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A PLAN HAS BEEN ADVANCED FOR THE RESTORATION OF THE OLD AFRICAN BAPTIST CHURCH ON NANTUCKET By Edouard A. Stackpole
A few weeks ago, a letter arrived with the information that a campaign has been organized by a resident of Cambridge, Mass., whereby a fund is being raised to restore the original African Bap tist Church at the corner of Pleasant and York Streets. The Proper ty is now owned by William Higginbotham, a resident of Oakland, California, who has had some work done on the old structure, but who lacks the necessary funds to complete the project. Another supporter of the plan for a complete restoration is Byron Rushing, of the Museum of Afro-American History, who visited Nantucket some eight years ago, and discussed the restoration. The old Church was organized in 1827, after its original erec tion in 1826 as a school for the black population on Nantucket. The land on which the building was built was purchased from Jef frey Simmons, and conveyed to the Trustees of the African Baptist Society, as follows: Peter Boston, Absalom Boston, Michael DeLuce, and Charles Godfrey. After four years the African Baptist Church was reorganized, and successfully completed the task. An old docu ment tells the story, under date of May 24. 1831: The Lord having in his Providence cast the lot of those whose names are hereafter found as the Constituent members of the African Baptist Church on this Island, for from the Churches to which some of us formerly belonged, we felt it our duty and prin cipally to become a district Baptist Church. Pursuant to these impressioned on our minds we sent for Elder Seth Emers of Martha's Vineyard and Edward Harris of Hyannis, Barnstable, Pastors of Bap tist Churches in these Places, to take it into consideration, and in their opinion we were entitled to church privileges, to reorganize us as such. Accordingly they came, and after hearing us relate our Christian experiences and religious views, they have it as their opi nion that we ought to become a distinct Church, .....we were then publicly reorganized as the African Baptist Church, and received the hand of fellowship by Elder Harris and an address by Elder Emers. They then administered the Lord's Supper. The following
