ABOUT US
Established in 1859, Ebenezer Baptist began in a log cabin in Princess Anne County. It is the oldest African-American Church in the City of Virginia Beach. Known as "The Church That Reaches Out," our Mission is to Serve, Teach, Equip, Evangelize and Love.
OUR VISION
Our Vision is to mobilize the church to transform lives and communities by building a spiritual legacy of encouragement and hope.
WHAT WE DO
Our Mission is to Serve, Teach, Equip, Evangelize and Love our church family and the community at-large.
OUR COMMUNITY
Serving the community is an integral part of our ministry. We have a number of outreach and partnership programs that seek to serve and enrich our community.
HISTORY OF EBENEZER
In the year 1859 the first worship service of Ebenezer Baptist Church was held in a log cabin in Princess Anne County (currently Virginia Beach). These early worship services were held for the slaves of the John Cornick Plantation and were led by Rev. Joseph J. Hall, a white schoolmaster, doctor, surveyor and first known worship leader of Ebenezer. Occasionally some of the slave masters and mistresses would attend the church services. The services continued for many years in this manner.
In 1868, Rev. Marshall Land became Ebenezer’s first black minister. The congregation grew and soon the log cabin church became too small and was starting to deteriorate. The members decided to build a frame church. They continued having services in the log cabin while the new church was being built. Upon completion of the second Ebenezer Baptist the log cabin was torn down. The land that Ebenezer now sits was purchased by three trustees of the church. At the time of purchase the land consisted of 1 acre in boundaries. The purchase price was $150 and the deed was recorded September 3, 1883.
As years past and the congregation continued to grow, the church became in need of much repair. It was decided during a church conference to build a third church. This new church would be larger and include a balcony. The cornerstone of the third Ebenezer was laid on July 2, 1894.
Over many years, the church was updated and repairs done. This process continued until the decision was made to construct yet a fourth church. On Easter Sunday, April 14, 1974, Ebenezer Baptist held its last worship service in the third church building. During construction of the new church, services were being held at the Center for Effective Learning. On October 25, 1975 a piece of paper which listed the church leaders, staff and other pertinent papers were placed in the cornerstone of the fourth Ebenezer and sealed. Sunday, November 13, 1975 a dedication service was held. That morning the contractors handed the keys to the new Ebenezer Baptist Church to the Trustees. This is the structure that still stands today.