The History that makes us

Who We Are

 

St. Mark Baptist church

 was founded in 1944

There is always a plan,

one that begins long before the beginning. 

 

 I Timothy 2:3-5  

³For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour;  ⁴Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto the knowledge of the truth.  ⁵For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;

                                                                                                                                   

The 1940s was a time of great migration for African Americas. The United States was at war on two fronts leading the National Defence Program to create thousands of jobs in California . With emphasis on shipbuilding and aircraft production, the job force went from 20,000 employees in 1939 to a workforce of more than 243,000 in 1943. “However the hiring of African Americans was prohibited by company policy” said B Gordon Wheeler, “and African Americans were often by passed in favour of white employees”. But in many California cities such as Long Beach and Richmond, African Americans resorted to picket lines and protest and in 1941, responding to the threat of a massive march on Washington, President Roosevelt issued executive order 8802 which officially prohibited discrimination in defence employment. This order, along with an increasingly tight labour market opened new job opportunities for African Americans in California.California here we come…. Many were drawn to Long Beach on the promise of work at the Long Beach Naval Shipyard and migrated from the Midwest states like Oklahoma, Texas, Arkansas, and all the way down to the southern states like Alabama, South Carolina, Georgia, Louisiana. Arriving in California to begin working at the Shipyard, many of these workers and their families lived in or near the Cabrillo Homes. “At this time there were two churches that African Americans (Negros) on that side of town attended, known as the west side, and they were Second Baptist and New Hope” said Mrs Bland, a founding and charter member of St. Mark, “ and they, (meaning the Black Folks) worshipped at night in a church owned by whites“. St. Mark was birthed as an alternative to this situation. In early 1944 Reverend Elijah James and others began meeting in the Nursery Center of the Cabrillo Homes #3 and St. Mark was born. Among the founding families were the Lang’s, the Croom’s, the Lyon’s, the Bland’s and the Thompson’s. By 1946 the Church had out grown its quarters in the nursery and a permanent home was needed. Land was purchased on the corner of Harbor Blvd and 16th Street on the west side of Long Beach. However, when the church attempted to obtain clear title to the land they were informed that Negros were not permitted to own property in California. Therefore, the Church had to go to the Supreme Court to get a clear Title. And so a journey of historical events begin as follows:

 

California here we come….

Many were drawn to Long Beach on the promise of work at the Long Beach Naval Shipyard and migrated from the Midwest states like Oklahoma, Texas, Arkansas, and all the way down to the southern states like Alabama, South Carolina, Georgia, Louisiana. Arriving in California to begin working at the Shipyard, many of these workers and their families lived in or near the Cabrillo Homes. “At this time there were two churches that African Americans (Negros) on that side of town attended, known as the west side, and they were Second Baptist and New Hope” said Mrs Bland, a founding and charter member of St. Mark, “ and they, (meaning the Black Folks) worshipped at night in a church owned by whites“. St. Mark was birthed as an alternative to this situation. In early 1944 Reverend Elijah James and others began meeting in the Nursery Center of the Cabrillo Homes #3 and St. Mark was born. Among the founding families were the Lang’s, the Croom’s, the Lyon’s, the Bland’s and the Thompson’s. By 1946 the Church had out grown its quarters in the nursery and a permanent home was needed. Land was purchased on the corner of Harbor Blvd and 16th Street on the west side of Long Beach. However, when the church attempted to obtain clear title to the land they were informed that Negros were not permitted to own property in California. Therefore, the Church had to go to the Supreme Court to get a clear Title. And so a journey of historical events begin.:

 

St. Mark was birthed as an alternative to this situation. In early 1944 Reverend Elijah James and others began meeting in the Nursery Center of the Cabrillo Homes #3 and St. Mark was born. Among the founding families were the Lang’s, the Croom’s, the Lyon’s, the Bland’s and the Thompson’s. By 1946 the Church had out grown its quarters in the nursery and a permanent home was needed. Land was purchased on the corner of Harbor Blvd and 16th Street on the west side of Long Beach. However, when the church attempted to obtain clear title to the land they were informed that Negros were not permitted to own property in California. Therefore, the Church had to go to the Supreme Court to get a clear Title. And so a journey of historical events begin as follows:

