A.M.E. Zion Church - Elmira, NY
Posted by: 
ripraff
N 42° 05.783 W 076° 48.286
18T E 350756 N 4662053
This sign is by the Ernie Davis Park, across from the Ernie Davis School.
Waymark Code: WMR7JH
Location: New York, United States
Date Posted: 05/23/2016
Views: 3
"A.M.E. Zion Church founded in 1840 stood 300 feet west of here played a role in the underground railroad & was a center of Elmira's African American community Chemung County Historical Society"
"The founding of the church was inspired by an anti-slavery lecture given here in Elmira in 1840 by Frederick Douglass an escaped slave from Baltimore, Maryland.Later that year it was formed by a group of slaves who had refuge in Elmira, an important station of the "Underground Railroad." The church began as the "Zion Mission," the services were first held in a house at Dickenson and Fourth Streets. On 27 April 1896 the corner stone was laid for the new building at Dickenson and fourth. With the completion the church became known as Frederick Douglass Memorial A.M.E. Zion Church. The church continued to grow, more buildings were added to the church, at its peak the Frederick Douglass A.M.E. Zion Church was an accumulation of five buildings that occupied half a city block. It was the largest Black church in the region during the late 1940's."
(
visit link)
"On Thursday, February 14th, Rev. Michael Bell will be presenting a History of the Frederick Douglas A.M.E. Zion Church as part of our African-American History Month lecture series."
Historical Society Web page has old photo of church.