#70: Beth Eden Baptist Church Near Whitefield Square

“I happened soon after to attend one of his sermons…and I silently resolved he should get nothing from me…Another stroke of his oratory made me ashamed of that…and he finished so admirably that I empty’d my pocket wholly into the collector’s dish, gold and all.”

—Benjamin Franklin

Beth Eden Baptist Church Near Whitefield Square

Whitefield Square is named for George Whitefield, who came to Savannah in 1738 as the parish priest of Christ Church, just after the departure of John Wesley. Whitefield would become the most famous man in America for his evangelical missionary work and his ‘Great Awakening’ revivalism during his lifetime.

As author Edward Cashin said of him in his book Beloved Bethesda: A History of George Whitefield’s Home for Boys, 1740-2000, Whitefield “…changed the religious character of colonial America more than any of his contemporaries.” Another biographer nicknamed Whitefield: ‘America’s first celebrity pastor.’

While ministering to Savannahians, Whitefield saw an unfulfilled community need, which he rectified by founding the Bethesda Orphanage outside the city, the oldest child caring institution in America.

Though not a religious follower or convert, Benjamin Franklin became George Whitefield’s publisher and close friend. Franklin argued with Whitefield for moving his orphanage to Philadelphia, but Whitefield remained adamant to his commitment that Savannah was the proper place for this orphanage.

Franklin would later jokingly write that Whitefield “…tried indeed, sometimes to pray for my conversion, but never had the satisfaction of believing his prayers were heard.”

This beautiful church located near Whitefield Square is the Beth Eden Baptist Church, built in 1893. It joins with The First Congregational Church of Savannah (see PFS #35) on the square. Both churches followed historic African-American lineages and are of great importance to the history of Savannah.

On its website, Beth Eden Baptist Church describes itself as a “Spirit-Filled Innovative House of Worship.” It was designed originally for an African American congregation by German-born architect Henry Urban, known for his Gothic Revival building style.

The interior of this church includes a delightful mural produced by Savannah-born African-American folk artist William Pleasant, Jr. In his day, Pleasant was a bold local artist whose serious work movingly documented the distinct and vital African American presence throughout the Georgia low country.

Savannah was always the central hub of the largest and most productive antebellum free-Black community in the region. And William Pleasant documented many of Savannah’s most influential African American citizens and its more important and distinct historic community landmarks.

When Whitefield Square was first developed in the 1850s, existing African American graves of former slaves and freedmen were moved to Laurel Grove’s South Cemetery. The remains were possibly desecrated — some historians still suspect bodies remain buried beneath the square. Whitefield’s controversial connection to slavery is an important topic which I’ll explore in my next PFS.

The Ward that surrounds Whitefield Square is named Wesley Ward, after John Wesley, the rector of Christ Church in Savannah who founded Methodism following his return to England. John Wesley presided over George Whitefield’s funeral in London following his death in 1770.