 

• In 1944 there was an important decision of the United States Supreme Court with regard to voting rights and, by extension, racial desegregation. It overturned the Democratic Party's use of all-white primaries in Texas, and other states where the party used the rule. Representing the NAACP, Thurgood Marshall argued this case in favour of Lonnie E. Smith;                                                                                                                                                                                                           
• In 1944 Irene Morgan kirkaldy, an important predecessor to Rosa Parks in the successful fight to overturn segregation laws in the United States, like the more famous Parks, but eleven years earlier, in 1944, the 27-year-old Baltimore-born African-American was arrested and jailed in Virginia for refusing to give up her seat on an interstate Greyhound bus to a white person. Therefore, In a 1946 landmark decision, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 7-1 that Virginia's state law enforcing segregation on interstate buses was illegal;                                                                                                                                  
• Then in 1945, a black family by the name of Shelley, purchased a house in St. Louis, Missouri. At the time of purchase, they were unaware that a restrictive covenant had been in place on the property since 1911. The restrictive covenant barred "people of the Negro or Mongolian Race" from owning the property. Louis Kraemer, who lived ten blocks away from the purchased house, sued to restrain the Shelleys from taking possession of the property they had purchased. The Supreme Court of Missouri held that the covenant was enforceable against the purchasers because the covenant was a purely private agreement between the original parties thereto, which "ran with the land" and was enforceable against subsequent owners. A materially similar scenario took place in the companion case McGhee v. Sipes from Detroit, Michigan, where the McGhees purchased land subject to a similar restrictive covenant. The Supreme Court  consolidated the two cases for oral arguments.

 

So in 1948 the courts ruled that restrictive covenants-private agreements to exclude person of a designated race or color from the ownership or occupation of real property-were not enforceable by the judiciary (Shelley vs. Kraemer) said B Gordon Wheeler

 

.Every move of Thurgood Marshal was watched as he fought and won these cases in the court of Law which helped our case in the supreme court and it is history that the people of St. Mark would own the land. A building was designed and built entirely by the members of St. Mark Baptist Church, recalls Roger Bland Sr, all the materials were donated and the men and women of St. Mark did all the construction themselves.

  

 In 1951 Rev. James resigned as Pastor. We had two Pastors between 1951 and 1955, Rev. A.L. Haggerty and Rev. L.D. Rodgers. In 1953 the St. Mark Baptist Church became one of the first African American Churches in Long Beach to incorporate. At the end of Rev. Rodgers service as Pastor there was an attempt to sever the church, but through prayer and the grace of God St. Mark prevailed as one.    In April of 1955 Rev. S. M. Franklin was called to Pastor St. Mark. Rev. Franklin was a dynamic speaker and he and his talented family of musicians brought new enthusiasm to the church. The membership grew under his leadership and the church began to look for a larger location. The current building became available and was purchased in 1960 and just prior to the move into the new building Rev Franklin made his transition.

 

We entered into this sanctuary without a Pastor. In 1961 Rev. W. McKnight was called as Pastor, Serving only a short time before resigning the following year, Rev. C.B. Hodge was chosen, an excellent leader and speaker who instituted a Youth Choir and a Sunbeam Choir. Rev. Hodge believed in encouraging and supporting youth as the membership continued to grow the church expanded. The property at 1711 Lemon Avenue was purchased and the building was used for Sunday School and as a kitchen facility. In 1964 Rev. Hodge resigned as Pastor and the Lord sent a kind humble minister into our midst named Henry Ford. Throughout 1964 and into the early part of 1965, Rev. Ford of Buffalo, New York was a constant visitor.

