First Baptist Church, Vancouver

Housed in a beautiful old stone building in downtown Vancouver, First Baptist Church serves extremely diverse community, made up of children, teens, and adults, all from different social backgrounds. Its remarkable story began in a Vancouver pub – Blair’s Saloon on Abbott Street – in the year of 1886, when Vancouver had just been incorporated as a city of almost 5,000 residents. Back then, a small group of Baptists saw the increasing need to establish a place of worship for the booming city. On Sunday, June 6, they launched the inaugural Sunday School program, welcoming 30 children into the Blair’s Saloon Hall. The following Sunday, June 13, 1886, Blair’s Saloon along with most of the city were destroyed by fire.

Following the fire, two building lots were obtained from the Canadian Pacific Railway (on what is now 432 Main Street) to construct a dedicated space for worship. That modest edifice was 24 by 35 feet only and cost just $700 to build. The following March, the First Baptist Church was officially formed, but within months, the congregation outgrew the little building on Main Street. Hence a new church, seating about 800, had to be built at Hamilton and Dunsmuir Streets, which was dedicated on Sunday, September 15, 1887.

By the turn of the 20th century, the church's founders saw the importance of putting down permanent roots on the westside of Vancouver. In 1904, they bought its current lot on Burrard and Nelson Streets for $4,000. Before construction started, however, the church faced another setback: a fire erupted in the Sunday School rooms, damaging the roof and foundation.

On April 2, 1910, the cornerstone for the new church was finally laid, and on June 9, 1911, the new building was dedicated. During 1931 the sanctuary was destroyed by fire again, but was later rebuilt. The blaze broke out behind the organ, and destroyed most of the roof. For the third time, the congregation had to rebuild after a fire. Since then, the building has grown and changed along with its worshipers. It now continues to serve Vancouver from its key location on the westside and welcomes guests who genuinely want to join its holy fellowship.