History
First Baptist Church traces its origins to Bethel Baptist Church (now Bethel Baptist Institutional Church), founded under co-pastors James McDonald and Ryan Frier, the earliest Baptist church to be founded in Jacksonville. Bethel Baptist was established in July 1838 with only six charter members, four whites and two blacks, the latter of whom were slaves of white members. Membership quickly grew, with most early congregants being black slaves who received day passes from their masters to attend. The first meetings were held at "Mother Sam's", a local plantation, and in 1861 a permanent meeting hall was erected in Downtown Jacksonville at Church and Julia Streets. The Bethel Baptist Church remained interracial until after the American Civil War, at which point the decision was made to segregate the congregation by race. White members attempted to force out the blacks, and took their case to court. However, the court found in favor of the blacks, who were in the majority, determining that they were the rightful owners of the Bethel Baptist name and property. As a result the whites left the congregation, forming Tabernacle Baptist Church, which was eventually renamed First Baptist Church. Bethel Baptist Institutional Church now numbers its congregation at approximately 10,000 members.
In 1866 Tabernacle Baptist Church purchased the Church Street property from Bethel Baptist Church, as was required by the court. The church went through a number of changes over the next years, and in 1892 it moved to its current location between Church and Hogan Streets, adopting the name First Baptist Church. The building was entirely destroyed in the Great Fire of 1901, which ravaged downtown Jacksonville. In 1903 the foundation was laid for a new building, which was completed within a year. This building, now known as Hobson Auditorium, still serves as part of the larger First Baptist complex.
The church went through many pastors from 1923 to 1940 and accumulated a debt of $125,000, lost a seven-story educational building, and had no facilities to accommodate the growth.
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