Gainesville in Alachua County, Florida — The American South (South Atlantic)
Mt. Carmel Baptist Church
Photographed By Tim Fillmon, May 10, 2017
1. Mt. Carmel Baptist Church Marker
Inscription.
Mt. Carmel Baptist Church. . The congregation of the Mt. Carmel Baptist Church first met on May 4, 1896. The church’s original members worshipped in the St. Paul CME Church, and together the congregations bought a parcel of land in 1900 to build a new church. Its construction continued piecemeal until the church was completed in 1943. Led by NAACP leader, the Rev. Thomas A. Wright, high school and college students, and church elders met at Mt. Carmel to organize for school integration and the appointment of black city officials from 1962 until Wright’s retirement in 2006. They were aided by the strategy and power of University of Florida professors Ruth McQuown and Marshall Jones. In 1963, a Civil Rights march for desegregated public facilities and businesses began here. Students from the all-black Lincoln High School, including Joel Buchanan, Sandra Ezell, and LaVon Wright, met at Mt. Carmel to catch rides to Gainesville High School during the school’s integration from 1964-1970. Wright advocated for the role of community youth in moving equality forward, and his nonviolent protests in St. Augustine and Gainesville mobilized other black communities across the state to work toward desegregation in the second half of the 20th century.
The congregation of the Mt. Carmel Baptist Church first met on May 4, 1896. The church’s original members worshipped in the St. Paul CME Church, and together the congregations bought a parcel of land in 1900 to build a new church. Its construction continued piecemeal until the church was completed in 1943. Led by NAACP leader, the Rev. Thomas A. Wright, high school and college students, and church elders met at Mt. Carmel to organize for school integration and the appointment of black city officials from 1962 until Wright’s retirement in 2006. They were aided by the strategy and power of University of Florida professors Ruth McQuown and Marshall Jones. In 1963, a Civil Rights march for desegregated public facilities and businesses began here. Students from the all-black Lincoln High School, including Joel Buchanan, Sandra Ezell, and LaVon Wright, met at Mt. Carmel to catch rides to Gainesville High School during the school’s integration from 1964-1970. Wright advocated for the role of community youth in moving equality forward, and his nonviolent protests in St. Augustine and Gainesville mobilized other black communities across the state to work toward desegregation in the second half of the 20th century.
Erected 2013 by Prayers By Faith Ministries and the Florida Department of State. (Marker
Location. 29° 39.334′ N, 82° 19.709′ W. Marker is in Gainesville, Florida, in Alachua County. Marker is at the intersection of Northwest 5th Avenue and Northwest 4th Street, on the right when traveling east on Northwest 5th Avenue. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 429 Northwest 4th Street, Gainesville FL 32601, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regarding Mt. Carmel Baptist Church. Church congregation has moved to
Photographed By Tim Fillmon, May 10, 2017
2. Mt. Carmel Baptist Church with marker on the side.
2505 NE 8th Ave
Credits. This page was last revised on December 6, 2017. It was originally submitted on December 3, 2017, by Tim Fillmon of Webster, Florida. This page has been viewed 395 times since then and 24 times this year. Photos:1, 2. submitted on December 3, 2017, by Tim Fillmon of Webster, Florida. • Bernard Fisher was the editor who published this page.
