AFRICAN AMERICAN CHURCHES
Maryville was the home of two African American churches; the African Methodist Episcopal (AME) and Mt. Zion Baptist. Explore the sections below to learn more about these churches and how religion and race intersected in Nodaway County.
African Methodist Episcopal Church
The African Methodist Episcopal Church (AME) was founded in 1879; at the time of it's founding, it was the only church in Maryville of the Methodist Episcopal faith. The church was founded with money raised from fundraisers and donations from the community and was located at 128 S Vine St. The AME was the largest Black church in Maryville and had 36 members by 1913 with J.R. Carter being the reverend. The church provided a Sunday school service and was home to the Sweet Singers of Israel Choir. The choir performed at events all over Nodaway County. The church disbanded sometime before 1960 for unknown reasons.
Mt. Zion Baptist Church
Mt. Zion Baptist was founded in the 1880s after the African Methodist Episcopal church. It was the second Baptist church to be founded in Maryville and was also referred to as Second Mt. Zion Baptist. The church had a smaller congregation with 14 in 1913. There were frequent changes in pastors and the church disbanded some time between 1933 and 1934, likely due to decreasing attendance.
How Religion Impacted Race Relations
Religion helped ease racial tensions in Maryville. White residents were supportive of the Black churches, attended their events, and even donated money to church projects. One newspaper article reported that a crowd of 1,000 Maryville residents gathered for the farewell sermon of Dr. Griffin, an African American Evangelist. The collaboration between the residents is unexpected for the Reconstruction Era; however, racial tensions still thrived outside of religion.