An architectural survey dates this church to 1944, but I believe it more likely dates to circa 1900-1910, give or take a few years. I think the St. Mark name is a later association, though I haven’t been able to pinpoint a specific history. The survey also suggested the steeple has been altered by the removal of a roof. This is somewhat obvious, but not confirmed. Like other structures in this area, it was once listed on the National Register of Historic Places but for some reason has been de-listed.
Like its neighbor across the street (Old Mount Zion), Shiloh Baptist is one of the Mother Churches of the Albany Movement. The congregation was organized in 1888. The present structure was built by contractor A. S. Cobb in 1953, during the pastorate of W. H. Calhoun. Jim Bishop notes in his 1971 book, The Days of Martin Luther King, Jr., that one of his most famous phrases was first delivered in a sermon here: “We shall overcome. Don’t stop now. Keep moving. Don’t get weary children. We will wear them down by our capacity to suffer.”
A 2014 historical marker notes: The Albany Movement began here, at Shiloh Baptist Church, in November 1961. A coalition of black improvement associations and student activists from SNCC and Albany State College, the protest group set an unprecedented goal: the desegregation of an entire community, from bus stations to lunch counters. Demonstrations over two years resulted in the detention of 1,500 protesters. The participation and repeated arrests of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. brought national attention to the Albany Movement. Music sustained the campaign in Southwest Georgia and gave birth to the SNCC Freedom Singers. Legal action and the increase in black voter registration led to school desegregation, the end of public employee discrimination, and the election of black political officials in the region. Lessons learned in Albany influenced events in Birmingham in 1963.
Mount Zion is one of the largest congregations in Albany today. Their old home, now a part of the Albany Civil Rights Museum, was built in 1906. But the history goes back to just after the Civil War. According to their website: The Mount Zion Baptist Church of Albany, GA was organized December 8, 1865 by the late Rev. R. R. Watson. The church’s original location was in a building then known as the Jerry Walter’s Blacksmith Shop, which was located on the corner of State Street (now Highland Avenue) and Jackson Street. A successful financial drive made it possible to purchase land for the church at Washington Street and Highland Avenue. Twenty-six hundred dollars was raised for this purpose. However, before the structure was completed, it was destroyed by a storm. Nevertheless, the site at South Street (now Whitney Avenue) and Jefferson Street was purchased. An old house brought from Leesburg, Georgia was donated to the congregation by a Yankee Colonel named Howard. This became the first church structure at that location. Northern teachers taught school in that building until a schoolhouse was later erected.
Old Mount Zion hosted some of the earliest meetings of the Albany Movement of the Civil Rights Movement and hosted important figures including Martin Luther King, Jr., John Lewis, Andrew Young, and Ralph David Abernathy. The Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) Freedom Singers, who participated in the March on Washington, gave their first performance here.
This church served the congregation until 1972, when they relocated to a larger facility.
St. Teresa’s was built between 1859-1860 on land donated by Nelson Tift. Work on the the small Gothic Revival chapel was halted by the Civil War, but the unfinished interior served as a makeshift hospital for injured soldiers. Work on the church resumed after the war and the structure was formally dedicated in 1882. St. Teresa’s holds the distinction of being the oldest Catholic church in Georgia that still holds services. Though the congregation has moved into a more modern facility, a Mass is still held here each Wednesday.
According to their website: St. Paul’s became an organized parish of the Episcopal Diocese of Georgia in 1851. In 1855, the first Episcopal Bishop of Georgia consecrated the first location of St. Paul’s. In 1896, the current location of St. Paul’s was dedicated and included a cornerstone from the 1855 building. The present St. Paul’s could be described as resembling the typical English country church.St. Paul’s is known as the mother church of the western part of the Diocese of Georgia.
The Presbyterian Church in Albany was organized on 25 February 25 1849. The original sanctuary was built in 1852. The bell used to commemorate that first service is still in use today. The present church was begun in 1917 and the first service was held here on 10 November 1918.
