By Tiffany Williams –
Boston, Massachusetts — Mayor Michelle Wu joined community members Sunday to unveil an honorary street sign renaming Twelfth Baptist Church Square and a new historic marker recognizing the Roxbury church’s impact since its establishment in 1840. Twelfth Baptist Church has long served as a center for spiritual life, education and justice for generations of Black Bostonians and has been an anchor for prominent African American civil rights activists and faith leaders including Rev. Leonard Grimes, Rev. George Washington Williams, Reverend Dr. Michael E. Haynes, Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and Rev. Dr. Arthur T. Gerald, Jr.
Wu also announced a partnership between Boston 250 and Everyone250, a coalition of more than 100 partners across Boston’s arts and cultural landscape, to place 20 new historical markers throughout the city as part of the semiquincentennial. Sunday’s event highlighted the enduring legacy of Twelfth Baptist Church and the city’s broader effort to enhance how history is memorialized in Boston.
“Twelfth Baptist Church not only serves as a spiritual home, but a historic pillar in our community that continues to steward and safeguard our community,” said Mayor Michelle Wu. “In partnership with Boston 250 and Everyone250, we’re honored to commemorate the ongoing history making of Twelfth Baptist Church with this Everyone250 marker.”
“This moment is about naming sacred ground and telling the truth in a country that has too often attempted to erase Black presence, Black faith, and Black struggle,” said Rev. Dr. Willie Bodrick, II, Senior Pastor of Twelfth Baptist Church. “At a time when erasure is being normalized, we are standing firmly to declare: we shall not be moved. The former Warren Square, named for Joseph Warren, reflects the contradictions of a revolutionary era that proclaimed liberty while remaining entangled with slavery. The naming of Twelfth Baptist Church Square, by contrast, bears witness to the Underground Railroad, to liberation, and to a faith that refused to make peace with injustice. You cannot tell the story of Boston and this nation—its freedom, its moral imagination, or its courage—without telling the story of Twelfth Baptist Church. The dedication of this square in the 100th year of the celebration of Black History Month and the unveiling of the Everyone250 Marker affirm that Black faith, Black leadership, and Black resistance are not footnotes, but foundational to the story we tell about ourselves and generations to come.”
The newly unveiled marker at Twelfth Baptist Church states: “Twelfth Baptist Church traces its origins to 1805 as the First African Baptist Church of Boston at the African Meeting House. In 1840, amid division, this congregation reestablished itself embodying Boston’s Black freedom struggle. Under Rev. Leonard Grimes the church became known as ‘The Fugitive Slave Church,’ a station on the Underground Railroad, and a force for abolition. Throughout its history, it remained a center for spiritual life, education, and justice. Twelfth Baptist is also where young Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. served alongside Rev. Michael Haynes. Today, Twelfth Baptist advances equity and community empowerment rooted in faith and liberation.”
“Twelfth Baptist Church and its leaders have been known for being bold, unafraid, and willing to speak truth to power,” said Will Dickerson, Senior Advisor and Head of Faith-based Initiatives. “The impact of Twelfth Baptist extends throughout Roxbury and the surrounding areas. Many of Boston’s Black educators, doctors, lawyers, and community activists call Twelfth Baptist Church home. That is a testament to the church’s lasting role in shaping leaders and strengthening the community.”
The marker is part of Boston 250’s initiative to install physical markers highlighting underrepresented stories in the city’s history, supported by an interactive digital map and guide. Everyone250 has already unveiled markers at Kings Chapel and Union Church, with another planned at United South End Settlements on February 27. Additional unveilings are scheduled throughout the spring and summer as Boston prepares for America’s 250th anniversary in 2026.
“With Everyone250, we are reshaping Boston’s historical narrative so it reflects everyone who shaped it – especially at a time when too many Black and Brown stories are being challenged or erased throughout the country,” said Imari Paris Jeffries, Ph.D., President and CEO of Embrace Boston and Co-Chair of Everyone250. “As we come together to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Black History Month, this work is more urgent than we can imagine. Everyone250 launched last summer with a life-size bronze sculpture of W.E.B. Du Bois in Great Barrington as the very first marker, and today’s dedication at Twelfth Baptist Church carries that momentum forward. Through our partnership with Boston250, we are bringing more stories into the public square so more people can see themselves in Boston’s history, not just for the 250th, but for those who will lead after us.”
Everyone250 is led by a coalition of more than 100 partners across Boston’s arts and culture sector and focuses on storytelling, cultural celebration and reflection on the city’s past. Boston 250 is a yearlong commemoration of Boston’s role in the American Revolution and its legacy of activism and innovation, with events planned through the summer of 2026.