The Washington times., 1923-02-24
CHURCH To HAVE
BIC BIRTHDAY
FETE
Metropolitan Baptist Started
at Prayer Meeting in Home
IS Years Ago.

On Tuesday the Metropolitan
Baptist Church will be forty.five
years old and appropriate exercises
will be held beginning tomorrow
morning when the pastor, the Rev.
John Compton Ball, will deliver
the forty-fifth anniversary sermon
on the theme, Gods Loving Kind
ness suggested by the motto OF
the church in the first year of its
history (187Sl. I'VE Have Thought
of Thy Loving Kindness, Oh, God.
in the Midst of Thy Temple"
In the evening the topic will be,
"why I Am a Christian" Special
music will be furnished by the
choir under the leadership of Gil.
bert A. Clark, and Miss Winifred
Peyton. harp soloist from Los An
geIes, will play special numbers.
The Metropolitan Baptist Church
grew out of a series of prayer
meetings held in the home OF Mrs.
Celestia Ferris, in 1871. A Sunday
school was organized and met In
a frame building at the corner Of
Seventh and A streets northeast.
This building has Graded three
churches, namely, the Metropolitan
Baptist, Metropolitan Presbyterian
and Epworth Methodist. From this
Sunday school sprang an organiza-
ton called the Metropolitan Bap-
fist Association which purchased
the lot on the corner of Sixth
and A streets northeast for $1,000
and erected chapel. thereon.
The first step toward the actual
church ganization was taken Feb
fiiary 81, 1873, when thirty-one
constituent members organized the
Metropolitan Baptist Church. OF
; the original thirty-one members two
are living today and are still MEM
bers of the church. They are Mrs.
Marion Mclean, 507 A street south
east, and Mrs. Mary Taylor, Of
Chicago. In 1888 the adjoining lot
was purchased and an additional
building erected. costing $1,000.
When the present pastor, the
Rev. John Compton Ball. was called
In 1908, he found a church of 361
members with two small buildings.
Realizing the need for better equip
sment, he appointed a building
committee in 1904 and began the
accumulation of funds whlyh ire-
suited in the erection of the pres
ent beautiful structure iH 1911
which was dedicated January II.
1912. Its value is $4,000 and it
seats 1900 people.
During the forty-five years of
the church's history, seven pastors
have filled the pulpit, as follows:
Stephen H. Mirick, 1S77-1s7S: JOS.
eph W. PaISter, D. D., 18f9-1SS2;
William NJ. Ingersoll, 1sS2-1SS4: VIII.
liam H. Young. 1ss5-1SS0: Green
Clay Smith, 1SS1-1Ss5; Granville s.
williams, D. D.. 1S96-1s03; John
Compton Ball. 1905.
OF the above, the most romantic
figure is the Rev. Green Clay Smith,
the parson who missed being Pres
ident Of the United States by half
Q vote. The Rev Mr. Smith. who
was a general during the civil war.
governor of the State of Montana.
and member of Congress, was a
contestant with Johnson as nomi-
nee for Vice President, on the
ticket with Abraham Lincoln.
Failing to secure the nomination
by half a vote, he was thereafter
styled "the preacher who missed
the Presidency by half a vote"
Johnson was elected with Lincoln
and upon the assassination of the
chief executive became President
Of the United States.
The present pastor came to the
church from New Bethlehem, Pa
He studied at Temple College. in
Philadelphia. and at Grocer Theo-
logical Seminary. at Chester, and
= later became associated with DR..
Russell II. Conwell at the missions
OF the Temple Baptist Church. He
is the dean of the pastors on CAPT.
toll Hill and in the twenty years Of
his pastorate has seen the church
membership grow from 361 to 1918,
and the annual income increase
from approximately $4,000 to $29, 900
The church plans to make it's
forty-fifth anniversary noteworthy
by raising $4,000 for special mis-
sioHary purposes and conducting
evangelistic services every Sunday
and Thursday until Easter.