Heart & Mind
Bethel’s New York Connection Began
Nearly 150
Years Ago
The Mariner’s Baptist Temple, now known as the Oliver Street Baptist Church, is the oldest Baptist church in Manhattan. The church has ministered to a changing population of immigrants for 150 years, including Bethel Seminary founder John Alexis Edgren, who was baptized through the church’s ministry in 1858. Numerous other Baptist General Conference pioneers were nurtured and sent out into ministry across the country through the influence of Mariner’s Temple, as its congregation served various waves of immigrant groups over the years. Today, the Oliver Street Baptist Church is home to a thriving African-American congregation.