African Meeting House and Abiel Smith School
African Meeting House and Abiel Smith School, a National Trust Historic Site
The African Meeting House and Abiel Smith School is located in what was once the heart of Boston's 19th century African American community. Learn More
A Role in the Abolitionist Movement
The meeting house was host to numerous prominent abolitionists, including William Lloyd Garrison and Frederick Douglas. Learn More
A First for African Americans
The Abiel Smith School was the first public school in the country built solely to educate African American children. Learn More
On a hill named Beacon, on a street named Joy, stand the African Meeting House and the Abiel Smith School. The African Meeting House (1806) is the oldest existing black church building in the country built primarily by black artisans. The Abiel Smith School (1835) was the nation's first building constructed for the sole purpose of housing a black public school. This National Trust Historic Site is owned and managed by the Museum of African American History.
The African Meeting House and Abiel Smith School is owned and operated by the Museum of African American History.
Preservation History
At the end of the 19th century, as the African American community began to migrate from Boston's West End to the surrounding neighborhoods of South End and Roxbury, the building was sold to a Jewish congregation. It served as a synagogue until it was acquired by the Museum of African American History (MAAH) in 1972. In 1987, the MAAH completed its first phase of historic restoration work on the African Meeting House. The project restored the building's interior to its documented 1854 design. A second and final phase of restoration is currently underway to continue the building's 1850s transformation while, concurrently, making the site fully handicap accessible.
The preservation of this National Trust Historic Site was supported by Save America's Treasures, a program that is facing elimination in the proposed federal budget. Join our campaign to save this component of preservation funding, which has restored 1,100 structures and collections and created 16,000 jobs.
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