Second Baptist Church was the first Black church organized in Evanston, Illinois. Until 1870, Black Baptists worshipped with the White congregation at First Baptist Church (now Lake Street Church). Some of the Black worshippers, dissatisfied with their passive roles within First Baptist, decided to separate themselves from that congregation. Mr. Nathaniel Branch led those Blacks who wanted freedom to use their gifts in church worship.

In November of 1870, Mr. and Mrs. Branch, Miss Maggie Care, Mr. Andrew Scott, Mr. George Robinson, Mr. William Trent, and Mr. and Mrs. Daniel Garnett formed a prayer group that met in the Garnett’s home. There, after prayer meeting, our pioneering religious foreparents organized Second Baptist Church. Seven years after the Emancipation Proclamation, these valiant Christians ventured forth and established a church wherein they could worship God according to their own religious convictions. Records of those early years are incomplete, but it is fairly certain that these were the founding families of Second Baptist.

These first families, determined to establish themselves as independent Black Baptists, banded together in faith and believed that God would enable them to acquire a house of worship. Through prayer, faith and diligence, their numbers increased. The small group, led by Mr. Branch, decided that it needed a spiritual leader. Thus, Second Baptist Church elected its first pastor, Rev. Richard DeBaptist.