This Building Has History ™
Name: First Baptist Church and the Freedom Temple
Architect: UN
Builder: Padgett
Constructed: 1923
First Baptist Church continued to grow, and the need for a larger church building became apparent. At first, a site on White Street was purchased, but the congregation was not united in support for this site. In 1916, a lot on Main Street became available, and it was purchased for $17,498. A portion of this land facing Oakland Avenue was sold to the Peoples Trust Company for $10,250 the next year, helping to defray the cost. The congregation of about 300 members decided to build a large and imposing building on the new lot, and a Mr. Padgett was contracted to do the work for $125,000. The new building was completed in 1923. The old church on Hampton Street had been sold in 1920 to the Record Printing Company for $10,000, and the Rock Hill Record was printed there for a number of years. The Hampton Street site is now part of the City Hall complex.
At some point, a new parsonage was established on Caldwell Street near the new church. In 1936, the lot on which the parsonage stood was sold, and Dr. Dunlap’s clinic was later built on the site. The parsonage house was moved to St. John’s Court. It was later sold and the church purchased a new parsonage in 1943 at 251 Main Street. Major additions to the church facility were completed in 1937, 1955, and 1984.
In 2003, the congregation decided to leave its downtown facility in order to accommodate growth, and a new church plant was built on Dave Lyle Boulevard. The last service was held in the Main Street church in 2004, and later that year it was sold to Freedom Temple Ministries.
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