Rossville AME Zion Church

The 1897 Rossville AME Zion Church is a rare and important surviving building from the period when Sandy Ground was a prosperous African American community on Staten Island.

The founder and first minister of the church was William H. Pitts, a Virginia-born African Methodist Episcopal Zion minister who purchased land in Sandy Ground in May 1849, began holding prayer services in his home, and formally established the church in December 1850. By 1890 the congregation had outgrown its first church and purchased this site.

The present building was constructed in 1897 by Tottenville builder-developer Andrew Abrams. Originally a simple clapboarded vernacular frame structure with a gabled entrance porch, the building has been reclad with faux brick siding but retains its original form and fenestration pattern. It survives as a tangible link to the rich history of the Sandy Ground community.

STATUS Designated Individual Landmarks

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City Lore, Folklorist
Bronx Music Heritage Center, Co-Artistic Director

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