New Mount Olivet AME Zion Church

Organized in 1873, this church has a rich history steeped in justice and equality.  First called Mt. Olivet Methodist Zion Church.  This brick church was built 1923-27 under Revs. J.D. Virgil and C.L. Flowers.  The church was renamed New Mount Olivet AME Zion Church in 1937.  In May, 1961 this church hosted a mass meeting to honor and support the Freedom Riders when an interracial group sponsored by the Congress of Racial Equality launched the first Freedom Rides from Washington to New Orleans.  The first violent opposition in the South occurred in the bus station in Rock Hill.

KEYWORDS: RELIGION, AME ZION, CIVIL RIGHTS, FREEDOM RIDERS, RACIAL EQUALITY, C.O.R.E., AFRICAN AMERICAN, RECONSTRUCTION