City Directories and History: 1908 – Rev. Thomas G. Gilmore
This handsome Romanesque Revival church was constructed in 1915.
The Yorkville Enquirer reported on Feb. 20, 1889 – “The colored people of Rock Hill, School District, have purchased two acres of land and will erect a graded school.” (This maybe the start of what became Friendship School).
The Herald reported on Nov. 18, 1896 – ” Mt. Prospect Baptist Church was dedicated with ceremonies on Sunday. This is a large edifice, of neat design and well constructed, located near the site of the old church on Black Street, a block west of Laurelwood Cemetery. Rev. T. S. Gilmore is the Pastor.”
The Rock Hill Herald reported on April 11, 1900 – “The Friendship School will end its term next Friday, and the public is invited to an exhibition that night. ”
The Rock Hill Record May 27, 1907 – “The Friendship School had a fund raising effort for school improvements. Mr. Minnie Lee Garrison has been the teacher for the past two years. She has not only trained the children, but has also improved the library, building and grounds.”
Mount Prospect Baptist Church has significance for its role in the development of the ethnic heritage of the city’s black community and for its status as a largely intact example of church architecture. In 1883, a group of African American Baptist’s began meeting in private homes in Rock Hill. Many had been members of other Baptist churches before the Civil War and desired their own church. The congregation grew and was organized in 1885, when the first building was constructed. They were originally known as First Baptist Church, Colored. After fire destroyed the first building, the congregation constructed a new building in 1900 (ca. 1896), that also burnt, in 1914. The present brick sanctuary, constructed in 1915, exhibits elements of the Romanesque Revival style. It features a two-story square tower at the right of the façade. Each of the tower’s facades features tall multi-light paired windows surmounted by louvered vents in arched openings. The interior of the sanctuary has exposed beams and metal ceiling with coffered design. Listed in the National Register June 10, 1992. (Courtesy of the S.C. Dept. of Archives and History)
Mount Prospect Baptist Church has had a significant impact on the development of local African American heritage. On Oct. 12, 1891, a school was opened in the church building. Led by the Rev. M.P. Hall and supported by the churches of Chester and York County, starting with eleven students. By 1908, Friendship School had received a state charter and by 1910 a parcel was set aside for the construction of what became Friendship Junior College. The school closed in the 1980s.
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