First African Baptist Church in Savannah Receives $500,000 Grant for Historic Restoration

First African Baptist Church in Savannah, Georgia, one of the oldest Black churches in the United States, received a $500,000 preservation grant to fund structural repairs and restoration work on its historic building.

The church, founded in 1773, predates the American Revolution and has served as a continuous place of worship for African Americans for more than 250 years. The building has faced mounting maintenance needs, and church leaders said the grant will allow them to address structural issues that have threatened the integrity of the structure.

The funding comes through the National Trust for Historic Preservation's African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund, which awarded $13.5 million in grants to historically Black churches in 2026. The program supports capital repairs, endowment building, and interpretive programming that documents the churches' roles in civil rights history and community life.

First African Baptist Church has been a site of significant historical events, including its use as a stop on the Underground Railroad. The church's floor contains a distinctive pattern of holes that historians believe were used for ventilation by freedom seekers hiding beneath the building.

Pastor Thurmond Tillman said the grant would help the congregation preserve the building for future generations without diverting resources from the church's community programs, which include food assistance and youth mentoring.

The National Trust's preservation program has funded more than 100 historically Black churches since its launch, with grants ranging from $50,000 to $500,000 depending on the scope of the project.