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Beyond the Village and Back: Harlem’s Mother A.M.E. Zion Church

The Mother African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church at 140-148 West 137th Street is the sixth home of New York City’s very first black church, and the founding church of the A.M.E. Zion Conference of churches. Today, the gorgeous neo-Gothic structure, built in 1923-1925, stands as a symbol of the city’s black, religious, and civil rights history while continuing to serve as a touchstone for over 1.4 million followers. In honor of Black History Month, we delve into the remarkable story of Mother Zion, which takes us beyond the Village and back.

This story is adapted from a Village Preservation blog, which can be viewed here.

By

Village Preservation

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Mother African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church

Mother African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church

In the early 1920s, Mother Zion Church, then located at 151 West 136th Street, bought three adjacent buildings on West 137th Street, which it demolished to make way for its next church. While many black congregations were moving to and growing in Harlem at this time, most purchased buildings formerly used by white congregations that had moved out of the neighborhood, as they had previously in other neighborhoods as well.

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Mother African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church

Mother African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church

Mother Zion, however – a groundbreaking church in every sense of the word – decided to do something different, and to build its new home from scratch, reflecting its identity, vision, and growing resources. This was the early 1920s after all, and the Harlem Renaissance was just taking off. The church hired architect George W. Foster Jr., one of the first black architects registered in the United States and one of only 59 black architects recorded in the 1910 United States Census.

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Mother African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church

Mother African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church

Constructed from 1923 to 1925, in many ways Foster’s design reflects the predominant religious architectural trends of the period. American protestant denominations that had rejected the Gothic style in the mid-to-late-1800s for its associations to catholicism had returned to experiment with the Gothic by the end of the century, which emerged in neo-Gothic designs.

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Mother African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church

Mother African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church

On the interior, Mother Zion resembles its contemporaries as well, with an auditorium plan centered on a pulpit raised on a low platform.

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Mother African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church

Mother African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church

Throughout the many struggles and strains that shaped Harlem in 1920s through the 1960s, the church was a strong supporter of and leader in civil rights activism. Led by Pastor James W. Brown (who served from 1912-1936) and Dr. Benjamin C. Robeson (who served from 1936-1963), the church drew renowned Harlem residents Langston Hughes, W.E.B. DuBois, Marion Anderson, Roland Hayes, Joe Louis, and Paul Robeson (brother of the pastor). In 1946, President Harry S. Truman received a delegation from the church in honor of its 150 year anniversary, which was widely celebrated.

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Mother African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church

Mother African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church

On July 13, 1993, the church was designated an individual New York City landmark.

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