The Tremont Temple on 88 Tremont Street is a Baptist church in Boston, Massachusetts, affiliated with the American Baptist Churches, USA and the Southern Baptist Convention. An elder-led congregation, Jaime E.
- Venue
- Tremont Temple
- Address
- 88 Tremont Street, Boston, MA 02108
- Town
- Boston, US
The Tremont Temple on 88 Tremont Street is a Baptist church in Boston, Massachusetts, affiliated with the American Baptist Churches, USA and the Southern Baptist Convention. An elder-led congregation, Jaime E. Owens is the current Senior Pastor since 2017. The existing multi-storey, Renaissance Revival structure was designed by Boston architect Clarence Blackall, and opened in May 1896. It replaced a much smaller 1827 structure which had repeatedly suffered damage by fires. The new facility was designed with a large auditorium, ground-floor retail shops, and upper-story offices, all of which could be leased commercially so that the congregation could welcome all worshippers for free. In January 2023, the building exterior was declared a historic landmark by the Boston Landmarks Commission. The Church was formed in 1839 as The Free Baptist Church. On 28 December 1843, the Free Church Baptists bought the Tremont Theatre, built in 1827 in Greek Revival style. They renamed it the Tremont Temple and adapted it for use for religious worship. They did not charge for attending their church and had a racially integrated congregation. Although the building was largely used for religious purposes, it also served occasionally as the venue for public events. An Egyptian mummy was displayed beginning on 28 September 1850, and Sam Houston gave a speech there against slavery on 22 February 1855. Boston had a strong community of abolitionists, both black and white. Wendell Phillips gave a speech there the day after Lincoln’s election: “the slave has chosen a President … Not an Abolitionist, hardly an antislavery man, Mr. Lincoln consents to represent an idea. A pawn on the chessboard. … we may soon change him for knight, Bishop or queen, and sweep the board (applause).” Frederick Douglass spoke there on December 3, 1860, in a hotly contested and even violent anti-slavery gathering that had to be quelled by Boston police. The Temple was damaged by fire in April 1852; at the time, off