July 23, 2016
The Alfred Street Baptist Church is home to the oldest African American congregation in Alexandria, dating back to the early 19th century. The present church was built in 1855, and underwent alterations in the 1880s. The church played a significant cultural, religious, and educational role in Alexandria’s free black community before the Civil War because it allowed members of the congregation to meet, exchange information, and develop leadership skills. In the 1820s, the Alfred Street Baptist Church Sunday School gave free blacks an opportunity to learn to read and write.
Stories this photo appears in:
Alexandria: Historic Sites
Some Historic Sites in Alexandria
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