Centennial Baptist Church facts for kids
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Centennial Baptist Church
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Centennial Baptist Church, March 2013
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 Location in Arkansas
Location in the United States
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| Location | Helena, Arkansas |
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| Built | 1905 |
| Architect | Henry James Price |
| Architectural style | Late Gothic Revival |
| NRHP reference No. | 87000518 (original) 03001044 (increase) |
Quick facts for kids Significant dates |
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| Added to NRHP | March 26, 1987 |
| Boundary increase | July 31, 2003 |
| Designated NHL | July 31, 2003 |
The Centennial Baptist Church is a very old and important church building located in Helena, Arkansas. It stands at the corner of York and Columbia Streets. This church is special because of its connection to a man named Elias Camp Morris (1855-1922). He was the church's pastor starting in 1879.
Morris was a key leader in creating the National Baptist Convention, USA, Inc.. This is a large group of Baptist churches in the United States. He was the president of this group from 1895 until he passed away. His church, Centennial Baptist, even worked as the main office for the organization. The church was recognized as a historic place in 1987. It became a National Historic Landmark in 2003, which means it's very important to the history of the whole country.
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The Church Building and Its History
The church building you see today was designed by Henry James Price. He was a member of the church. It was built in 1895. The building looks like a Gothic Revival style church. This style often has tall, pointed arches and fancy details.
The church is made of brick. Its front (western) side has two tall towers. Between the towers is a large central pointed section called a gable. The main doors are in each tower. They are shaped like Gothic arches. Below the main gable, there are three sections with groups of three tall, narrow windows. These are called lancet windows. Stone supports called buttresses separate these window sections. A round window is at the top of the gable. The roofline of the gable has decorative brickwork that looks like carved wood.
Elias Camp Morris's Leadership
Elias Camp Morris became the pastor of Centennial Church in 1879. At that time, it was a new church group. Morris quickly became a well-known leader among Baptist churches. He led the Arkansas Negro Baptist Convention. He also chaired the board of trustees for Arkansas Baptist College, which started in 1884.
In 1882, Morris also started a newspaper called the Baptist Vanguard. This newspaper became a good example for other publications. The National Baptist Convention was formed in 1886. It brought together three African-American Baptist church groups. This group became truly united in 1895. At that meeting, Morris was chosen as its president. At the time, this convention was the largest meeting group of African-Americans in the nation. Morris was also active in politics, especially with the Republican Party. He attended national meetings as a representative.
The Centennial Baptist Church was the main place where Morris did all his important work. The church grew a lot under his leadership. It is the only building connected to his busy life that is still standing today.
Damage from the 2020 Storm
The Centennial Baptist Church was badly damaged by strong winds on April 12, 2020. The mayor of Helena, Kevin Smith, said the church looked like "a bombed-out World War II ruin." This storm was part of a big storm system called the 2020 Easter tornado outbreak. The storm also destroyed two other old buildings nearby.
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