JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A piece of Jacksonville’s history is finding new life as the Snyder Memorial Church opens its doors to the public after decades of vacancy.
The Gothic revival-style church, located at the corner of Laura and Monroe streets, was built in 1903 after the Great Fire of 1901 destroyed the original Trinity Methodist Episcopal Church on the same site.
“In 1901, Jacksonville had the third largest city fire in the history of the United States,” said Dr. Wayne Wood, historian at large with the Jacksonville History Center. “Ninety percent of downtown burned to a crisp, including that church. So, a couple of years after the fire, in 1903, this new church was built on the site of the old one.”
Snyder Memorial Church played a vital role in Jacksonville’s history. In the 1960s, the church hosted civil rights discussions and became one of the first racially integrated congregations in the city. In the 1970s, it offered support for pregnant teenagers.
“On the outside, it’s almost exactly the same as it was in 1903,” Wood said. “The interior has not been changed all that much. There’s been a little bit of remodeling, but it’s a huge building.”
The church held its final service on the Saturday before Thanksgiving in 1992. It was deconsecrated in 2000 and later served as a performance venue for the River City Band before the city purchased it.
“It’s been mostly vacant for the last 20 years, and to have such a glorious space as this downtown going to waste is just a crime,” Wood said.
The city has invested hundreds of thousands of dollars in repairing the building’s roof and foundation. After reopening for Art Walk in November this year, the space will host its next event during the annual Christmas Tree Lighting in December.
“Inside Snyder Memorial, we will have this beautiful church decorated for the holidays,” said Liz McCoy, executive director of Friends of James Weldon Johnson Park. “We’ll have holiday music, we’ll have Santa Claus, and we’ll also have a poet named Love Reigns.”
City officials hope the building’s reopening will attract a developer with the vision to repurpose the space.
“This doesn’t have to be a church,” McCoy said. “I’ve seen in other towns and cities some really wonderful restaurants, maybe a nightclub, maybe a venue that would have private events and weddings. There could be a lot of uses for this beautiful space.”
Dr. Wood expressed optimism for the future of Snyder Memorial Church.
“Maybe someone out there will come and repurpose this building, purchase it, and make it into something brand new,” Wood said. “Old things become new again. And as a gift to the city, it would be great.”
The hope is to transform Snyder Memorial into a vibrant part of Jacksonville’s downtown while preserving its historic significance.
“This building is a historic landmark,” Wood said. “It needs to be activated. It needs to be preserved, and it needs to become a living part of Jacksonville’s heritage.”