St. James African Methodist Episcopal Church, 2011
Dublin Core
Title
St. James African Methodist Episcopal Church, 2011
Alternative Title
St. James AME Church
Subject
Sanford (Fla.)
Churches--Florida
African American churches--Southern States
African Methodist Episcopal Church
Methodism
Methodists--Southern States
National Historic Landmark Program (U.S.)
Georgetown (Sanford, Fla.)
Description
St. James African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church, located at 819 Cypress Avenue in Sanford, Florida, in 2011. The history of St. James AME Church reaches far back into the history of Florida and the American Civil War. Immediately following the Civil War's end, Central Florida received a large migration of former slaves and black laborers. Along with the growth in migration, the AME church experienced significance expansion, as its popularity spread throughout the Southeastern United States.
St. James AME Church was a direct result of these two historical patterns. Originally organized in 1867 as a prayer group for freedmen, the church was founded in a small wooden house located on Mellonville Street, along the south shore of Lake Monroe. By 1880, the church relocated to its current location on the corner of East Ninth Street and Cypress Avenue. In 1893, the church upgraded its size, and constructed a larger wooden frame to house its growing congregation.
The present-day structure, which features red-brick facings, four matching stained glass windows, a bell tower, and slanted semi-circular seating within its baptistery, was built between 1910 and 1913, and designed by acclaimed African-American architect Prince W. Spears. During the 1920s and 1930s, St. James served as a Mother Church of the AME faith, and sent circuit preachers to its neighboring areas, including West Sanford, Bookertown, Cameron City, Midway, and Fort Reid. On April 24, 1992, St. James AME Church was a designated as a National Historic Landmark, and continues to serve as a religious center for the surrounding African-American community.
St. James AME Church was a direct result of these two historical patterns. Originally organized in 1867 as a prayer group for freedmen, the church was founded in a small wooden house located on Mellonville Street, along the south shore of Lake Monroe. By 1880, the church relocated to its current location on the corner of East Ninth Street and Cypress Avenue. In 1893, the church upgraded its size, and constructed a larger wooden frame to house its growing congregation.
The present-day structure, which features red-brick facings, four matching stained glass windows, a bell tower, and slanted semi-circular seating within its baptistery, was built between 1910 and 1913, and designed by acclaimed African-American architect Prince W. Spears. During the 1920s and 1930s, St. James served as a Mother Church of the AME faith, and sent circuit preachers to its neighboring areas, including West Sanford, Bookertown, Cameron City, Midway, and Fort Reid. On April 24, 1992, St. James AME Church was a designated as a National Historic Landmark, and continues to serve as a religious center for the surrounding African-American community.
Creator
MacDonald, Kathleen
Source
Original color digital images by Kathleen MacDonald, 2011.
Publisher
Date Created
2011
Is Part Of
Churches of Sanford Collection, Sanford Collection, Seminole County Collection, RICHES of Central Florida.
Format
image/jpg
Extent
4.28 MB
6.25 MB
4.32 MB
5.72 MB
5.52 MB
4.06 MB
4.34 MB
4.02 MB
Medium
8 color digital images
Language
eng
Type
Still Image
Coverage
St. James African Methodist Episcopal Church, Georgetown, Sanford, Florida
Accrual Method
Item Creation
Mediator
History Teacher
Geography Teacher
Provenance
Originally created by Kathleen MacDonald and published by RICHES of Central Florida.
Rights Holder
Curator
MacDonald, Kathleen
Digital Collection
Source Repository
External Reference
Rivers, Larry E., and Canter Brown. Laborers in the Vineyard of the Lord: The Beginnings of the AME Church in Florida, 1865-1895. Gainesville: University Press of Florida, 2001.
Bailey, Julius. Around the Family Altar: Domesticity in the African Methodist Episcopal Church, 1865-1900. Gainesville, FL: University Press of Florida, 2005.
Flewellyn, Valada S. African Americans of Sanford. Charleston, SC: Arcadia Pub, 2009.
Wilson, Dreck Spurlock. African American Architects: A Biographical Dictionary, 1865-1945. New York: Routledge, 2004.
Transcript
ST. JAMES A-M-E CHURHC
SUNDAY SCHOOL 9:30 A.M.
MORNING WORSHIP 11:00 A.M.
EVENING WORSHIP
SUNDAY SCHOOL 9:30 A.M.
MORNING WORSHIP 11:00 A.M.
EVENING WORSHIP
ST. JAMES AFRICAN METHODIST EPISCOPAL CHURCH
ERECTED - 1910-1913
819 CYPRESS AVE
Saint James African Methodist Episcopal (A.M.E.) Church has been located on Cypress Avenue since 1880 on land purchased from General Henry S. Sanford. The current structure was designed by Prince W. Spears and built in 1910-1913.
