First Baptist Church of Pensacola

For other churches named First Baptist, see First Baptist Church (disambiguation).

First Baptist Church of Pensacola
The Palafox Street entrance of the First Baptist Church sanctuary
Denomination	Baptist
Organized	May 2, 1847
Senior Pastor	Dr. Barry Howard
Location	500 North Palafox Street
Previous locations	224 East Government Street
Website	www.fbcp.org

The First Baptist Church of Pensacola is the oldest Baptist congregation in the Pensacola area, dating back to 1847. The main church building (the congregation's third) is located on Gage Hill at 500 North Palafox Street, with several ancillary buildings and parking lots adjacent. The current senior pastor is Dr. Barry Howard.

History

A sign marks the original site of First Baptist Church on Government Street.

First Baptist Church was organized as the Pensacola Baptist Church of Christ on May 2, 1847 by Alexander Travis and Joseph Mitchell. The first congregation included "fifty white men and seventy-three white women as well as one hundred and twenty-four Negro men and ninety-eight Negro women." Early church leaders had difficulty establishing a foothold in the area — records from the time repeatedly say the "Lord's Day service was a disappointment" — but in 1852 the congregation built its first building on Government Street, just west of Seville Square.

A branch was established at the Navy Yard in 1850.

The previous First Baptist Church building at Palafox Street and La Rua.

The church relocated to its current location on Palafox Street atop Gage Hill in 1894, where a new building was completed in 1895. The church was remodeled in 1922 and 1956.

Leadership

The current senior pastor of First Baptist Church is Dr. Barry Howard, who gave his first sermon on July 10, 2005 — the morning that Hurricane Dennis made landfall near Navarre Beach — to a crowd seeking shelter from the storm.

Past leaders

• Rev. Alexander Travis
• Rev. John Beck
• Rev. J. H. Curry
• Rev. A. P. Pugh