26th Street Baptist Church



	2510 Tenth Avenue, Huntington, WV 304-522-4125

HISTORY

The Twenty-sixth Street Baptist Church was organized November 3, 1924 by a group of Christians from the Walnut Hills Baptist Church.
The first business meeting was held in the home of one of the members at which time they organized as a Missionary Baptist Church and used the Hiscox Manual as a guide. They enrolled 46 Charter Members at this meeting.
On November 10, 1924 the congregation voted to call Rev. J.T. Paul, who was a charter member, as pastor. He served less than eight months, becoming ill while working on the construction of the old church building at 1035 - 26th Street. He passed away during the summer of 1925.
Services were held March 1,1925 in the partially finished church at1035-26th Street. Records show the first 10 years to be a struggle for the young church. During this trying period, the church called 8 different pastors.
On November 2, 1934, the Twenty-sixth Street Baptist Church called Rev. Carl Midkiff as pastor. Brother Carl was already an active member of the church. Under his leadership, the membership began to increase very rapidly and the building was enlarged to take care of expansion. The church continued to grow and the building was expanded until all building space was taken. On February 3, 1939, a building fund was initiated which resulted in the completion of the church building we now occupy.

Rev. J.T. Paul

Services were held March 1,1925 in the partially finished church at1035-26th Street. Records show the first 10 years to be a struggle for the young church. During this trying period, the church called 8 different pastors.
On November 2, 1934, the Twenty-sixth Street Baptist Church called Rev. Carl Midkiff as pastor. Brother Carl was already an active member of the church. Under his leadership, the membership began to increase very rapidly and the building was enlarged to take care of expansion. The church continued to grow and the building was expanded until all building space was taken. On February 3, 1939, a building fund was initiated which resulted in the completion of the church building we now occupy.
The ground was broken for our present church at 2510-10th Avenue on August 8, 1949. H. W. Vanhoose, church clerk, wrote, "From here it seemed that we would have to build by faith as we were several thousand dollars short of our goal. God was with us and by faith we succeeded. Funds began to come in better than ever before. Many members donated free labor. The building was ready to occupy in a little less than twelve months, with a total cost of $70,575 including lots and furnishings."
The first service was held in our new building July 21, 1950 in a very thrilling service!

Groundbreaking: August 8, 1949

The Bible was carried from the old building and placed on the stand in our new building. Pastor Midkiff and the rest of the church followed and the Lord then blessed as only He can do. God consecrated our building on the following Sunday with the salvation of one precious soul. Pastor Midkiff's text for that Sunday was Hebrews 13:8.
Rev. Midkiff was pastor for 39 years, 5 months (November 2, 1934 through March 24, 1974). He went home to be with his Lord July 15, 1974.
Since 1939, the church has been in some type of building program, primarily due to the increasing size of its membership.

Rev. Carl E. Midkiff

First, there was the construction of our current auditorium. It was not long until the church needed more space and a three story Educational Building was added to the present structure. Parking then became a problem. During the next few years several parcels of land were obtained for parking. In 1988 a multi-purpose building was constructed in order to meet the needs of both our current and future programs. The church then purchased another parcel of property and the parking lot on the west side of the church was born. This parking area was expanded in 1999 with the donation of still one more parcel of property.

Groundbreaking for the Educational Building: 1958

God has also blessed our church by calling more than twenty ministers (licensed or ordained) out of our midst. Many of these men have faithfully served the Lord in pastoring our sister churches.
Many years ago Brother Vanhoose concluded his remarks about a prior era by writing, "Giving God credit for all our blessings may we continue to prosper in His name." May the same be said of our own future!

1949 Choir- in the original building.

1958 Choir

26th Street Baptist in the 50s

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