First Baptist Church of West College Hill

Founded in 1888

In 1888, a small group of Baptist settlers started meeting in the rented basement of the Belmont Flats on Hamilton Ave. in College Hill. Construction of their new church, St. Paul Baptist Church, started in 1890, on what is now Betts Ave. in West College Hill.

The small frame building was nicknamed “The Little Wooden Church on the Hill.” This is now First Baptist Church, a congregation approximately as old as the neighborhood that surrounds it.

Charles M. Steele, the first mayor of Hartwell and a real estate investor with property in the West End and elsewhere, developed a subdivision here for African American residents and sold the first lots in 1891. In 1907, he opened an adjacent Black-only subdivision.

Per the Hamilton County Auditor, the current building was constructed in 1937, occupying 4 25-foot wide lots of Steele’s Subdivision (lots 6-9). According to the official church history, the auditorium of First Baptist Church was completed in 1943.

Rev. Edward Jones Sr. led the congregation from 1933 until 1998 and was involved in the West College Hill Civic Association during the late 1960s, when the small community underwent Federally funded redevelopment efforts. Around this time, the Sisters of Mercy from McAuley Convent also began community enrichment programs with Jones’ involvement, which included tutoring, homemaking, and arts and crafts.

The congregation is now led by Rev. Charles L. King, Jr. First Baptist Church of West College Hill celebrated 130 years in the community in 2018.

Images

First Baptist Church of West College Hill
First Baptist Church of West College Hill Creator: Maya Drozdz
Rev. Edward Jones
Rev. Edward Jones Source: Cincinnati Enquirer Date: 1990
detail of Sanborn Fire Insurance Map from Cincinnati, Hamilton County, Ohio
detail of Sanborn Fire Insurance Map from Cincinnati, Hamilton County, Ohio Creator: Sanborn Map Company, courtesy of Library of Congress Geography and Map Division Date: Vol. 6, 1937 - May 1950

Location

6210 Betts Avenue Cincinnati, OH 45224

Metadata

Maya Drozdz, “First Baptist Church of West College Hill,” Cincinnati Sites and Stories, accessed March 28, 2024, https://stories.cincinnatipreservation.org/items/show/93.