First Baptist Church Timeline
1824 – Meeting held at the home of William Huffman to organize the church. His home was at the northwest corner of Third and Jefferson Streets.
1827 – First church built; Rev. D.S. Burnett called as Pastor
1829 – Church splits over doctrinal dispute
1836 – Elder Moore is pastor; salary is $400 per year
1843 – Second church is built; debt is $3,571. Each member contributed $1 per year to pay debt and interest; debt paid off in 1847.
1844 – First hymnals purchased
1848 – First church choir organized (March 7); reorganized in 1899; reestablished in 1923
1849 – Trustees vote to place gas lights in the church
1851 – Committee plans to start a mission in west Dayton
1853 – Pastor’s salary increased to $900.
1855 – Committee plans to raise subscriptions for the Home Mission Society
1863 – April 30 – Day of prayer observed at request of President Lincoln
1863 – Third church building dedicated; includes church pews that have been sold and deeded to members (by 1890, only five families are still deed holders); controversial auditorium is not included in new building; debt is paid in 1867
1866 – Pastor, Dr. Harvey, is sent as a delegate to the U.S. Temperance Convention in Saratoga Springs
1867 – East Dayton chapel built
1871 – Ladies’ Social Circle request and secure lower floor of church for social meetings
1871 – Aid sent after the Chicago Fire
1872 – 35 members volunteer to start church in east Dayton; Linden Avenue Baptist Church built
1873 – Mission started in Miami City on the west side of Dayton
1875 – Church membership was 439.
1880 – First joint Thanksgiving service with downtown churches
1886 – Church united in service of laying cornerstone of YMCA on Fourth Street
1889 – 197 members dismissed to form Central Baptist Church
1889 – West Dayton Baptist Church built
1895 – 57 members request permission to form branch church in Riverdale; Memorial Church became independent in 1905
1901 – Resolution passed to request St. Louis Centennial Exposition to keep closed on Sunday
1906 – Collection taken to assist people of San Francisco after the earthquake
1910 – Voted to publish a semi-annual list of showing whether or not members had paid their church subscriptions
1913 – Flood waters rise 9 feet into the church; practically everything was ruined; one half of the church membership was affected by the flood; many church records destroyed
1914 – Church centennial celebrated - last Sunday in May designated as Founder’s Day, FBC celebrates 17 Dayton churches with 7,500 members that have roots in FBC
1918 – Fourth church built on Monument Avenue; dedicated free of debt
1923 – Front of church auditorium remodeled, lowering the organ to pulpit platform level, changing the baptistery, kitchenette added on first floor
1936 – Members invited to community interracial Sunday service at Grace Methodist; speaker is Rabbi James Heller; music by Zion Baptist Church Choir
1936 – The Better Films Council of Dayton reviews movies in Dayton theaters. Their appraisal of film quality is posted 3 places in FBC each week.
1947 – Funeral of Orville Wright is held at FBC; Mr. Wright respected the pastor, Dr. Seasholes, and chose him and FBC for the funeral
1974 – Sesquicentennial celebration includes many former pastors, including the legendary Dr. Seasholes, a youth musical program, reception honoring 50 year members, banquet, and the publication of a new church history.