Our History
The Baptist Temple Church
Over 140 years ago, Grace Baptist Church was founded at Broad and Berks Streets in Philadelphia.
The church began 7 years after the end of the Civil War, and started in a tent, and grew under the ministry of Dr. Russell H. Conwell until it was the "Megachurch" of Victorian Philadelphia--the largest Protestant church in the United States.
Within years, the church founded Temple College, which evolved into Temple University, as well as the Temple University Hospital.
In 1972, the congregation moved to our current site of Blue Bell.
The early years of The Baptist Temple can be explored further in the book Faith Walks and Talks: The 150-Year-History of Grace Baptist–The Church That Founded Temple University.
"The Lord is in His holy temple; let all the earth keep silence before Him."
Habakkuk 2:20
Grace Baptist Church has always focused on meeting the needs of the people.
It started a University so the working class could get an education at night, and still be able to work during the day. It started hospitals so that those who otherwise couldn't get to them could be served. It opened an orphanage and The Chapel of the Four Chaplains. It supported missionaries across the globe.
Today, we carry that legacy forward as we continue to find ways to serve the needs of our community around us and those we are called to help across the globe.
Carrying That Mission Forward
