Pilgrim Baptist Church
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A Beacon of Light for Over a Hundred Years

Pilgrim Baptist Church, also, A Beacon of Light for Over a Hundred Years. . , Pilgrim Baptist Church. On January 9, 1919, a group of eight men and three women, being led by the Holy Spirit, met at a house on Wallace Street to form a new black Missionary Baptist Church in Hamilton, Ohio. The group quickly raised $150 to make the down payment on a two-story brick building at 333 Chestnut Street being sold for $1,850. The building was occupied on March 25, 1919, and the name Pilgrim Baptist Church was suggested and accepted. On May 11, 1919, a special council requested admittance into the Western Union Baptist Association, a district association now affiliated with the Ohio Baptist General Convention. Requirements for admission were met and Pilgrim Baptist Church was recognized as a Missionary Baptist Church. In 2019, Pilgrim Baptist Church celebrated a centennial of faithfulness in Hamilton., A Beacon of Light for Over a Hundred Years. Pilgrim Baptist has long found practical ways to serve the community. In 1958, a time when African Americans often could not obtain conventional loans, the Pilgrim Baptist Federal Credit Union was chartered. Pilgrim Day Care Center opened in 1973 to provide loving, caring, and affordable child care to working mothers. A church scholarship was established in August 1976 to encourage its youth toward higher education. The Notre Dame Education Center was purchased in May 1981 to house church-related activities as well as educational, social, and spiritual offerings for neighbors. In November 1998, the Christian Center was renamed "The Nathaniel Sherman Jr. Manor of Pilgrim Baptist Church" and renovated into senior housing. In 2016, Bread of Life Ministry began serving hot meals to the homeless and provides a food pantry for anyone in need.