Midtown in Nashville in Davidson County, Tennessee — The American South (East South Central)
Capers Memorial CME Church
Photographed by Darren Jefferson Clay, November 11, 2022
1. Capers Memorial CME Church Marker
The oldest known African-American congregation in Nashville, Capers Memorial Christian Methodist Episcopal Church was founded in a brick house near Sulphur Springs in 1832, as the "African Mission” of McKendree Methodist Episcopal Church. When the congregation moved in 1851, Capers became the first local church edifice erected solely for Blacks. During the Civil War, the building was used as a military hospital by the Union Army. In 1870, Capers became a member of the Colored Methodist Episcopal Church Conference.
Capers assisted in the founding of Lane College (1878), Bethlehem Center (1911), and the Missionary Connectional Council (1918), of which women's suffrage activist, Dr. Mattie E. Coleman was first president. Listed in the National Register of Historic Places, its present Neoclassical building was designed and built in 1925 by McKissack & McKissack Architects, the founders of which were life-time members of the congregation.
Erected by Tennessee Historical Commission. (Marker Number 3A 170.)
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Civil Rights • Religion & Religious Structures
this page online
Location. 36° 9.56′ N, 86° 47.69′ W. Marker is in Nashville, Tennessee, in Davidson County. It is in Midtown. It is on 15th Avenue North 0.1 miles south of Charlotte Avenue (U.S. 70), on the right when traveling south. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 319 15th Avenue North, Nashville TN 37203, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in Middle Tennessee. It is also in the American South and specifically in the Upper South. Globally, it is in North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture, one of the Confederate States of America, and the Antebellum South.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Bethlehem Centers of Nashville (within shouting distance of this marker); First State Penitentiary (about 400 feet away, measured in a direct line); William Edmondson (approx. 0.2 miles away); Blue Triangle YWCA (approx. Ό mile away); Watkins Park (approx. 0.3 miles away); Pearl High School (approx. 0.3 miles away); Marathon Motor Works (approx. 0.4 miles away); The Fisk Jubliee Singers (approx. 0.4 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Nashville.
Photographed by Darren Jefferson Clay, November 11, 2022
2. Capers Memorial CME Church Marker
Photographed by Duane and Tracy Marsteller, March 28, 2020
3. Capers Memorial CME Church Marker
Photographed by Duane and Tracy Marsteller, March 28, 2020
4. Capers Memorial CME Church Marker
Photographed by Duane and Tracy Marsteller, March 28, 2020
5. Capers Memorial CME Church Marker
Church in background.
Credits. This page was last revised on February 7, 2023. It was originally submitted on April 1, 2020, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. This page has been viewed 807 times since then and 59 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on January 23, 2023, by Darren Jefferson Clay of Duluth, Georgia. 3, 4, 5. submitted on April 1, 2020, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. • Bernard Fisher was the editor who published this page.
