“…. On this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.” Matthew 16:18 NIV

The Historic Leadenhall Baptist Church, located in Baltimore, Maryland, is the third oldest Black church edifice in the city and only one of two continually occupied by the same congregation. The Reverend Lewis Hicks, a former pastor of the First Baptist Church, began a mission called the Providence Mission back in 1849, which operated in a blacksmith shop in South Baltimore.  There were many prominent people who advocated and fought to protect the rights of Blacks who lived in South Baltimore, this contributed largely to the culture which was one of self-reliance. With this thriving culture quite evident, Reverend Hicks conceived the idea to open a Black Baptist church on Leadenhall Street in 1870.

White Baptists had a desire to help in South Baltimore, so on March 31, 1872, Seventh Baptist Church appropriated $8,000.00 toward building a Black Baptist church in the area. The Baltimore Church Extension Society eventually came on board and managed the project, which costs between $18,000.00 and $20,000.00, to completion. Of this total, $4,000.00 was spent for the lot located on  Leadenhall Street. When the Providence Mission disbanded, its members joined the Leadenhall   Street Baptist Church.  In later years, the name was changed to Leadenhall Baptist Church.

“Then have them make a sanctuary for me, and I will dwell among them.”

Exodus 25:8 NIV

Leadenhall’s cornerstone was laid on July 15, 1872, and the church was officially dedicated on January 13, 1873. It was a day of great pride as Leadenhall was the first brick building constructed for Negro Baptists in the state of Maryland. In May of 1873, the church was fit for full occupancy, with the first pastor being the Reverend Thomas Henson. The congregation of eight members left the old blacksmith shop and entered their new building.

In the years to come, in addition to providing a sacred place of worship for an ever-growing congregation, Leadenhall became the meeting place for many historic events. In 1890, The Brotherhood, an NAACP type organization, met there to design a strategy to defend Black workers against charges brought by their employers, claiming that workers had no right to meet concerning inhuman working conditions. In 1893, The Maryland Baptist Convention met at Leadenhall and as a result, a lynching resolution was successfully passed. Also, in the 1890s Leadenhall hosted meetings for the Baptist Orphanage and the Baptist Ministers’ Conference. Currently, the church hosts a Community Eating Together fellowship where hot nutritious meals are provided, a Vacation Bible School for young people, and the church partners with churches, non-profit organizations, and businesses in the Sharp-Leadenhall community to positively impact and improve the quality of life of the residents of the community.