The Abyssinian Church

On the same day that I had went over to see Bug Light, I decided to take a ride over to see the Abyssinian Church on Newbury Street. I understood that it was still in the midst of a restoration project but I thought it would still be interesting to actually see the building in person. The building stood between two apartment/house complexes and right across the street you could smell the beer that was being brewed at the Shipyard Brewing Company. It did indeed smell pretty good. The Abyssinian Church itself was in pretty bad shape. Again, I knew it was being restored but I had no idea it was that bad. The sides of the building were being completely redone and the front looked odd. There were painted black windows in the front to give it the effect that it actually had windows. Apparently, there are four phases to the restoration project and the first has yet to be completed fully. I’m glad I went to see it because I know how important this building was during the anti-slavery movement in Maine.

Historical Background:

The Abyssinian Church was built in 1829 when Reuben Ruby had purchased the land for the church to be built. He, however, was not solely the one responsible for funding the church himself. Much of the funds came from the black community of Maine. As a result, it became the first black congregation in Maine. Reuben Ruby was a hackman and an activist who would help form the Maine Anti-Slavery Society in 1834. By 1841, the anti-slavery movement in Maine had become more effective with the arrival of Reverend Amos N. Freeman who became the first full-time minister of the Abyssinian Church. During the height of the anti-slavery movement, the Abyssinian Church became the center for many Undergound Railroad and anti-slavery activities and served as a meeting place to discuss their role in what to do in these movements. It was one of the most important buildings for the Undergound Railroad and for other ant-slavery movements in Portland.

During the Great Fire of 1866 much of Portland had been burnt. The Abyssinian Church, however, was among the few buildings to survive the fire. Apparently, William Wilberforce Ruby, who was the son of Reuben Ruby, had wet down the building to insure that building would in fact survive the fire. Currently, the church is undergoing a multimillion dollar restoration project by the nonprofit organization, Committee to Restore to preserve the historical building. It is important that they do this because it is historical significant to Portland and it helps shed light on why Portland was such a pivotal city for the Underground Railroad and other anti-slavery movements in the city. Portland was a major hub for shipping activity and one of the most northern cities closest to Canada where many slaves could flee, so the activities of the anti-slavery leaders and the slaves themselves were very high. Now, the Abyssinian Church is part of the Maine Freedom Trails tour where people can see and learn about the routes many slaves took to freedom. Thanks to the Abyssinian Church and the people involved, it had helped save the lives of many of the slaves and it is crucial that this piece of history is to survive as it serves to be an important artifact of not only Maine’s historical past but our nation’s as well.

Sources: Brochure & http://www.mainehistory.org/