First Baptist Church of Tampa

LOCATION: 302 W. Kennedy Blvd., Tampa

BUILT: 1922-1924

SIZE: 36,400 GSF

PHOTO CREDITS: First Baptist Church Archives

The First Baptist Church of Tampa officially began on July 23, 1859, in downtown Tampa. After the Lafayette Street Bridge (Kennedy Boulevard) was built across the Hillsborough River and church members began to construct homes in Hyde Park, the congregation relocated in 1896 to the west side of the river at the intersection of Lafayette Street and Hyde Park Avenue.

With the relocation to Hyde Park, the First Baptist Church experienced a period of unprecedented growth and construction began on the current sanctuary. The Classical Revival style building was dedicated in 1924.  Subsequent generations of church members built additional buildings to create an expanded campus – the Culbreath Chapel, Tampa Baptist Manor, and the Worship Center. The First Baptist Church celebrated 150 years in existence in Tampa on July 23, 2009.