Shiloh Baptist Church (Old Site)

Shiloh Baptist Church (Old Site). Fredericksburg: Timeless.. , Former slaves as well as free blacks knew that education was critical to African American aspirations. Immediately after the Civil War, the Shiloh Baptist Church organized a school for black students. The U.S. Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen and Abandoned Lands, popularly known as the Freedmen's Bureau, supported this effort with funding. Northern white teachers came to provide instruction. One such missionary was a woman from Ohio named Sophia Hatch. She taught students here and at other African American schools in Fredericksburg until 1890., African American churches also became politically active. In 1876, the Reverend George Dixon and a group of residents proposed a slate of African American candidates for local office. None were voted in and at the end of Reconstruction that year curtailed further attempts to obtain black representation. Not until 1966 was an African American elected to the Fredericksburg City Council. The candidate was the Reverend Lawrence A. Davies. After ten years as a Councilman, Reverend Davies successfully ran for mayor and was reelected to that office four more times. He stepped down from politics in 1996., [Captions:] , In 1962, Reverend Lawrence A. Davies became the pastor of Shiloh Baptist Church (Old Site). He became the first African American to hold elected office in Fredericksburg and served on the City Council for 30 years, first as a Councilman and then as Mayor., At this ceremony in June 1890, Masonic Lodge #4, A.F. and A.M. laid the cornerstone for a new Shiloh Baptist Church (Old Site), being rebuilt after sustaining flood damage in 1886. The view is from the inside, looking south., Early twentieth century view of Shiloh Baptist Church (Old Site). Over the years, the church has been expanded and the facade remodeled.