This is one of the smaller churches in town, and certainly one of the newest, being only built in 1917. The church is a second elevation, of red brick, with a nice bell tower that rises over the left (over the entrance and vestibule), and stained glass greets visitor over the entrance and over the windows of the tower. The bell tower is open at top and topped with a pyramidal apex. There is also two stained glass windows on the right side as well (the building is of center with a left side entrance) in rectangular windows with curved tops, the left twice as big as the right. Architecturally speaking, it may be small but it is unique in its construction and composition.
The cornerstone is a big white block, perfectly cut set into the top corner of the old, gray, stone foundation. it is level with the top level of the porch and about four feet off of the ground. It can be found on the left corner of the building which is the southeast, opposite of where most building have their cornerstone, in the northeast.
Home of the "Slave Refugee Society," established in 1840 as "a means to help those who sought freedom from the 'tyrannical yoke of oppression.'" St. Paul's was the center of black life and culture in Gettysburg during the 19th century.
There is an interpretive out front which tells the complete story of this church. Naturally a church this historic and important absolutely refuses to create a website for themselves. Thankfully, the Main Street Gettysburg, Inc. created this sign of history and scores of others all over town to tell the story of the Civil War. This marker is beat up and in need of some restoration. Weathering has made it difficult to read, but not impossible. Taken from the marker:
St. Paul's A.M.E. Church, erected in 1917, is the third church to be used by Gettysburg's oldest African American congregation - founded ca. 1838 in a small frame building on nearby Franklin Street. Members of this congregation have long ben active and prominent in the Borough's African American community, and have provided a rich tradition of service to the community and nation.
Prior to the Civil War many members became part of the "abolitionist" movement. In December 1840, a committee headed b Henry O. Chiler met at the first church to form the "Slave Refugee Society." The group appointed a committee composed of James Cameron, Henry Butler, James Jones, Henry O. Chiler and John Jones to draft a constitution and seek a means to help whose who sought freedom from "the tyrannical yoke of oppression."
During the Civil War, several members of St. Paul's joined the newly formed "United States Colored Troops" and served during 1864-65. Among them were Lloyd F. Watts and Samuel Stanton. Watts went on to become an important community leader and one of the first African American teachers in public school system.
Stanton had a diverse Civil War military career. He joined the U.S. Navy early in 1863 and served a year as a "landsman" before being discharged and re-enlisting in the army's Third Regt. U.S. Colored Infantry.
This commitment to public service, despite racial prejudice, has been a hallmark of many others from this church who have sacrificed on behalf of their countrymen.
Address
269 S. Washington Street
Gettysburg, PA 17325