{"nrhp_refnum":"69000349","name":"First Baptist Church","other_names":["Student Center"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"NW corner of 12th and E. Broad Sts.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Richmond (Independent City)","county":"Richmond (city and county)","state":"VA","lat":37.53966903300005,"lon":-77.43121399599994,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1969-04-16","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["national"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A Greek Revival church building at the northwest corner of 12th and East Broad Streets in Richmond, Virginia, built 1839-41 to a design by Thomas U. Walter. It later served as a student center for the Medical College of Virginia.","why_significant":"The nomination calls it a major Richmond landmark and an able piece of architecture, ranking first in quality among Greek Revival buildings. It was designed by Philadelphia architect Thomas U. Walter, and it housed Richmond's oldest Baptist congregation. It also served as an emergency hospital for Confederate soldiers during the Civil War.","narrative":"Built between 1839 and 1841 at the corner of 12th and East Broad Streets in Richmond, this church follows the form of a Greek Doric temple. Its stuccoed walls carry two fluted Doric columns set in antis, Doric pilasters along the sides, and an entablature with triglyphs and metopes. Steps give the impression of a stylobate, though the building sits on a high basement. Later wings were added, and the original cupola over the portico was removed. Inside, a large plaster ceiling medallion with Grecian motifs survives. The architect was Thomas U. Walter of Philadelphia, later known for the wings and dome of the U.S. Capitol. The congregation was the oldest Baptist group in Richmond and was formed by the white members of the earlier church at Broad and College Streets. During the Civil War the building served as an emergency hospital for Confederate soldiers. The Medical College of Virginia bought it in 1938 and used it as a student center. It was listed as a prominent Broad Street landmark and an outstanding Greek Revival work.","period_of_significance":"1839-41","architect_builder":"Thomas U. Walter","architectural_style":"Greek Revival (Greek Doric temple form)","criteria":[],"status_note":"Owned by Virginia Commonwealth University (Medical College of Virginia) and used as a student center; condition marked deteriorated and altered at the time of nomination. Later letters in the file refer to a plan to demolish it.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:51:57.923748-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/88/6828/41682888/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_VA/69000349.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/69000349/0f959ce517-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/69000349/0f959ce517-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Crazyale","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Old_First_Baptist_Church.JPG\" rel=\"noopener\">Crazyale</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Old_First_Baptist_Church.JPG"},"district":{"nrhp_refnum":"71000982","name":"James River and Kanawha Canal Historic District","url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/districts/virginia/james-river-and-kanawha-canal-historic-district-71000982/"},"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/41682888","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Baptist_Church_(Richmond,_Virginia)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5452429"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/virginia/richmond/first-baptist-church-69000349/"}