Mt. Ararat Baptist Church

115 YEARS ~ (1896-2011)

The late Reverend James Burley and a group of committed Christians organized the Mount Ararat Baptist Church in March of 1896. These consecrated Christians included Edith Smith, Sarah Ford, Dafney Brown, John Goode, John Craig, Kate Johnson, Milinda Hopkins, James Wilkerson, Martha Wilkerson, James Thompson, Sarah Thompson, and Annie Goode. They began meeting house to house in the Canton Area of Baltimore, Maryland and eventually moved to the old Canton broom factory building on Baylis Street, which was then known as Second Street. In 1902, after the building could no longer accommodate the growing membership, Reverend Burley and the congregation erected the Mount Ararat Baptist Church on the corner of Baylis and Elliot Street. The edifice had a seating capacity of about three hundred.

Reverend Burley had been a member of Enon Baptist Church and was licensed and ordained in 1902 by Reverend J. Watkins. Reverend Burley pastored The Mount Ararat family until his death on November 10, 1923.

After the death of Reverend Burley, Rev. Matthew Walter Wilkerson, a native of Lexington County, South Carolina was called to serve as acting Pastor. After one year he was ordained and elected as pastor of Mt. Ararat. He served until 1933.

Reverend Moses Prophet Clark was called to pastor Mt. Ararat in 1933. He served faithfully until his death on April 27, 1944.

Reverend Samuel Beverly Redd was called to pastor the church of his childhood in November 1944. He found the church staggering back from a recent membership split and facing the pressure of a decreasing community.

Reverend Redd spent eleven years stabilizing the membership and led it to a difficult decision to uproot the church from the beloved Canton site and move to the racially unbalanced Hanlon Park area of northwest Baltimore.

Proclaiming itself "The End of Your Search for a Friendly Church," Mt. Ararat Baptist Church opened its doors at the current site on the first Sunday in February 1955, with a small band of courageous members still on board. The growth process was soon underway and within twelve months the twenty-three original members became more than two hundred and the numbers continue to grow.

Of the members who originally came from Canton, there is one living and still among the Mt. Ararat flock our Sister Etta Pegram.

Reverend Redd retired in March 1990 after forty-five years of service. Pastor Redd left a legacy of hard work, many achievements, loyalty and dedication to the charge to which he was called. Wherever the Church History is written or told, the story will not be complete without acknowledging with praise the creative and motivational force of Mrs. Ida M. Redd. Reverend Redd continued to serve as Interim Pastor through January 1991. On January 14, 1991, Reverend Redd was elected Pastor Emeritus for life. Reverend Samuel Beverly Redd departed this life on November 21, 1991.

January 14, 1991 was also the date when Reverend Charles E. Coger was elected as Mt. Ararat's fifth Pastor. Reverend Coger preached his first sermon as Pastor-Elect of Mt. Ararat on February 3, 1991. The memorable topic of that historic sermon was "Landing Upon Mt. Ararat" and his text was Genesis 8:4.

New ministries have been established to cover the needs of the membership, new positions initiated, and updates to those established norms. The churches outreach has been extensively promoted, the churches infrastructure revised, and membership participation enlarged. The church has completed several Capital Improvement projects (new organ, major kitchen renovations, new restrooms, updates to the sound system, instituted office hours along with creating a modern computerized church office, and the purchase of two buses.

Pastor Coger has led the church into a number of outreach efforts that included an on-going radio ministry for several years, and the formation of a non-profit development corporation. Mt. Ararat continues to pursue Christian Education under Pastor Coger's leadership, and has initiated on-going ministries for all ages within the congregation.

The Church has completed its largest project in the history of the church "IT's TIME."

"Eye's have not seen neither have ears heard" what the Lord God Almighty has in His vison for Mt. Ararat.