First Baptist Church of Minneapolis, Minnesota

Minneapolis, Minnesota

Minneapolis , nicknamed "City of Lakes" and the "Mill City," is the county seat of Hennepin County, the largest city in the U.S. state of Minnesota, and the 48th largest in the United States...

 was founded in 1853 at Saint Anthony Falls

Saint Anthony Falls

Saint Anthony Falls, or the Falls of Saint Anthony, located northeast of downtown Minneapolis, Minnesota, was the only natural major waterfall on the Upper Mississippi River. The natural falls was replaced by a concrete overflow spillway after it partially collapsed in 1869...

. E.W. Cressey, a missionary

Missionary

A missionary is a member of a religious group sent into an area to do evangelism or ministries of service, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care and economic development. The word "mission" originates from 1598 when the Jesuits sent members abroad, derived from the Latin...

 with the American Baptist Home Missionary Society, together with members of First Baptist Church of Saint Paul

Saint Paul, Minnesota

Saint Paul is the capital and second-most populous city of the U.S. state of Minnesota. The city lies mostly on the east bank of the Mississippi River in the area surrounding its point of confluence with the Minnesota River, and adjoins Minneapolis, the state's largest city...

 and St. Anthony gathered on March 5, 1853 and committed themselves to organizing a "Regular Baptist Church," the first Church organized in Minnesota Territory

Minnesota Territory

The Territory of Minnesota was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 3, 1849, until May 11, 1858, when the eastern portion of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Minnesota.-History:...

 west of the Mississippi River.

The first permanent home for the Church was at Third and Nicollet

Nicollet Avenue

Nicollet Avenue is a major street in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and three of its suburbs. It passes through a number of locally well-known neighborhoods and districts, notably Eat Street in south Minneapolis and the traffic-restricted Nicollet Mall in the city's downtown.It began as a military road...

, and was the largest meeting hall in Minneapolis. With the rapid growth of the city a larger building was built at 5th and Hennepin

Hennepin Avenue

Hennepin Avenue is a major street in Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States. It runs from Lakewood Cemetery , north through the Uptown District of Southwest Minneapolis, through the former "Bottleneck" area west of Loring Park, through the North Loop in the city center, to Northeast Minneapolis and...

 in 1857 serving the congregation until the present structure was built in 1885 at 10th street and Hennepin avenue. The building was designed by the firm of Kees and Fisk, which later became the firm of Long and Kees

Long and Kees

Minneapolis-based Long and Kees was an architectural firm that designed some of Minneapolis's most important historical buildings. It was named for its two proprietors, Franklin B. Long and Frederick Kees...

. It is built of Kasota limestone

Kasota limestone

Kasota limestone or simply, 'Kasota stone,' is a dolomitic limestone found in southern Minnesota. This sedimentary rock is part of the Oneota Dolostone Formation of southern Minnesota and is approximately 450 million years old...

 in a blend of the Romanesque

Romanesque Revival architecture

Romanesque Revival is a style of building employed beginning in the mid 19th century inspired by the 11th and 12th century Romanesque architecture...

 and Gothic revival styles. The original steeples were blown down in a 1967 windstorm.

Asa Drury

Asa Drury

Asa Drury was an American Baptist minister and educator primarily teaching at Granville Literary and Theological Institution in Granville, Ohio and the Western Baptist Theological Institute in Covington, Kentucky, and establishing the public schools in Covington...

 a Baptist educator and antebellum abolitionist served as pastor

Pastor

The word pastor usually refers to an ordained leader of a Christian congregation. When used as an ecclesiastical styling or title, this role may be abbreviated to "Pr." or often "Ps"....

 from 1865 until his death in 1870. William Bell Riley

William Bell Riley

William Bell Riley was known as "The Grand Old Man of Fundamentalism." After being educated at normal school in Valparaiso, Indiana, Riley received his teacher's certificate. After teaching in county schools, he attended college in Hanover, Indiana, where he received an A.B. degree in 1885...

, known as "The Grand Old Man of Fundamentalism," served as pastor of the church for forty-five years (1897–1942) and another five as pastor emeritus until his death in 1947.

In 1871 a group of Swedish attendees at First Baptist Church formed Bethlehem Baptist Church (Minneapolis).