Coordinates: 40°49′0″N 73°56′30″W / 40.81667°N 73.94167°W / 40.81667; -73.94167 The Abyssinian Baptist Church is a Baptist megachurch located at 132 West 138th Street between Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Boulevard and Lenox Avenue in the Harlem neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City; it is affiliated with the National Baptist Convention, USA and American Baptist Churches USA. During the 20th century, prominent ministers of the church included Adam Clayton Powell Sr., Adam Clayton Powell Jr. and Samuel DeWitt Proctor. Over the years, the church has served as a place for African American spirituality, politics and community. The Abyssinian Baptist Church congregation traces its history to 1809, when seamen from the Ethiopian Empire (then known as Abyssinia) helped lead a protest against segregated church seating. Thomas Paul was an early minister. It worshiped in several places before building the present church structure. Its present building was built in 1922–23 and was designed by Charles W. Bolton & Son in Gothic Revival and Tudor Revival styles – it has also been described as "Collegiate Gothic". It features stained glass windows and marble furnishings. The church and its associated community house were designated a New York City Landmark on July 13, 1993.
