Founded in 1796 by African-American believers who left a segregated Beacon Hill church, Union Church emerged as a center of faith and resistance in Boston. Abolitionist David Walker, author of the anti-slavery missive Appeal, was a member. After several relocations, the congregation settled here in 1949 and Dr. Mary McLeod Bethune keynoted the reopening of this 1872 sanctuary. Union has shaped Black history and activism, including hosting the 1950 NAACP convention that advanced Brown v. Board, welcoming Duke Ellington’s Sacred Jazz concert, and developing Meth-Union Manor. Fiercely empowering of LGBTQ+ kin, Union co-presents the annual MLK Breakfast, the nation’s longest-running commemoration to Dr. King’s vision of justice and beloved community. This site is a part of the Everyone250 Historical Marker program.
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