Court Street Baptist Church
Path of History, Portsmouth, VA
Established in 1789, the Portsmouth and Norfolk Baptist Church served as the first Baptist congregation in South Hampton Roads. The name was changed in 1791 to Portsmouth Baptist Church and again in 1855 to its current name, Court Street Baptist Church. This Romanesque Revival-style church is the third building to occupy the site and contains the cornerstone of the previous building.
Black members of Court Street Baptist Church worshiped in the basement until May 1865 when 318 of the congregation founded their own church, Zion Baptist. This church became the second African-American Baptist Church established in Portsmouth. Located on Green Street, it is still in use today.
Marker is on Court Street south of London Street, on the right when traveling north.
Courtesy hmdb.org