 

It was in 1965 when Rev. Ford was called to Pastor St. Mark. He became active in the community outreach and he was a well respected spokesperson for the African American community. Under the leadership of Rev. Henry Ford, St. Mark broadened its ministry to included a Sunday Service at Bel-Vista Convalescent Hospital and this ministry still continues. In 1973 a new classroom and restroom facility was built onto the rear of the church. Oddly, in 1978 the rear of the church building caught on fire and by the grace of God one of our nearby members was led to look towards the church, thus saving the building from total destruction. You can still see the darken wood from that fire, that weapon formed that did not prosper.

 

The members of St. Mark where proven leaders, so as members of the American Baptist Churches of the Pacific Southwest, we were the First African American church in Long Beach to break the color barrier at the association and convention level.     Throughout  Rev. Ford's service many wonderful programs were begin, such as St. Mark Lambs baseball Team, the Young Adult Action Committee, The Young Laymen, New Membership Class, The Nursery, Children’s Church and the Street Evangelism Teams. Rev. Ford instituted the Long Beach Minister Alliance because He understood the fellowship of churches could save a community. In 1982 Rev. Ford saw the completion of his long held vision of a Youth Education Building. He used his talents and skills in carpentry to help complete the building and today the building is used for class rooms, special occasions, banquets, socials, church rally’s, youth gatherings, fellowship dinners and on occasion it is used as a worship center.

 

In 1987, after 22 years of faithful service the Lord called Rev. Henry Ford home. His favorite saying was "If I can help somebody, then my living will not be in vain".   Rev. Ford more than lived these words.  Those of us who attended the Easter Sunrise Service held at St. John Baptist Church will always remember the picture of  Rev. Ford running up the steps, two at a time.    He had a big dhild like grin on his face.   Shortly after hi death the Young Adult Action Committee implemented the Ford Lang Scholarship Committee that is still a vital source of education tools and scholarship awards.

 

In 1988 Rev. Solomon Roberts, a young minister who had trained under Rev. Ford was called to Pastor . Rev. Roberts brought to us a thirst for the word and believed in a strong teaching ministry and he willingly gave of his energy and his enthusiasm for the Word. Under his leadership the Children's Church developed along with many of the programs which had fallen by the wayside.  In June 1992, after a brief illness, the Lord called Roberts home to rest.

 

From that time until October 1993, the church was under the guidance of the Deacons and our very own Rev. George Starks until November of 1993 when the St. Mark Baptist Church called Rev. Bruce Shaw Sr. of Oceanside to Pastor. Rev. Bruce J. Shaw resigned in January 11, 1998 and the church was under the guidance of the Deacons during which time the Deacons asked Rev. Kimberly Jones to conduct the pulpit until Rev. David Higgins Sr. was called January 2001 to Pastor St. Mark.  

 

Under Bishop Higgins  pastorate, the Evangelism Ministry was established which resulted in graduation ceremonies and eventually our first evangelism conference. He was a dynamic teacher of the Word, who baptized many souls who joined the church body during his ministry at St. Mark. Although our parking lot project began before he became pastor, Bishop Higgins conducted the dedication service which was held on the finished parking lot. Bishop Higgins left in March of 2010 and started a ministry in Carson, California. 

 

God does things for many 'a good purpose, as this history reveals.  At this writing the church is currently without a Pastor. However, the church is under the divine guidance of the Deacons, who have appointed the pulpit to be conducted by the remaining ministers, Rev. Ora Jones, Evangelist Retta Ware and Minister Cheryl Rentie until such time God sends a Pastor.  On October 1, 2012, Pastor John K. Perry filled the office of Senior Pastor.   The St. Mark Baptist Church is certain that Jesus is not only head of our lives, but He is head of our church.  We are grateful to the Lord that through it all God brought us to such a time as this for "The glory of this latter house shall be greater than of the former, saith the Lord of hosts; and in this place will I give peace, saith the Lord of hosts."  Haggai 2:9

 

Happy 66th Church Anniversary St. Mark Baptist Church Long Beach

Church Motto:  And they Stood Every Man in His Place Round About The Camp - Judges 7:21a

- October 2012