Twelfth Baptist Church

Founded in 1805   Twelfth Baptist Church traces its origins to 1805 as the First African Baptist Church of Boston at the African Meeting House on Beacon Hill under Rev. Thomas Paul. In 1840, Rev. George Black and abolitionist members separated to establish what would become Twelfth Baptist Church. In 1848, Rev. Leonard Grimes, an abolitionist imprisoned in Virginia for aiding freedom-seekers, was ordained as the church’s first pastor. Under Grimes, Twelfth Baptist became known as “The Fugitive Slave Church,” which supported freedom-seekers along the Underground Railroad. In the early 1900s, the congregation moved to Roxbury. During the 1950s, while pursuing doctoral studies, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. served and preached at Twelfth Baptist alongside Rev. Dr. Michael E. Haynes. Throughout its history, Twelfth Baptist Church has stood as a center for spiritual life, education, and justice, rooted in faith and liberation.