Busy street scene showing elegantly-dressed African American parishioners of all ages entering the first African Episcopal church in the United States at the corner of Fifth and Adelphi (i.e. Saint James) streets. Includes a date stone in the eave of the church that reads "The African Church MDCCXCIII." Also shows a man leading a horse near the rear of the building. The church was established in 1794 by the religious and beneficent organization, the Free African Society, as a result of the discriminatory practices of the city’s congregations. Absalom Jones, a freed slave, became rector of the church in 1796 and remained as its minister until his death in 1818., Philadelphia on Stone, POS 729, Historical Society of Pennsylvania: Bb 862 B 756 #44, Free Library of Philadelphia: Castner 28:26, trimmed, staining.
Creator
Breton, William L., ca. 1773-1855, artist
Date
1829
Location
Historical Society of Pennsylvania HSP Bb 862 B 756 #44
