River City Church is a

Baptist Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only ( believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul compe ...

church in Minneapolis, Minnesota, member of the

Venture Church Network Venture Church Network (formerly known as the Conservative Baptist Association of America) is a Christian association of churches in the United States with each local congregation being autonomous and responsible for their own way of functioning. ...

History

It was founded in 1853 at

Saint Anthony Falls Saint Anthony Falls, or the Falls of Saint Anthony ( dak, italics=no, Owámniyomni, ) located at the northeastern edge of downtown Minneapolis, Minnesota, is the only natural major waterfall on the Mississippi River. Throughout the mid-to-late 1 ...

by E.W. Cressey, a

missionary A missionary is a member of a religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Thomas Hale 'On Being a Mi ...

with the

American Baptist Home Mission Society The American Baptist Home Mission Society is a Christian missionary society. Its main predecessor the Home Mission Society was established in New York City in 1832 to operate in the American frontier, with the stated mission "to preach the Gospe ...

, together with members of First Baptist Church of

Saint Paul Paul; grc, Παῦλος, translit=Paulos; cop, ⲡⲁⲩⲗⲟⲥ; hbo, פאולוס השליח (previously called Saul of Tarsus;; ar, بولس الطرسوسي; grc, Σαῦλος Ταρσεύς, Saũlos Tarseús; tr, Tarsuslu Pavlus; ...

and St. Anthony gathered on March 5, 1853 and committed themselves to organizing a "Regular Baptist Church," the first Church organized in

Minnesota Territory The Territory of Minnesota was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from March 3, 1849, until May 11, 1858, when the eastern portion of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Minnesota and west ...

west of the Mississippi River. The first permanent home for the Church was at Third and Nicollet, and was the largest meeting hall in

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

. With the rapid growth of the city a larger building was built at 5th and Hennepin in 1857. In 1871 a group of Swedish attendees at First Baptist Church formed

Bethlehem Baptist Church (Minneapolis) Bethlehem Baptist Church is a Baptist Evangelical multi-site megachurch based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It is affiliated with Converge North Central and Converge. History In the early 1870s, J. L. Johnson became the first Swede baptized by ...

. A new building was inaugurated in 1885 at 10th street and Hennepin avenue. The building was designed by the firm of Kees and Fisk, which later became the firm of

Long and Kees Long and Kees was an architecture firm based in Minneapolis, Minnesota active for a twelve-year period starting in 1885 and ending in 1897. Named for its two proprietors, Franklin B. Long (1842–1912) and Frederick Kees (1852-1927), the firm ...

. It is built of

Kasota limestone Kasota limestone or simply, Kasota stone, also called Mankato stone, is a dolomitic limestone found in southern Minnesota, especially near the Minnesota River and its tributaries. This sedimentary rock is part of the Oneota Dolomite of southern ...

in a blend of the Romanesque and Gothic revival styles. The original steeples were blown down in a 1967 windstorm.

William Bell Riley William Bell Riley (March 22, 1861 in Greene County, Indiana, USA – December 5, 1947 in Golden Valley, Minnesota) was an American Baptist evangelical Christian pastor. Biography In 1878, at the age of 17, Riley publicly professed faith in Ch ...

, an American

evangelical Christian Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide interdenominational movement within Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being " born again", in which an individual expe ...

, served as pastor of the church for forty-five years (1897–1942) and another five as pastor emeritus until his death in 1947. He also founded the Northwestern Bible Training School along with an Evangelical Seminary, now known as

University of Northwestern - St. Paul A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...

. In 2020, the church announced that they would be changing their name to "River City Church". In 2022, the church sold his building to

Eagle Brook Church Eagle Brook Church is a non denomination multi-site megachurch based in Centerville, Minnesota. It is affiliated with Converge. Weekly church attendance was 20,923 people in 2023. The senior pastor is Jason Strand. History The church was founde ...

and moved to 11th Avenue. CBS MINNESOTA
Eagle Brook Church Expanding To Downtown Minneapolis
cbsnews.com, USA, MAY 8, 2022

References

External links

Official website
{{Authority control Churches in Minneapolis Baptist churches in Minnesota