Subject
Sanford (Fla.)
Churches--Florida
Baptist Church
African American churches--Southern States
Baptists--Florida
Georgetown (Sanford, Fla.)
Description
St. Paul Missionary Baptist Church, located at 813 Pine Avenue in Georgetown, an African-American community in Sanford, Florida, in 2011. Considered the oldest African-American Baptist church in Sanford, St. Paul Missionary Baptist Church was first organized under an arbor brush in 1878. Construction of the first church building began in 1880 on land purchased from General Henry Shelton Sanford and his wife, Gertrude Dupuy Sanford, in November of 1881. The church was a small wooden structure administered by its first settled pastor, Reverend Paul Youmans, until 1886.
A new, larger church was constructed in 1889 and served the congregation until its condemnation in 1958. After the church was condemned, members of the congregation held services at Hopper Elementary School for approximately one month. Following the use of the elementary school, the congregation met at the Seventh Day Adventist Church located on the corner of Pine Avenue and East Seventh Street. After the completion of their current church, the congregation finally relocated to their new building on February 5, 1961. This church structure stands at the same location of the initial church's small wooden building, and continues to demonstrate deep pride within their community's faith, history, and involvement.