Greater Nazarene Missionary Baptist Church

Greater Nazarene Missionary Baptist Church. Established 1875. , Greater Nazarene is the oldest and largest African American Baptist congregation in Conecuh County. The church was established in 1875 by formerly enslaved people. They met in a building near the home of Joseph Howard, who served as a deacon. In 1906, the congregation moved to this site. Member Daniel Taylor Jr. donated the land. Congregants supplied logs for the building and sold produce to raise funds for its construction. Early pastors at this site included Revs. Ed Nerror (who served from 1914 until 1947), T.J. Goodes, and Dr. H.J. Hawkins. , In the 1950s, under the leadership of Rev. Dr. Hawkins, the church underwent extensive renovations. Many of the materials used were taken from the decommissioned Nymph Junior High School building. Classrooms, an auditorium, fellowship hall, and baptismal pool were added, along with other amenities. The façade was bricked and new glass windows were installed. The church underwent further renovations in the later 1970s and subsequently added a Family Life Center under the pastorate of Rev. J.O. Meeks. , On August 23, 2004, after nearly a century on the site, the congregation relocated to a new facility across the street. The former church site remains in use for community outreach programs. , May this church ever hold to the fervent spirit fostered by its early members.