Amherstburg First Baptist Church

The Amherstburg First Baptist Church is a Baptist church in Amherstburg, Ontario, Canada, established in 1848 to serve the town's growing Black community, many of whom had escaped slavery in the United States. The church was a terminus on the Underground Railroad, with members and Pastor Anthony Binga Sr. providing support to persons who crossed the Detroit River on their journey into Upper Canada. The First Baptist Church was also the mother church of the Amherstburg Regular Missionary Baptist Association, an association of local Baptist ministries that established churches and created opportunities for Black Canadians. It has remained active, though by the 2010s the congregation had dwindled to twenty members. Architecturally, the First Baptist Church is a one-storey building with rectangular massing in the Neoclassical style, with elements of Gothic Revival architecture in the windows. The building's original wood panel walls are covered in vinyl. Access is provided through a small vestibule, which enters into a rectangular central hall. A later addition provides space for social gatherings. The First Baptist Church was designated by the Town of Amherstburg under the Ontario Heritage Act in 1978 and made a National Historic Site of Canada in 2013.

The First Baptist Church is located at 232 George Street, on a small, flat lot in a residential area of Amherstburg, Ontario. As with many contemporary Protestant churches built by Black settlers, the First Baptist Church is built at a modest scale and with simple massing. It is described by the Town of Amherstburg as using a simplified Neoclassical style, with elements of Gothic Revival architecture evident in the windows. The single-storey First Baptist Church is a timber frame construction with wood siding—now covered with vinyl—on a rectangular footprint. The foundation is made of cement block. The roof is gabled, with the western end facing the road, and adorned by a brick chimney. Along the northern and southern sides are pointed arch windows. Behind the sanctuary is a hall used for social activities, the entrance to which is flanked by four double windows. The First Baptist Church is accessed through double doors, modern additions that lead to a small vestibule. Its central hall is designed to allow full view of the preacher, as well as to facilitate the congregation's ability to hear and respond to sermons. The hall has an angled barrel vaulted ceiling that rises to the full height of the roof, which the reporter Desiree Cooper likened to the upturned hull of an ark. Furnishings include oak pews. The building has a capacity of 100 congregants, and is one of the oldest Baptist churches in Ontario.

The town of Amherstburg is located along a relatively narrow stretch of the Detroit River, which separates the United States from Canada. As a result, it was a common stop for Blacks escaping slavery in the United States, and a terminus on the Underground Railroad. Escaped American slaves began settling in Amherstburg in the 1820s, joining the town's existing population of Black Canadians. A congregation of Black Baptists formed under Pastor Anthony Binga Sr., who had escaped slavery in Green County, Kentucky, in 1836. Services were initially held in members' homes, then in a rented house. As the congregation grew, in part due to the arrival of more Blacks escaping slavery, the congregation began raising funds to build a church of their own in 1845. Binga travelled by foot as far afield as Detroit and Toronto to find support. In 1848, after several years of fundraising, they began work building the First Baptist Church, using locally collected wood that was hewn by hand. Deacon George Crawford served as master carpenter, with other deacons providing assistance. The church was comp

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