A raging fire in 1977 did not stop the minister and congregation of the Mt. Olive Baptist Church from fighting to retain the remains of the historic structure built at 719-721 Washington in 1869 by the First Methodist Episcopal Church and purchased by Mt. Olive in 1965 . The building was Mt. Olive’s home for a dozen years when the fire consumed all but the exterior walls. The City of Hoboken demanded demolition, but Mt. Olive’s minister and congregation insisted on rehabilitation of the structure. The longest lasting Black Baptist church in the city, with a founding date of 1919, Mt. Olive’s congregation had held worship services in several locations on Jefferson Street, on the west side of the city, before moving to their beloved home in the stately structure on Hoboken’s main street. Three years after the fire, they returned; the shell of the old now held a new interior for worship.
Contemporary photo of Mt. Olive Baptist Church, 719-721 Washington Street.
Mt Olive now
Interior photograph of the lounge at the YMCA, 1300 Washington Street, 1927.
YMCA lounge 20011260010
First Methodist Episcopal Church postcard, postmarked October 5, 1907. HHM Catalog # 20060341161
First Methodist Episcopal Church postcard
Aerial view of the fire at Mt. Olive Baptist Church, 1977. Courtesy of the Hoboken Public Library.
Mt. Olive fire aerial
Interior photograph of the pool at the YMCA, 1300 Washington Street, 1927.
YMCA pool 20011260016
