{"id":3309,"date":"2026-07-29T15:24:54","date_gmt":"2026-07-29T19:24:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/patersonhistory.com\/?page_id=3309"},"modified":"2026-07-29T15:24:56","modified_gmt":"2026-07-29T19:24:56","slug":"first-ame-zion-church","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/patersonhistory.com\/index.php\/first-ame-zion-church\/","title":{"rendered":"First AME Zion Church"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"PDq2pG_selectionAnchorContainer\" data-start=\"2\" data-end=\"372\">The <span class=\"\" data-state=\"closed\"><span class=\"hover:entity-accent entity-underline inline cursor-pointer align-baseline\"><span class=\"whitespace-normal\">First AME Zion Church<\/span><\/span><\/span> is the oldest African-American church in Paterson and Passaic County and one of the oldest Black congregations in New Jersey. Organized in <strong data-start=\"183\" data-end=\"191\">1834<\/strong>, it has played a central role in the religious, educational, and civic life of the city&#8217;s African-American community for nearly two centuries.<\/p>\n<h3 data-section-id=\"1ge0qg7\" data-start=\"374\" data-end=\"391\">Early History<\/h3>\n<ul data-start=\"392\" data-end=\"745\">\n<li data-section-id=\"1u3dscc\" data-start=\"392\" data-end=\"458\">Founded in <strong data-start=\"405\" data-end=\"413\">1834<\/strong> as the <strong data-start=\"421\" data-end=\"457\">Godwin Street A.M.E. Zion Church<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<li data-section-id=\"6fjewn\" data-start=\"459\" data-end=\"546\">Initially worshipped in a schoolhouse adjoining the Prospect Street Methodist Church.<\/li>\n<li data-section-id=\"18b6rb0\" data-start=\"547\" data-end=\"745\">In <strong data-start=\"552\" data-end=\"560\">1846<\/strong>, the congregation erected its first permanent church on <strong data-start=\"617\" data-end=\"634\">Godwin Street<\/strong>, on land deeded by trustees William Tanner, John Kline, and Cato George.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3 data-section-id=\"lucd59\" data-start=\"747\" data-end=\"777\">Education and Civil Rights<\/h3>\n<p data-start=\"778\" data-end=\"1181\">First AME Zion became far more than a place of worship. In <strong data-start=\"837\" data-end=\"845\">1855<\/strong>, it housed <strong data-start=\"857\" data-end=\"914\">Paterson&#8217;s first school for African-American children<\/strong>, years before the city&#8217;s public schools were integrated. The church also became closely associated with the <strong data-start=\"1023\" data-end=\"1047\">Underground Railroad<\/strong>, supporting freedom seekers and abolitionist activities centered around nearby Huntoon&#8217;s Point.<\/p>\n<h3 data-section-id=\"9irls4\" data-start=\"1183\" data-end=\"1203\">Church Buildings<\/h3>\n<p data-start=\"1204\" data-end=\"1267\">The congregation has occupied three principal church buildings:<\/p>\n<ol data-start=\"1269\" data-end=\"1569\">\n<li data-section-id=\"fcy93y\" data-start=\"1269\" data-end=\"1316\"><strong data-start=\"1272\" data-end=\"1285\">1834\u20131846<\/strong> \u2013 Worshipped in a schoolhouse.<\/li>\n<li data-section-id=\"1dmyglq\" data-start=\"1317\" data-end=\"1357\"><strong data-start=\"1320\" data-end=\"1333\">1846\u20131889<\/strong> \u2013 Godwin Street Church.<\/li>\n<li data-section-id=\"1jees5\" data-start=\"1358\" data-end=\"1569\"><strong data-start=\"1361\" data-end=\"1377\">1924\u2013Present<\/strong> \u2013 Current church, following a fire that destroyed an earlier building on the new site purchased in 1911. The present sanctuary was completed in <strong data-start=\"1522\" data-end=\"1530\">1924<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<h3 data-section-id=\"14ibf0x\" data-start=\"1571\" data-end=\"1590\">Notable Leaders<\/h3>\n<p data-start=\"1591\" data-end=\"1637\">Among the church&#8217;s distinguished pastors were:<\/p>\n<ul data-start=\"1638\" data-end=\"1891\">\n<li data-section-id=\"7d5re2\" data-start=\"1638\" data-end=\"1771\"><strong data-start=\"1640\" data-end=\"1668\">Rev. Benjamin C. Robeson<\/strong>, brother of the renowned singer, actor, and civil rights leader <span class=\"hover:entity-accent entity-underline inline cursor-pointer align-baseline\"><span class=\"whitespace-normal\">Paul Robeson<\/span><\/span>.<\/li>\n<li data-section-id=\"2nc34x\" data-start=\"1772\" data-end=\"1891\"><strong data-start=\"1774\" data-end=\"1800\">Bishop James C. Taylor<\/strong>, one of the denomination&#8217;s most influential leaders.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3 data-section-id=\"1k9bbps\" data-start=\"1893\" data-end=\"1913\">Present Location<\/h3>\n<p data-start=\"1914\" data-end=\"1939\">The church is located at:<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1941\" data-end=\"2030\"><strong data-start=\"1941\" data-end=\"1963\">326 Ellison Street<\/strong><br data-start=\"1963\" data-end=\"1966\" \/>Paterson, New Jersey 07501<\/p>\n<h3 data-section-id=\"lspeud\" data-start=\"2032\" data-end=\"2059\">Historical Significance<\/h3>\n<p data-start=\"2060\" data-end=\"2105\">First AME Zion Church is significant for its:<\/p>\n<ul data-start=\"2106\" data-end=\"2393\">\n<li data-section-id=\"10i01ob\" data-start=\"2106\" data-end=\"2164\">Status as the <strong data-start=\"2122\" data-end=\"2163\">oldest Black church in Passaic County<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<li data-section-id=\"1vgjbs7\" data-start=\"2165\" data-end=\"2213\">Association with the <strong data-start=\"2188\" data-end=\"2212\">Underground Railroad<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<li data-section-id=\"13kwg3k\" data-start=\"2214\" data-end=\"2269\">Founding of Paterson&#8217;s first African-American school.<\/li>\n<li data-section-id=\"8eq1kh\" data-start=\"2270\" data-end=\"2393\">Continuous leadership in education, civil rights, and community service since 1834.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The First AME Zion Church is the oldest African-American church in Paterson and Passaic County and one of the oldest Black congregations in New Jersey. Organized in 1834, it has played a central role in the religious, educational, and civic &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/patersonhistory.com\/index.php\/first-ame-zion-church\/\">Continued<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"kt_blocks_editor_width":"","footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-3309","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.2 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>First AME Zion Church - Paterson History<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/patersonhistory.com\/index.php\/first-ame-zion-church\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"First AME Zion Church - Paterson History\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The First AME Zion Church is the oldest African-American church in Paterson and Passaic County and one of the oldest Black congregations in New Jersey. 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