Skip to content
Donate Now! Merchandise

American Baptist College

36.199509, -86.785255

Description

Founded through the joint efforts of the National Baptist Convention and the Southern Baptist Convention, American Baptist Theological Seminary opened for enrollment on September 14, 1924. The first building, Griggs Hall, was built in 1923. The school was created to train African American ministers for the Baptist denomination. In 1971, the school became an accredited four-year Bible college, and its name was changed to American Baptist College. During the 1960s, students and faculty at American Baptist College contributed to the downtown sit-ins and the city's fight for civil rights. The civil rights leader at the school included Reverend Kelly Miller Smith (1920-1948), Reverend Dr. C.T. Vivian (1924-2020), John Lewis (1940-2020), Dr. Bernard Lafayette (1940-), and Reverend Dr. Julius Scruggs (1942-).

Title American Baptist College
Creator Nashville Historical Foundation
Date 1924
Address 1800 Baptist World Center Dr Nashville, TN 37207 United States
Type All
Source National Baptist Convention; Southern Baptist Convention
Contributor Dr. Allen R. Griggs; Dr. Sutton E. Griggs; J.F. Grimmett; Rev. Kelly Miller Smith Sr.; Reverend Dr. C.T. Vivian; John Lewis; Dr. Bernard Lafayette; Reverend Dr. Julius Scruggs
Subject New South; Civil Rights; African Americans; Education; Protests; Religion
Keywords Baptist, National Baptist Convention, Southern Baptist, Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee, Nonviolence, Sit-Ins, Desegregation, American Baptist College
Rights CC BY-NC 4.0