Bethesda Baptist Church

Duane's take

Here's how the official marker tells it, and I'll do my best to honor every word. Back in 1867, a man named Reverend William Massey opened his own home and organized what he called the Colored Baptist Church right there inside those walls. Now that alone tells you something about the kind of faith it takes to start a thing, not in a grand hall, not with stained glass, but in a man's own living room.

Before long, the congregation reached for a name with deeper roots, and they chose Bethesda, drawn from the Biblical pool where the sick and the troubled came seeking healing. That name was a declaration. The people filling those pews were not ordinary folks just passing through.

They were prominent business leaders, educational leaders, political leaders. And in 1881, members of this very congregation helped organize Bishop College. Let that land for a moment.

A church that started in a home was now shaping the landscape of higher education. The first frame church house stood until 1932, when it was razed and a brick building rose up in its place under the leadership of Reverend W. H.

Dudley. That brick building must have felt like permanence. It was not.

In 1953 fire destroyed the structure. But Bethesda Baptist Church had been through too much, carried too much, meant too much to too many people to stay down. The building you can see today was constructed during the pastorate of Reverend James R.

C. Pinn. Three buildings, one congregation, and a name chosen for healing.

That's Bethesda.

What the marker says

In 1867 the Rev. William Massey organized the "Colored Baptist Church" in his home. Soon the name "Bethesda" was chosen for the Biblical pool where the sick and troubled went for healing. Members of this congregation included prominent business, educational, and political leaders. They helped organize Bishop College in 1881. The first frame church house was razed in 1932 and a brick building was erected under the Rev. W. H. Dudley. After a fire destroyed the structure in 1953, this building was constructed during the pastorate of the Rev. James R. C. Pinn. (1979)