Shiloh Church (Newport, Rhode Island)

Shiloh Baptist Church
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
U.S. National Historic Landmark District Contributing Property
Annex (left) and church (right)
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Location	25-29 School Street, Newport, Rhode Island
Coordinates	41°29′19″N 71°18′44″W
Built	1799
Architectural style	Georgian
Part of	Newport Historic District (ID68000001)
NRHP reference No.	71000026 [1]
Significant dates
Added to NRHP	August 12, 1971
Designated NHLDCP	November 24, 1968

Shiloh Baptist Church (also known as Trinity School House) is a historic former school building and former African American Baptist church in Newport, Rhode Island, United States.

History

School house

Plaque

In February 1799, the wardens and vestry of Trinity Church voted to build a school house.^[2] The funds were provided by a bequest by Nathaniel Kay.^[2] The resulting rectangular Georgian structure was 40 feet long and 25 feet wide.^[2] It was said that "many of the leading citizens of Newport attended school in this house."^[3] The school continued operation until 1867 when the building was purchased by the Shiloh Baptist congregation.^[2]

Shiloh Baptist Church

The Shiloh Church was an African American Baptist congregation founded on May 10, 1864, by Edmund Kelly in a house at 73 Levin Street owned by Esther Brinley. William James Barnett was installed as the first pastor, followed shortly by Theodore Valentine. The congregation met for five years in the Seventh Day Baptist Church, on Barney Street near Spring Street, but desired their own permanent location.^[3]

In 1868 the members of Shiloh Church purchased the school building on the corner of School and Mary streets from the Trinity Church corporation, at a cost of $2,000."^[3] The congregation moved into their new home on February 24, 1869, to a dedicatory sermon preached by Rev. Samuel Adlam.^[3] The cost of the church was raised from members over the next fourteen months.^[3]

Pastor Henry N. Jeter

Pastor Henry N. Jeter (1851-1938)^[3]

Henry N. Jeter served as pastor of the Shiloh Baptist Church for 25 years, starting in 1875.^[4] Jeter established a written constitution and expanded the choir.^[4] He was known for "diligently uniting the people despite obstacles."^[4]

The building was renovated in 1873, at a cost of $1,600.^[3] An annex was built on the south side of the church in 1884, to house the parish hall.^[2] In 1897 the church remodeled the entrance and replaced the glass in the arched windows with stained glass.^[2]

Twentieth Century

The building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1971, at which time it was still owned by the Shiloh Baptist Society.^[2] By 2020, it was operating as a bed and breakfast.^[5]

See also

• National Register of Historic Places listings in Newport County, Rhode Island

References

1. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. April 15, 2008.
2. "NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES INVENTORY-NOMINATION FORM" (PDF). Preservation RI. Rhode Island preservation and Heritage Commission. Retrieved May 16, 2021.
3. Jeter, Henry N. (1901). Pastor Henry N. Jeter's Twenty-five Years Experience with the Shiloh Baptist Church and Her History. 63 WASHINGTON STREET: REMINGTON PRINTING CO. Retrieved May 16, 2021.
4. "Pastor Henry N. Jeter's Twenty-five Years Experience with the Shiloh Baptist Church and Her History. Corner School and Mary Streets, Newport, R. I." Documenting the American South. University of North Carolina. Retrieved May 9, 2021.
5. Wick, Jessica (September 9, 202). "Sleep Inside A Historic Schoolhouse For A One-Of-A-Kind Rhode Island Experience". Only In Your State. Archived from the original on May 16, 2021. Retrieved May 16, 2021.

External links

• Pastor Henry N. Jeter's Twenty-five Years Experiencewith the Shiloh Baptist Church and Her History. Corner School and Mary Streets, Newport, R. I.:Electronic Edition. (University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, Documenting the American South) (accessed Sept. 9, 2010)