John Jasper
“The manner he preaches is only in keeping with the openness and candor of his heart.” Deacon and Officers of the Sixth Mount Zion Baptist Church, 1884
“Jasper didn’t convert me to his religion, but he did convert me to himself….I felt his greatness.” A Richmond reporter
“You felt the ground got holy where he went along." One of Jasper’s converts
Born in a slave cabin, John Jasper became one of the most famous preachers of his time. Freed by emancipation in 1865 at the age of 53, he founded the Sixth Mount Zion Baptist Church here on Brown’s Island. In 1869, the congregation moved to Duval Street, where it remains today.
Marker can be reached from the intersection of South 7th Street and Tredegar Street.
Courtesy hmdb.org
