Mount Vernon’s Grace Baptist Church withstands test of time

News 12 is taking viewers inside Grace Baptist Church, a place where Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. himself once preached from the pulpit.

News 12 Staff

Feb 28, 2019, 11:04 PM

Updated 1,880 days ago

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Mount Vernon’s Grace Baptist Church withstands test of time
News 12 is taking viewers inside Grace Baptist Church, a place where Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. himself once preached from the pulpit.
The Mount Vernon church has withstood the test of time. Actress Ruby Dee was baptized there, and in April 1959, Dr. King, a then up-and-coming preacher, delivered a message from the church’s pulpit.

The Rev. W. Franklyn Richardson is about to begin his 44th year as pastor of Grace Baptist, located on South Sixth Avenue.

He says the foundation of his church is equality and welcoming those who may have once felt the unfair treatment of society.
Richardson says what's even more astonishing is the many people Grace Baptist has served and is still serving, with nearly 2,000 worshippers packing the pews on any given Sunday for three different services with the reverend.


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