Civil Rights and Black Churches of Capitol Hill

African-American churches have long been centers for black communities, filling social welfare functions such as caring for the poor, establishing schools and orphanages, and creating ministries for outreach in local communities and abroad. This was especially true during the fight for Civil Rights during the 1950s and 1960s. Located on the second floor of the Nashville Public Library, the Civil Rights Reading Room tells the story of the city’s battle over civil rights. Many white churches were resistant to integration, and Nashville’s black churches provided resources and refuge to those who fought for equality. 

Located four blocks from the library, on the corner of Dr. MLK Jr. Blvd. and Tenth Avenue, there is a historical marker titled “Black Churches of Capitol Hill,” that honors the history of six African American churches. While we won’t walk to the former sites of these churches, we want to tell you about them. First Baptist Church - Capitol Hill, Gay Street Christian Church, Mt. Olive Missionary Baptist Church, St. Andrews Presbyterian Church, St. John A.M.E. Church, and Spruce Street Baptist Church were all built between 1848 and 1898. Many began as “missions” or Sunday School classes of white churches. Each served congregations of over one thousand people by 1910. During the Civil Rights movement, these churches played a prominent role and worked closely with the city’s historically black colleges and universities—known as HBCUs.

Nashville is home to four HBCUs: Fisk University, Tennessee A&I (now Tennessee State University), Meharry Medical College, and American Baptist College. Inside the room you can sit at a symbolic lunch counter and read the Ten Rules of Conduct carried by the protesters during the sit-ins. These included “Do not strike back nor curse if abused,” “Remember the teachings of Jesus Christ, Mahatma Ghandi and Martin Luther King,” and “Love and non-violence is the way.”

Student protestors included Diane Nash, James Bevel, John Lewis, the Reverend James Lawson, and the Reverend C.T. Vivian. Lawson ran some of the workshops on nonviolence out of the First Baptist Church-Capitol Hill, and their senior pastor, Reverend Kelly Miller Smith Sr., was a vocal supporter of the students and participated in their silent march to the capitol in 1960. The silent march led to an exchange in which Mayor Ben West agreed that lunch counters should be desegregated. The Civil Rights Reading Room is a welcome reminder of the role that religion has played in the black community’s fight for social and political equality. For more, take our Civil Rights Sit-ins and driving tours.

Exit the library and take a LEFT on Church Street. When you reach the corner, turn LEFT onto Seventh Avenue North. Walk to the bottom of the block, down the hill, and turn LEFT onto Commerce Street. There on the corner you will see a historical marker for Vine Street Temple.