MSS 1469 First Baptist Church of Granville Collection

              MSS 1469
First Baptist Church of Granville Collection
Page 1
OHIO HISTORICAL SOCIETY
Manuscripts/Audiovisual Collections
MSS 1469
First Baptist Church of Granville Collection
1993-2005
OVERVIEW OF THE COLLECTION
Number:
MSS 1469
Title:
First Baptist Church of Granville Collection
Creator:
Karen Graves
Dates:
1993-2005
Media:
Papers
Quantity:
0.25 cubic feet
Location:
Ohio Historical Center
HISTORICAL SKETCH OF THE COLLECTION
The First Baptist Church of Granville began as the “Baptist Church of Christ in Granville and St. Albans,” established in a barn in 1819 by nineteen settlers. From early on in its history, it had a tendency to be very involved in social issues that affected people in Granville and the surrounding community. When Denison University was founded, in 1831, the First Baptist Church was heavily involved. Denison’s first classes were held in the church building. Denison continued to refuse admittance to women, so in 1859 the First Baptist Church created a college for women. In 1978, the First Baptist Church was the first church in the American Baptist Church to ordain a woman as an area minister, and has since ordained twelve women and three men.
The First Baptist Church was also heavily involved in the abolition movement. While there are few actual records involving the Underground Railroad, Granville was most definitely a stop, and William Whitney, a minister of the First Baptist Church during the 1830s, was a well-known abolitionist. It is highly likely that at least some of the congregation, including Whitney, were involved in the Underground Railroad. Denison University was also a center of abolitionist activity, and the First Baptist Church was heavily involved with Denison, which remained a Baptist institution until the 1960s.