Saint Paul African Union Methodist Church facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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Saint Paul African Union Methodist Church
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 Location in Washington, D.C.
Location in the District of Columbia
Location in the United States
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| Location | 401 I St., SE. Washington, D.C. |
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| Built | 1924 |
| Architect | R.C. Archer Jr. |
| Architectural style | Gothic Revival |
| NRHP reference No. | 11000481 |
| Added to NRHP | July 28, 2011 |
The Saint Paul African Union Methodist Church is a very old and important building in Washington, D.C.. It's located in an area called the Navy Yard. This church is special because it's the only one in D.C. that belongs to the African Union Methodist Protestant Church. This church group is the oldest independent African-American church group in the United States! Because of its history, the church was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2011.
The Church's Story
How It Started
The African Union Methodist Protestant Church congregation that became Saint Paul's began as a small prayer group. This was in the year 1900. It grew from there to become the church we see today.
Building the Church
The church building was designed by an architect named R.C. Archer, Jr.. He was one of the first licensed African American architects in Washington, D.C. This church was his very first church project in the city. The building was finished in 1924. It was built in the Gothic Revival style, which means it looks like old European churches.
A Special Landmark
Saint Paul's is the only church that remains from a neighborhood in the Navy Yard area. This neighborhood was mostly home to working-class African-American families. It is also one of the last buildings left from the early 1900s in that area. In the 1940s, many new public housing buildings were built nearby. Later, in the early 2000s, new homes replaced most of the other old buildings around the church.
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