The design of the church is a Ravenna and Bacchus style of Constantinople (circa 527 A.D.). It contains an octagonal baptistry within a square structure; slanting theatre floor; circularly positioned pews; an octagonal cupola; and four matching stained-glass windows in a conservative, Tiffany style.
Saint James was significant in the earlier days of the A.M.E. Church in Florida, serving as parent church to several mission churches in the Sanford area, and continues to play a leading role in the Black Churches of Florida.
Presented to the St. James A.M.E. Church membership by the City of Sanford Historic Preservation Board - 1991
ST. JAMES A.M.E. CHURCH
ORGANIZED AND BUILT 1880
BY
REV. S. H. COLEMAN D. D.
REBUILT 1913 BY
REVS. W.H. BROWN. T.J. WILLIAMS. J.J. HARRIS.
BOARD OF TRUSTEES
F.E. EVERLY. M.T. SPIVEY. G.R. TIPP.
W.F. CALHOUN. DAVE WARREN. TREAS.
W.O. GREEN. ESTHER E. GREEN EX TRUSTEES.
J.K. GRAMLING. TREAS. W.F. CALHOUN. SECY.
REV. J.W. WILLIAMS. D. D. PASTOR.
K. S. JOHNSON. EX TRUSTEE.
W. B. BALLARD. EX TRUSTEE.
1928
ST. JAMES A.M.E. CHAPEL
ORGANIZED IN 1881
BY REV. S. H. COLEMAN
REBUILT IN 1890
BY REV. T. T. GAINES
RELAID 1976
PRINCE HALL GRAND LO[?]
REV. A. J. MACK 33' G M
R. A. THIGPEN, PASTOR
W.L. HAMILTON 33' D D
TRUSTEES
W. A. ASHLEY, JR.-VICE CHR
JUANITA PAPINO - REC. SECT
L. V. JOHNSON - FIN. SECT.
A. L .BROWN
RAYMOND FIELDS, SR.
L. J. OLIVER
E. C. WILSON
A. F. DIX[?]
*K. B. [?]
MABEL HU[?]
R. H. WRI[?]
*DECEASED
ERECTED - 1910-1913
819 CYPRESS AVE
Saint James African Methodist Episcopal (A.M.E.) Church has been located on Cypress Avenue since 1880 on land purchased from General Henry S. Sanford. The current structure was designed by Prince W. Spears and built in 1910-1913.
The design of the church is a Ravenna and Bacchus style of Constantinople (circa 527 A.D.). It contains an octagonal baptistry within a square structure; slanting theatre floor; circularly positioned pews; an octagonal cupola; and four matching stained-glass windows in a conservative, Tiffany style.
Saint James was significant in the earlier days of the A.M.E. Church in Florida, serving as parent church to several mission churches in the Sanford area, and continues to play a leading role in the Black Churches of Florida.
Presented to the St. James A.M.E. Church membership by the City of Sanford Historic Preservation Board - 1991
ST. JAMES A.M.E. CHURCH
ORGANIZED AND BUILT 1880
BY
REV. S. H. COLEMAN D. D.
REBUILT 1913 BY
REVS. W.H. BROWN. T.J. WILLIAMS. J.J. HARRIS.
BOARD OF TRUSTEES
F.E. EVERLY. M.T. SPIVEY. G.R. TIPP.
W.F. CALHOUN. DAVE WARREN. TREAS.
W.O. GREEN. ESTHER E. GREEN EX TRUSTEES.
J.K. GRAMLING. TREAS. W.F. CALHOUN. SECY.
REV. J.W. WILLIAMS. D. D. PASTOR.
K. S. JOHNSON. EX TRUSTEE.
W. B. BALLARD. EX TRUSTEE.
1928
ST. JAMES A.M.E. CHAPEL
ORGANIZED IN 1881
BY REV. S. H. COLEMAN
REBUILT IN 1890
BY REV. T. T. GAINES
RELAID 1976
PRINCE HALL GRAND LO[?]
REV. A. J. MACK 33' G M
R. A. THIGPEN, PASTOR
W.L. HAMILTON 33' D D
TRUSTEES
W. A. ASHLEY, JR.-VICE CHR
JUANITA PAPINO - REC. SECT
L. V. JOHNSON - FIN. SECT.
A. L .BROWN
RAYMOND FIELDS, SR.
L. J. OLIVER
E. C. WILSON
A. F. DIX[?]
*K. B. [?]
MABEL HU[?]
R. H. WRI[?]
*DECEASED
Still Image Item Type Metadata
Original Format
8 color digital images
Collection
Citation
MacDonald, Kathleen, “St. James African Methodist Episcopal Church, 2011,” RICHES, accessed April 26, 2024, https://richesmi.cah.ucf.edu/omeka/items/show/2251.