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The architect of this fancy structure was J. M. McMichael. A native of
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, McMichael moved to Charlotte soon after 1900.
He
First Baptist Church
joined First Baptist Church and convinced the
minister, H. H. Hulten, that the congregation should take the
revolutionary step for turn-of-the-century Charlotte and erect a church
that had no steeple. McMichael took an enormous chance in selecting a
Byzantine dome as the central element of his design. Stanford White, a
world-famous architect, had used the
same style in his Madison Square
Presbyterian Church in New York City, and that building had failed
acoustically. You could hardly hear anybody. Not the preacher. Not
the choir. Folks wondered if the same fate would befall McMichael's
First Baptist Church in Charlotte.
For the dedication service on May 2, 1909, 1400 people packed the sanctuary. At the organ Mrs. Alexander Stephens led the throng in singing the hymn, "All Hail The Power Of Jesus Name." So special was the day that Dr. E. Y. Mullins, president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky, came to preach the sermon. He took his text from the Sixteenth Psalm: "I have a goodly heritage." The people marveled at the stained glass windows. The one on the south side of the sanctuary was given by Vinton Liddell in honor of his father, W. J. F. Liddell. The acoustics worked! The sound of the music was glorious. "J. M. McMichael has succeeded where the late Stanford White failed," a local newspaper boasted. First Baptist Church is now the main performance space for Spirit Square, an Uptown center for the arts. As chairman of the Board of County Commissioners, Liz Hair led the effort to save the building from probable destruction in 1975. Let the good sounds continue!
Walk south along Tryon Street to the next intersection, which is Sixth Street. Look diagonally across the intersection at the skinny, ten-story, high-rise building .
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