Bethel AME, ‘an anchor to the city,’ celebrates 150 years

Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church has been a big part of Columbia for 150 years.

As the church celebrates its 150th anniversary, Columbia can reflect on the history that has happened inside Bethel’s doors – whether those doors were on an old sword factory on Wayne Street, at its iconic building nestled at Sumter and Taylor streets or at its current location on Woodrow Street in Shandon.

“Bethel’s commitment to service and community engagement is one that extends back to the periods of Emancipation and Reconstruction when church leaders helped to shape the transition from slavery to freedom,” said Bobby Donaldson, associate professor of history at the University of South Carolina, and a scholar of Southern history and African-American life and culture in the 19th and 20th centuries. “For so many, the sanctuary became a refuge, a way station, a meeting place, a source of information. And Bethel’s preachers consistently used their voices and pulpits to address issues and circumstances beyond the walls of the church.”

Nearly half of Bethel’s 150 years were spent in its downtown sanctuary on Sumter Street, moving to that building, a blacksmith’s shop, in 1921. A larger framework was built to house its growing congregation, a structure designed by John Anderson Lankford, one of the first black registered architects in the United States.

It was at this downtown sanctuary where Bethel played its significant role in the Civil Rights movement.

Bethel moved from that building to its current location on Woodrow Street in 1995.

“The relocating of the church from Sumter Street to Woodrow Street was monumental, and it has served the church’s growth and impact on the community quite well,” said Bishop Ronnie Brailsford Sr., who was recently elected Bishop of the AME Church and will be leaving Bethel in November after 24 years as pastor there.

Brailsford’s appointment is another historic moment for Bethel.

“Bethel is celebrating 150 years of existence this year,” Brailsford said. “They have had 33 pastors. The AME Church has elected 138 bishops in its 200 years of formal existence as a denomination. This is the first time a bishop has been elected and consecrated to serve in the AME Church while serving as a pastor of Bethel. It is quite an historic moment.”

Bethel is also rare in that it has only had two pastors in the past 67 years, Brailsford added. “This may be a record for an AME Church.”

Bethel opened one year after the Civil War ended, and played an integral role in shaping reconstruction in Columbia, Donaldson said.

Later, it became a training ground for students involved in Civil Rights actions, as well as a place where young protesters gathered for prayer and emotional sustenance.

“It was an anchor to the city,” Donaldson said.

Plans are to restore the historic Bethel building and create a museum.

“I am hopeful that the attention around Bethel’s 150th anniversary will stir the momentum to restore the historic and iconic sanctuary on Sumter Street,” Donaldson said. “That church and its members helped usher in a transformation in this city and nation.”

While the historic moments aren’t lost on Brailsford, he said the greatest accomplishments he has been a part of at Bethel “have been the lives God has allowed us to impact for His glory; so many have gotten saved and even joined the church under our ministry.”

And the church continues to be an integral part of Columbia.

“It continues to draw people from throughout the city,” Donaldson said. “It continues to be a vital part of the community’s worship, and the community’s engagement in the city.”

This story was originally published August 26, 2016 at 10:05 AM with the headline "Bethel AME, ‘an anchor to the city,’ celebrates 150 years."