| First Baptist in the Twentieth Century
By 1900 Providence was 25th in population in the United States and was an industrial powerhouse, boasting its "Five Industrial Wonders of the WOrld." The First Baptist Church in America had over 700 members on its rolls, but great changes were coming for the state, the city, and the church. The tides of immigration changed Rhode Island from a Protestant Yankee state to an immigrant Roman Catholic state. Not only had the composition of the population changed, the physical character of Providence itself was being transformed. Where once there had been houses and small shops, great factories, banks, commercial establishments, and big buildings stood in their place. First Baptist Church saw its residential neighborhood disappear in the changes in the twentieth century. In 1860 one could stand on any corner of the church yard and throw a stone that would hit the house of a member of the church. By 1940 no residences remained. The greatest changes came from the deindustrialization of Rhode Island and the substantial decline in the population of Providence itself. After World War I the industrial lights of Rhode Island began to go out as the textile industry began moving South. As textiles went, so did many of the supporting industries, such as manufacturers of textile machines, tool makers, and leather belt companies. This process of deindustrialization was temporarily arrested only by the full employment during World War II, but resumed with a rush immediately after the war. Then the 1950s witnessed an exodus of people from Providence that was unmatched by any other city in the United States except Detroit, Michigan. The impact of all these forces on Protestant churches in general and upon First Baptist in particular was substantial. First Baptist Church reached its lowest ebb by the mid 1970s as the exodus of people from Providence carried away many members to the suburbs and the college and university students disappeared from all of the neighboring churches. By the time of the Bicentennial, the number of members was many fewer than the church had had at the time of the American Revolution. However, First Baptist has revived itself, and since the late 1970s the congregation has been growing. Not only has it been able to minister to the spiritual needs of its people, the church has been able to restore and maintain the Meeting House and to rebuild its magnificent old organ. Since 1950 nearly a dozen other Baptist churches in Providence closed their doors, but the oldest Baptist church survived and remains active and vital today. Back |  |
