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First Baptist Church of Denver

Coordinates: 39°44′18″N 104°59′1″W / 39.73833°N 104.98361°W / 39.73833; -104.98361
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First Baptist Church of Denver
First Baptist Church of Denver is located in Colorado
First Baptist Church of Denver
First Baptist Church of Denver is located in the United States
First Baptist Church of Denver
Location230 E. 14th Av.--1373 Grant St., Denver, Colorado
Coordinates39°44′18″N 104°59′1″W / 39.73833°N 104.98361°W / 39.73833; -104.98361
AreaLess than one acre
Built1935-1938[2]
ArchitectG. Meridith Musick
Architectural styleGeorgian Revival[2]
Part ofCivic Center Historic District (ID74002348)
NRHP reference No.05001088[1]
CSRHP No.5DV.803
Significant dates
Added to NRHPSeptember 28, 2005
Designated CPFebruary 27, 1974

First Baptist Church of Denver is an historic church at 230 E. 14th Avenue-1373 Grant Street in Denver, Colorado. First Baptist Church of Denver ("FBCD") was formally organized in 1864, six years after the city's founding.

After serving its community in several places in Denver's downtown, its congregation's current building is located at the intersection of 14th Avenue and Grant Street, directly across from the south steps of the Colorado State Capitol. The church was designed by well-known and prolific Denver architect, G. Meredith Musick, who designed the church in the Georgian architectural style.[3][4] Among other works, Musick was a co-designer of the U.S. Customshouse in Denver. The construction of the church took place between 1935 and 1938.

It sports giant columns in its portico, built from granite quarried in Lyons, Colorado. They were turned and hand-polished on a lathe on site. Upon completion, they were the largest polished granite columns in Colorado.[5]

It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974 as a contributing building within the Civic Center Historic District,[6][7] and it was further individually added again to the National Register in 2005.[2][5]

Reflective of FBCD's historic involvement in social justice, the Reverend Doctor Martin Luther King, Jr. preached from FBCD's pulpit on April 16, 1962.[8]

References

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  1. ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  2. ^ a b c "Colorado State Register listings by county". History Colorado. Archived from the original on March 28, 2013. Retrieved March 15, 2013.
  3. ^ "Audio Tours". Denver Architecture Foundation. Retrieved June 8, 2021.
  4. ^ "G. Meredith Musick". SAH ARCHIPEDIA. Retrieved June 8, 2021.
  5. ^ a b Alan Doggett (February 6, 2005). "National Register of Historic Places Registration: First Baptist Church of Denver / 5DV803". National Park Service. Retrieved October 23, 2022. With accompanying 11 photos from 2004
  6. ^ Barbara Norgren; Cynthia Emrick (December 10, 1973). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination: Civic Center Historic District". National Park Service. Retrieved October 22, 2022. With accompanying 51 photos from __
  7. ^ Barbara Norgren; Cynthia Emrick (December 10, 1973). National Register of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination: Civic Center Historic District. NARA. Retrieved October 22, 2022. Includes __ photos. (Downloading may be slow.)
  8. ^ "First Baptist of Denver - About". www.rethinkbaptist.org. Retrieved June 8, 2021.