St. John Community

St. John Community. . , In 1867, a group of African American ministers formed the St. John Regular Missionary Baptist Association and elected the Reverend Jacob Fontaine as its first moderator. From 1893 to 1924, Dr. Lee Lewis Campbell served as moderator of the association. Under his leadership an orphanage school and encampment was built near what was later known as Middle Fiskville Road, and north of Highway 290 East. Elected association moderator in 1930, Reverend A.K. Black negotiated lot sales from Sophia Wendlandt to Black families. St. John extended west to north Lamar Blvd, east to Cameron Road, south to Highway 290 East and north to Highway 183. , The community grew rapidly. Residents opened grocery stores, beauty salons and dry cleaners, and taught music. Churches, including Black's Memorial Missionary Baptist Church, St. John Regular Missionary Baptist Association, Mt. Calvary Primitive Baptist Church, St. John College Heights Baptist Church, Church of Christ St. John and Holiness Church, provided for the spiritual needs of the community. Fiskville School on Delmar Avenue opened, teaching first through eighth grade, along with softball, basketball and field trips. Student's continued their education at L.C. Anderson High School in Austin. Della Phillips served the longest tenure as principal. St. John Elementary was built in 1958 and served area students until the construction of J.J. Pickle Elementary School. Cameron Park became a meeting and recreation site, including Juneteenth celebrations. Later, the Virginia Brown Community Center provided an important gathering space. , St. John was eventually absorbed by the growing urbanization of the surrounding area, and annexed the City of Austin in 1951. The tight-knit community continued growing, with several generations of St. John residents residing in the area.