St. Elmo Avenue Baptist Church
The Silverdale Baptist Church plans to acquire the St. Elmo Avenue Baptist Church and continue its various ministries.
Closing on the transaction is set for next Monday.
Membership at St. Elmo Avenue Baptist Church has dropped to about 30, and the church has been focusing on a variety of ministries. Those include prayer, widows and Hispanic outreach.
The church facility includes a large sanctuary and various meeting rooms and a fellowship hall.
The church dates to 1893 when a portion of the members of St. Elmo Baptist Church broke off and organized Central St. Elmo Church at Johnson's Hall at 4500 St. Elmo. The church is still located at that address.
Initially, there was a store on the first floor and church members met on the second floor.
A frame church was erected in 1906 at the southwest corner of 45th and St. Elmo Avenue. A new sanctuary was built across the street in 1928.
Early pastors were B.F. Bartles, John Maltier Chauncey, B.H. Damon, S.F. Atkins, W.A. Moffett, R.H. Oury, C.H. Yearby, W.A. Lewis, R.H. Tolle, W.E. Davis, L.A. Brown, B.N. Brooks, J.W. Vesey, E.E. George, O.D. Fleming, U.S. Thomas, L.W. Clark, J.B. Phillips, T.W. Callaway, V. Wayne Tarpley, McKnight Fite and Donald R. Givens.
The church had a note-burning ceremony under Rev. Givens, who began his ministry in 1969.