from the city's Episcopal group. The Episcopal members had built a new stone church. The AME group moved the small wooden church to their Georgia Street site.
However, this church was destroyed by fire in 1862. Many believe that people who supported slavery burned the church. This was likely because Bethel AME openly supported the movement to end slavery and the Underground Railroad. The Underground Railroad helped enslaved people escape to Canada.
The church group raised money and rebuilt the wooden church in 1867. This replacement building was used until their brick church on West Vermont Street was built in 1868–69. To pay for the new church, they sold a lot they owned for $3,000. They used this money to buy another lot for $5,000 on West Vermont Street. This new lot became the site for their larger church.
The Vermont Street Church Building
The church's West Vermont Street location was in the northwest part of downtown Indianapolis. This area was historically the center of the African-American community. It had homes, shops, and small businesses.
In 1867, the church hired Adam Busch to build a new brick church. It was supposed to cost $10,400. By 1869, the building was not fully finished, but the group moved into the new church at 414 West Vermont Street. They officially adopted the name Bethel AME Church.
To finish building the church, the Bethel group sold or mortgaged other property they owned. On July 24, 1880, the church was sold to pay off its debts. But the new owner allowed the group to buy it back in 1891. They were able to do this after raising enough money. Later, mortgages on the church were paid off in 1944, 1961, and 1982.
After World War II, the area around the church changed a lot. New buildings and urban development took over. But the Bethel AME group stayed in their aging church. They renovated it in 1974 to make more space for community activities. The area eventually became filled with hotels, apartments, museums, and offices. The large IUPUI campus also grew west of the church.
Bethel AME Church was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1991. At that time, it was the only African-American church building in Indianapolis to get this honor. A historical marker for Bethel AME Church was placed across from the building on West Vermont Street. It was dedicated on June 20, 2009. This marker celebrates the site where Indianapolis's oldest African-American church has stood since 1869.
Sale and New Plans
In 2015, the Bethel AME group tried to raise money to repair their old building. They needed $2 million to $3 million, but they couldn't raise enough. Since they couldn't afford the repairs, the group started looking at offers to buy the Vermont Street property.
In early 2016, they agreed to sell the property to SUN Development and Management Corporation. This company is a developer from Indianapolis. SUN Development agreed to save as much of the old church building as possible. They plan to build a hotel on the property. The church group had to move out by August 2016.
In February 2017, Indiana University announced a cool project. Their School of Informatics and Computing at IUPUI received money to create a 3D virtual reality model of the historic Vermont Street church. IUPUI students took 3,000 pictures to make this model. Once finished, anyone will be able to explore the church virtually. The digital images will be kept at the IUPUI Library. Other church records will be stored at the Indiana Historical Society in Indianapolis.
In 2018, the church group opened their new church building. It is on Zionsville Road in Pike Township, in northwest Indianapolis.
About the Old Church Building
The Vermont Street property originally had a three-story church and a two-story parsonage next to it. A covered walkway connected the two buildings. The church and parsonage were built between 1867 and 1869. The parsonage later became a church office.
In 1894, a major renovation added the church's four-story tower. It also added the east and west gables. In 1973–74, a false front made of metal and stucco was added to the south side of both buildings. This new front covered part of the church's original brick front and main entrance. However, the building still kept many features from its original construction in 1869 and the 1894 renovation.
Outside and Inside the Church
The three-story church and its square, four-story tower were made of red brick. They sat on a limestone foundation. The building had some Romanesque Revival features, which means it looked like old Roman buildings. The tower was attached to the church only at one corner.
The church's main entrance faced south toward Vermont Street. It had a false front with a single arch over the main door. Inside, the church had a sanctuary (the main worship area) and meeting rooms. The tower held a staircase. The church had two entrances. One was on the south side facing Vermont Street, and the other was in the tower.
The sanctuary was updated in 1894. It became a two-story space with the altar on the east wall. A balcony ran along the west wall. It could be reached by stairs. The seating was like an auditorium, facing the altar. Windows on the west and north walls let in light. The coved ceiling was covered with wood.
Later changes included making the choir loft bigger. A pipe organ and stained-glass windows were also added. The church's hand-carved pulpit was a gift from Reverend Andre Chambers. In 1961, the pastor and an architect redesigned the chancel (the area around the altar). The church also renovated the building and the parsonage in 1974.
Bethel AME Church's Mission
The Bethel AME Church became even more important as the number of black people in Indianapolis grew. In 1840, shortly after the church started, only 195 black people lived in the city.
Before the American Civil War, the church actively worked against slavery. It also supported the Underground Railroad. At that time, black people made up less than three percent of Indianapolis's population. By 1870, a few years after the Vermont Street church was built, the number of black people in Indiana had almost doubled. This was because many came to Indianapolis from the South and rural areas. By 1900, African Americans made up almost ten percent of the city's population.
For thirty years, Bethel was the only AME church in Indianapolis. It became the "mother church" for several other AME churches in Indiana. These included Allen Chapel, Coppin Chapel, Saint John, and Wallace (Providence) congregations. Bethel also helped the AME church grow. It hosted the denomination's yearly conference in 1854, 1859, and 1864. It also hosted an AME bishop's conference and a general conference in 1888.
Education was another key mission of the church. In 1858, the church started its first school for African American children. Before the mid-1870s, Indianapolis public schools did not allow African American children to enroll. Later, the church ran a kindergarten and a day school.
The Bethel church also became a public meeting place for social activism. It helped provide social services. This included giving money, clothes, and temporary housing to African Americans moving to the city from the South after the Civil War. Over the years, the church offered other programs. These included a credit union, counseling, a baby clinic, and day-care services.
The church also helped organize local groups that worked for better housing, education, and equal rights for African Americans. Local chapters of several organizations started at Bethel. These included the Indianapolis chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People in the early 1900s. The Indiana State Federation of Colored Woman's Clubs also started there on April 27, 1904.
Throughout the 20th century, Bethel AME Church continued to support the black community. It ran a food pantry, programs for youth and seniors, and clothing drives. During the civil rights movement in the mid-20th century, Bethel was a place of unity for racial equality. It continued its long tradition of helping the African-American community. In 2013, the church joined the Indianapolis Congregation Action Network (IndyCan). It has served as the headquarters for the network's Mass Transit Campaign.
Church Members
The church started in 1836 with just a few members meeting in a log cabin. By 1848, the small group had grown to 100 members. They were meeting in a small wooden church on Georgia Street. In the early 1860s, before moving to the large brick church on West Vermont Street, the church had 120 members.
Over the next century, the number of members kept growing. By the early 1990s, the church had about 1,200 members. However, its membership went down in the years that followed. When the West Vermont Street property was sold in 2016, the church had about 120 to 150 members.
Famous Members
- Reverend Willis Revels: A pastor at Bethel AME Church in the 1860s. He encouraged African Americans to join the Union army during the American Civil War.
- Doctor Samuel Elbert: A doctor and the first African American to graduate from the Medical College of Indianapolis. He was also the secretary of the Indiana Board of Health.
- Madam C. J. Walker: A famous African American businesswoman who created hair care and beauty products. She was also a generous giver and activist in the early 1900s.
- Doctor Joseph Ward: An Indianapolis doctor who directed the Tuskegee Veterans Administration Medical Center in Tuskegee, Alabama.
- Mercer Mance: Indiana's first elected African American judge.
