Canaan Baptist Church (Bessemer, Alabama) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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Canaan Baptist Church
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July 2016: Canaan Baptist Church
with 150th anniversary banner |
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 Location in Alabama
Location in the United States
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| Location | 824 Fifteenth Street North, Bessemer, Alabama |
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| Area | 1 acre (0.40 ha) |
| Built | 1961 |
| MPS | Civil Rights Movement in Birmingham, Alabama MPS |
| NRHP reference No. | 05000290 |
| Added to NRHP | April 22, 2005 |
Canaan Baptist Church is a very old and important church located in Bessemer, Alabama. It was built in 1961, but its story goes back much further. The people who attended this church were very active in the Civil Rights Movement during the 20th century. Because of its important history, Canaan Baptist Church was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2005.
This church was started in 1865 by Reverend W. M. Grimes. It is one of the oldest African-American Baptist churches in Bessemer. Many of its first members had been part of a different church before the American Civil War. After the war, they wanted to have their own independent church. Soon, African-American churches in the South began to form their own groups, with help from churches in the Midwest. Eventually, they formed the National Baptist Convention.
Canaan Baptist Church in Bessemer was recognized on the National Register of Historic Places in 2005. This was because it played a major role as a meeting place and a center for planning during the Civil Rights Movement in the Birmingham area in the 1960s.
The African-American members of Canaan Baptist Church have been at their current spot in downtown Bessemer since 1889. The first church building on this land was finished in 1947. The current church building was built in 1961.
Contents
The Church's Role in the Civil Rights Movement
Under the leadership of Reverend Dr. J. H. Browder, who was the pastor from 1948 until 1964, the church and its members were very involved in the Civil Rights Movement. Reverend Browder helped the church do more for the community. He improved how the church was run and started many new educational programs. These included a youth group, an education department, a Christian Aid Union, a Sunday School, and a Matrons Department.
Fighting for Equal Rights
Reverend Browder and other church members were active in the Alabama Christian Movement for Human Rights in the late 1950s. Canaan Baptist Church became known as a strong voice for equal rights, the right to vote, and ending segregation. At that time, African Americans were kept separate by law and custom. They were also often prevented from voting. Reverend Browder spoke about equality and fairness every Sunday. He strongly supported efforts to desegregate schools after the United States Supreme Court ruled in Brown v. Board of Education (1954). This ruling said that having separate public schools for different races was against the law.
Building a New Church
Because of its strong stand for civil rights, Canaan Baptist Church got a lot of attention from white city officials. In 1959, the City of Bessemer suddenly declared the church building unsafe. This church building had been a landmark for African Americans in Bessemer. The church members had worked hard to keep it safe and comfortable.
Around this time, two other black churches in the city had been destroyed by fires. City officials said these fires were due to building problems. However, many local African Americans believed the fires were not accidental. There had been other attacks on black churches and homes by hate groups in the area. For example, in 1957, the Allen Temple AME Church had a dynamite blast during an evening service.
The city government forced Canaan Baptist Church to build a new one. So, the church built a new, modern brick building in 1960–61.
A Center for Change
Reverend Browder saw building a new church as a chance to do even more for African Americans in Bessemer. For example, the segregated public schools for black children in Bessemer did not have kindergartens. So, Reverend Browder started a kindergarten for local children in the basement of the new 1961 church building.
The new church, with its basement meeting rooms and large main hall, became a key place for planning civil rights actions. The church members discussed and planned their part in important events in the Birmingham area. These included:
- The Selective Buying Campaign of 1962: Black residents refused to shop at stores that treated them unfairly.
- The Southern Christian Leadership Conference meetings in Birmingham in 1962.
- The Project C ("Confrontation") demonstrations of 1963: These protests aimed to fill jails with civil rights activists in Birmingham and Bessemer.
Continuing the Mission
After Reverend Browder passed away in 1964, Reverend A. L. Bratcher became the minister. He continued the church's important role in the Civil Rights Movement in Bessemer. Reverend Bratcher helped the church get involved in the federal War on Poverty. Through this, the church started a Community Development Credit Union (CDCU) in 1964. This credit union still operates today.
The Canaan Baptist CDCU was one of the first of its kind in the country. It gave fair loans to local residents who were often turned away by other banks. These loans helped people buy homes and start businesses. The church also worked with its members and local residents to help put the Civil Rights Act and the Voting Rights Act into action. These laws helped ensure equal rights and voting rights for all.
Reverend Horace P. Turner became pastor in 1969 and served for many years. Under his leadership, the church built an educational annex in 1984. This new space provided more room for the church's religious and community programs.
Canaan Baptist Church is recognized as a very important center for the Civil Rights Movement in the Birmingham area from 1933 to 1979.
