Started as a mission of the Cohansey Baptist Church in Roadstown, NJ, First Baptist was the first Baptist church in Salem county and the eighth Baptist church in New Jersey. The congregation began meeting in 1745, and the church was organized on May 17, 1755. The original name was The Antipeado Baptist Society Meeting in Salem and Lower Alloway's Creek. We have just celebrated our 250th anniversary.
Pictured at right is our third house of worship (and the one we currently occupy). The church's first meeting house was at Mill Hollow farm and would fit in our current sanctuary. In an effort to move closer to the center of town, our second building was on Yorke St. It was built around 1790. It was soon decided that even that location was too far from the center of the city, so the current property was purchased and the house of worship was built in 1845. The church included a clock in the tower when it was built. That clock stopped working in 1903, and was replaced using funds raised from the congregation and the city residents. There have been modifications over the years, most notably the relocation of the organ's pipes after the 1947 fire.
With most of the churches in the Salem area, we have been experiencing decline for the last several years, but, thanks be to God, that seems to be slowing down. There are new things happening, and new people coming, as we seek to be faithful to our calling and mission.
Please feel free to browse around our site. Even better, come and visit us on Sunday morning. We would love to celebrate God's love and faithfulness with you as, together, we seek to be more faithful to Him!
