Williamsburg is preparing for increased tourism for events surrounding the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence's signing this summer.
The same goes for the Historic First Baptist Church, a national and state landmark with roots reaching back even before 1776. It’s increasing its security in anticipation of a higher volume of tours.
“We want to make it as safe as possible,” said Deacon Nat Brown, head of security. “Not only for the congregation members, but the visitors to the church as well.”
First Baptist is home to one of the oldest African American Christian congregations in the country and a cornerstone of Williamsburg’s descendant community and the city’s planned African American Heritage Trail.
The church, however, could be a “soft target,” Brown said.
Places of worship have been targeted in numerous attacks in the past decade, including in 2019 when a trio of predominantly Black churches in Louisiana was burned during a 10-day period. Earlier this month, a security guard was injured in an attack on a Michigan synagogue.
First Baptist hasn’t been explicitly threatened recently, though nearby Williamsburg Baptist Church received a bomb threat almost three years ago. Some congregation members at the time questioned if it was intended for First Baptist, Brown said. It was one of a few incidents in recent years that led First Baptist to craft a security plan, which it’s now expanding.
First Baptist has added more cameras, increased the number of security guards and will have metal detectors by June. The church is already getting more interest for tours, which will run six days a week starting then.
“We are mindful not to make the church seem too much of a fortification,” Brown said. “We don’t want to hinder people from coming to the church or feeling they can come.”
First Baptist wants security to be seamless for people coming to learn about the church's history, congregation and its artifacts.
Inside the church are signatures by former President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama from their visit for its 240th anniversary and items from its former place on Nassau Street. The first church house, built in 1805, was destroyed by a tornado and the next, built in 1856, was torn down in 1956 by Colonial Williamsburg, which paid for First Baptist’s third and current location on Scotland Street.
While CW and the city are telling parts of First Baptist's history, the church is preparing an exhibit with the Let Freedom Ring Foundation, which was created to protect and preserve its building, landscape and artifacts. The church is calling the exhibit space the FBC Heritage Center, which will be ready by the June tours. More than 200 volunteers will help with tours of the church and exhibit, which will include replicas of items from its prior building’s sanctuary.
Connie Harshaw, foundation president, said their work will tell a comprehensive story from its earliest days to today, ensuring there’s not a break between the 18th and 20th centuries.
“It’s now a national treasure and people are coming here just for the sheer joy of being inside this building and hearing the story,” she said.
“It’s a story of faith, it’s a story of resilience and it’s a story of my community,” said Johnette Gordon Weaver, board member.
There are a lot of stories to share; from its creation by free and enslaved Black believers and how it persevered at a time U.S. law prohibited them congregating, to the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s sermon at the church in 1962 and the experiences of church members who were part of Queen Elizabeth II’s procession during her 2007 visit to Williamsburg. For church and foundation members, telling them is a joy.
“It’s a celebration of my spiritual faith and my community in a bigger, broader way,” Gordon Weaver said. “I could be in Germany or Timbuktu, I’m going to tell the story of First Baptist Church and it tickles me to be able to do so.”
Nat Brown is a volunteer for the WHRO Voice, a news service for the blind and visually impaired.
