Last updated: November 12, 2024
Article
Historic West Hunter Street Baptist Church (Atlanta, Georgia)
African American Civil Rights Network
Historic West Hunter Street Baptist Church in Atlanta, Georgia is a stone sanctuary that formerly housed West Hunter Street Baptist Church. The congregation of West Hunter Street Baptist has a long history of civil rights activism in the city. For several years, Reverend Ralph David Abernathy, a confidante of Martin Luther King Jr., led the congregation and pastored in the building.
West Hunter Street Baptist Church was founded as Mount Calvary Baptist Church in 1881. In 1906, the congregation changed its named after it purchased property and constructed a new sanctuary on Hunter Street. From early on, the congregation engaged in local efforts to secure voting rights, desegregate public space, and improve race relations. In the 1930s, the church hosted voting rights rallies and participated in interracial exchanges with white churches and synagogues. In the 1940s, the church hosted several meetings of a forum between white and Black leaders. Under the pastorate of Reverend Dr. A. Franklin Frazier, in the 1950s the church became a meeting place for African American organizations including the Westside Voters League, the local National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) branch, and the Atlanta Negro Chamber of Commerce. As pastor of West Hunter Street Baptist, Reverend Frazier helped organize an effort that desegregated Atlanta’s local public transportation and advised members of the Atlanta Student Movement.
In 1960, following the death of Reverend Frazier, the church asked Reverend Ralph David Abernathy to serve as senior pastor. A close friend of Martin Luther King Jr., Abernathy was an integral leader to the Montgomery Bus Boycott and later the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC). Following his appointment as pastor, in the early 1960s West Hunter Street Baptist became an important meeting place in the modern civil rights movement. The SCLC met regularly in the church and made significant organizing decisions, and the church also provided space for various trainings, the Poor People’s Campaign, and other civil rights activities. Through the early 1970s, the church remained an important meeting place for civil rights and political activities.
In 1973, West Hunter Street Baptist moved to a new location to accommodate a growing congregation. Political and civil rights organizations continued to meet in the old church building on Hunter Street until it was sold in the late 1970s.
The Historic West Hunter Street Baptist became a part of the African American Civil Rights Network in 2023.
The African American Civil Rights Network recognizes the African American Civil Rights Movement in the United States and the sacrifices made by those who fought against discrimination and segregation. Created by the African American Civil Rights Act of 2017, and coordinated by the National Park Service, the Network tells the stories of the people, places, and events of the U.S. African American Civil Rights Movement through a collection of public and private resources to include properties, facilities, and programs.
Historic West Hunter Street Baptist Church in Atlanta, Georgia is a stone sanctuary that formerly housed West Hunter Street Baptist Church. The congregation of West Hunter Street Baptist has a long history of civil rights activism in the city. For several years, Reverend Ralph David Abernathy, a confidante of Martin Luther King Jr., led the congregation and pastored in the building.
West Hunter Street Baptist Church was founded as Mount Calvary Baptist Church in 1881. In 1906, the congregation changed its named after it purchased property and constructed a new sanctuary on Hunter Street. From early on, the congregation engaged in local efforts to secure voting rights, desegregate public space, and improve race relations. In the 1930s, the church hosted voting rights rallies and participated in interracial exchanges with white churches and synagogues. In the 1940s, the church hosted several meetings of a forum between white and Black leaders. Under the pastorate of Reverend Dr. A. Franklin Frazier, in the 1950s the church became a meeting place for African American organizations including the Westside Voters League, the local National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) branch, and the Atlanta Negro Chamber of Commerce. As pastor of West Hunter Street Baptist, Reverend Frazier helped organize an effort that desegregated Atlanta’s local public transportation and advised members of the Atlanta Student Movement.
In 1960, following the death of Reverend Frazier, the church asked Reverend Ralph David Abernathy to serve as senior pastor. A close friend of Martin Luther King Jr., Abernathy was an integral leader to the Montgomery Bus Boycott and later the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC). Following his appointment as pastor, in the early 1960s West Hunter Street Baptist became an important meeting place in the modern civil rights movement. The SCLC met regularly in the church and made significant organizing decisions, and the church also provided space for various trainings, the Poor People’s Campaign, and other civil rights activities. Through the early 1970s, the church remained an important meeting place for civil rights and political activities.
In 1973, West Hunter Street Baptist moved to a new location to accommodate a growing congregation. Political and civil rights organizations continued to meet in the old church building on Hunter Street until it was sold in the late 1970s.
The Historic West Hunter Street Baptist became a part of the African American Civil Rights Network in 2023.
The African American Civil Rights Network recognizes the African American Civil Rights Movement in the United States and the sacrifices made by those who fought against discrimination and segregation. Created by the African American Civil Rights Act of 2017, and coordinated by the National Park Service, the Network tells the stories of the people, places, and events of the U.S. African American Civil Rights Movement through a collection of public and private resources to include properties, facilities, and programs.