{"nrhp_refnum":"80002938","name":"Mount Zion Baptist Church","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"Congress and Carpenter Sts.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Athens","county":"Athens County","state":"OH","lat":39.33252039100006,"lon":-82.10187148999995,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1980-10-03","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Black"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A small church building at the northeast corner of Congress and Carpenter Streets in Athens, Athens County, Ohio, built 1905-1909 of cement block simulating stone for a Black Baptist congregation organized in 1872.","why_significant":"The nomination argues it is the only major standing building in Athens associated with the city's Black community, and the city's only Afro-American congregation. Church members did much of the construction themselves, and the building keeps its original appearance and fine donated stained glass windows. Reviewer notes also mention an early use of rock-faced concrete block.","narrative":"Mount Zion Baptist Church is a modest cement-block church at Congress and Carpenter Streets in Athens, Ohio. The block imitates stone, and the building mixes Gothic Revival and Romanesque features: steep gables, a square southwest tower with a pyramidal roof, and arched entrances. Inside are pressed-tin ceilings, carved oak pews curved toward the pulpit, and large blue-toned stained glass windows donated by individual members. The congregation formed in 1872 and built a frame church in 1876. The cornerstone of the present building was laid in 1905 and the church was dedicated in 1909, with much of the work done by members. It was listed as the only major surviving building in Athens tied to the city's Black community, after the Berry Hotel was demolished in 1974. Membership has shrunk since World War II, and many members are now Ohio University students. The building has seen little alteration, and stabilization work was underway when it was nominated.","period_of_significance":"1905","architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":"Gothic Revival and Romanesque elements","criteria":[],"status_note":"Occupied and in religious use; in good condition, unaltered, on its original site, with stabilization work underway at the time of nomination.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:53:13.003972-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_OH/80002938.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/80002938/965b593c5d-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/80002938/965b593c5d-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Ed!(talk)(Hall of Fame)","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mt_Zion_Baptist_Church_Athens_OH_USA.JPG\" rel=\"noopener\">Ed!(talk)(Hall of Fame)</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:Mt_Zion_Baptist_Church_Athens_OH_USA.JPG"},"district":{"nrhp_refnum":"82003541","name":"Athens Downtown Historic District","url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/districts/ohio/athens-downtown-historic-district-82003541/"},"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/71986751","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mount_Zion_Baptist_Church_(Athens,_Ohio)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q14716738"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/ohio/athens-county/mount-zion-baptist-church-80002938/"}