Black History Month: 8 historically significant African American churches

By Michael Gryboski, Mainline Church Editor Wednesday, February 28, 2024

16th Street Baptist Church — Birmingham, Alabama

The building that housed 16th Street Baptist Church of Birmingham, Alabama from 1884 to 1908. In 1963, a white racist bombed the church, resulting in the deaths of four African American girls. | Wikimedia Commons

Organized in 1873 and originally called the First Colored Baptist Church of Birmingham, Alabama, 16th Street Baptist Church boasts of being the first black church in Birmingham.

During the 1960s, the church was an epicenter for civil rights activism, with the building serving as a place for mass meetings and demonstrations for racial equality.

On a Sunday morning in 1963, the church gained international attention when a bomb went off, resulting in the deaths of four girls and injuries to about 20 other congregants.

“It was a shocking, terrifying day in the history of Birmingham and a day that forced white leaders to further come to grips with the city’s bitter racist reputation,” the church says on its website.

“The tragedy of that Sunday produced outpourings of sympathy, concern and financial contributions from all parts of the world. More than $300,000.00 was contributed for the restoration of the damaged church. It was reopened for services Sunday, June 7, 1964.”