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St. James AME Zion Church

St. James A.M.E. Zion Church was chartered in 1833 by a group of African American Methodists who had previously attended "colored class" Sunday School at Ithaca's First Methodist Episcopal Church. St. James is central to the history of Ithaca’s African American community; most notably, it is believed to have been a station on Ithaca’s Underground Railroad network and was host to prominent figures in the abolition movement, including Frederick Douglas and Harriet Tubman. Historic Ithaca had a decades-long relationship with the congregation for preservation of its building, beginning, in 1981, with an extensive exterior restoration. The building was listed as a local landmark in 1975 and on the National and State Registers of Historic Places in 1982. Because the congregation's original stone meetinghouse remains intact within the current structure, St. James AME Zion Church is the oldest standing church building in Ithaca.

History Center, Seth Sheldon (photographer), ca 1904

Newsletters: Spring 1981, exterior completed Winter 1982

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Historic Ithaca

212 Center Street

Ithaca, NY 14850

607 - 273 - 6633

info@historicithaca.org

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The programs of Historic Ithaca are made possible by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor & the New York State Legislature. 
Funding for Work Preserve has been provided by the City of Ithaca Community Development Block Grant Program and the Park Foundation.
This website was made possible by a grant from the Community Foundation of Tompkins County

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