Free cancellationFull refund up to 24 hours before
Instant confirmationYour booking is confirmed right away
TicketMobile or paper ticket accepted
LanguagesEnglish, French
Group sizeUp to 25 travelers
Overview
The tour is conducted by a New York City licensed tour guide. We offer this tour in French or English. Our tour guides are native speakers if each languages. In this tour we will visit 9 landmark sites which include the first Black Episcopal, Methodist, Pentecostal, and Baptist churches. We will examine their history, their leaders, and their role in the anti-slavery movement as well as the civil rights movement. This tour also looks at the role of Gospel music in the history of the Black church. We will study its growth from the ring shout (the foundation of all African American music), to the Spirituals, the role of the Protestant hymnals, ending with what became known as Gospel Blues, today simply called Gospel music. The tour ends with a visit to a church service where we will listen to a live Gospel choir, it is not a concert but a real church service.
Options
English Tour
French Tour
What's included
A Licensed New York city born Tour Guide with a portable video and audio system.
Hotel Pick Up
What to expect
Mt Olivet Baptist Church
15m
Mt. Olivet Baptist Church is a Southern Baptist church that has faithfully ministered and served our local community for over 200 years.
15m
The address refers to a section of Malcolm X Boulevard (formerly Lenox Avenue) in Harlem, New York City, specifically between 118th and 120th Streets. This area falls within the 10027 zip code. Malcolm X Boulevard runs north-south through Harlem, and the specified section is in the heart of the neighborhood.
15m
Malcolm X Blvd & W 124th St
New York, NY 10027
USA. Harlem Renaissance
Apollo Theater
5m · Admission ticket not included
The iconic, world famous theater where countless musicians, comedians have performed.
15m
Adam Clayton Powell Jr Blvd & West 133rd Street, New York, NY, USA
15m
Lenox Ave & West 135th Street, New York, NY, USA Songbird
Mother African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church
20m
Our licensed tour guide will share with you the history of this church.
"The Freedom Church" was formed in 1796 by African-American members of the predominantly white John Street Methodist Church. Although that church was abolitionist in its orientation, racial segregation was still enforced in other ways. As one A.M.E. Zion historian described it:
The colored members were not permitted to come to the sacrament (Holy Communion) until all the white members, even children, had communedhe first church foundation stone was laid in 1819, and the first rector, serving from 1826 to 1840, was the Rev. Peter Williams, Jr., a leading abolitionist and the first African-American Episcopal priest in New York. He was one of three blacks who served on the first executive committee of the American Anti-Slavery Society
Abyssinian Baptist Church
20m
Our license tour guide will share with you the history of this church.
Founded in 1808, Abyssinian Baptist Church is one of the oldest African-American Baptist churches in the United States. Housed in a landmark Gothic- and Tudor-style building in Harlem, Abyssinian embraces a rich history of worship, spiritual leadership, social activism and community service.
Meeting and pickup
Meeting point
Take the #2 or #3 train to 135th Street stop. Walk North on Malcom X Boulevard/Lenox. There are other tours companies, do not go to any tour guide. Our guides, Sylvie or Pascaline will come and pick you up.
End point
The Abyssinian Baptist Church
Additional information
Wheelchair accessible
Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
Public transportation options are available nearby
Infants are required to sit on an adult’s lap
Transportation options are wheelchair accessible
All areas and surfaces are wheelchair accessible
Travelers should have at least a moderate level of physical fitness
Travelers should have a moderate physical fitness level
Cancellation policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
