By David Pierson, First and Franklin Presbyterian Church Elder
A History of First Presbyterian and Franklin Street Presbyterian Churches
The First Presbyterian Church was founded in 1761 by families who came to Baltimore Towne from the Pennsylvania frontier to escape the terrors of the French and Indian War. They were merchants, physicians, farmers, and builders. This group of church founders was known as “Dissenters,” who agitated early and often. Examples include an arrest for plotting to kidnap the Royal Governor of Maryland during the revolution, fighting off Governor William Paca’s plan to establish the Anglican Church as the State religion, lobbying for the passage of the Slave Trade Act of 1800, and resisting (but failing to prevent) the burning of Washington. Their founding minister, The Rev. Dr. Patrick Allison (1740 – 1802) was a Chaplain to the flinty Continental Congress when it met in Baltimore in 1776/77 and was a close friend of George Washington. His grandson, Mayor George W. Brown, defended Union troops moving through Baltimore in 1861 by physically fighting off a mob in what some consider the first casualties of the Civil War.
The Franklin Street Presbyterian Church was founded in 1844. Its brick Gothic structure still stands on the corner of Cathedral and Franklin Street. In 1973, the two historic congregations united to form First & Franklin Presbyterian Church. Against this backdrop, First & Franklin has been defending social justice for labor unions, civil rights, women’s rights, and LGBTQIA+ rights in Baltimore for more than 260 years.
Changing Demographics in Baltimore
As early as 1905 leaders of the First Presbyterian Church at Park Ave and Madison St observed the changing demographics of Mt Vernon. The great families that had sustained them were moving out to the north and west of Baltimore and many of the big houses were turning into apartments. This influx of constantly changing residents contributed their part to these challenges. By 1955 it was obvious that the demographics of Mt. Vernon were shifting more dramatically and while many churches were relocating to the outlying vicinities, the Franklin Street Presbyterian Church recommitted itself to the city and to the challenges both physically and spiritually that lie ahead.
Because of the fear of arrest, secrecy, and the necessarily opaque nature of the LGBTQIA+ community in Baltimore, the exact origins of social justice efforts to support this community are murky, but what could be said with certainty is that the Mt. Vernon neighborhood became the center of Baltimore’s LGBTQIA+ community in the mid to late 20th century. Social justice for First & Franklin therefore took the form of support for their LGBTQIA+ community neighbors, marching in pride parades, and supporting a street ministry to homeless and abused LGBTQIA+ individuals.
Into this context First & Franklin hired David Colman as associate pastor in 1978. A closeted gay man, David began an informal assessment of the community to focus social justice energies. The pastor at the time, James Bearden, gave David the space he needed to pursue his focus on a community that meant so much to him, and when pastor Bearden retired in 1983, David Colman stepped up to become interim pastor for two years.
In 1980, First & Franklin adopted “The More Light Statement,” which aligned themselves with a small but growing number of other congregations in search of a better understanding of issues surrounding gay and lesbian rights, welcoming all regardless of sexual orientation, and joining the Covenant Network of Presbyterians.
In 1982, David Colman began quietly finding ways to acknowledge same sex relationships. According to David:
“there was no guidance on what to call any kind of service of affirmation for same sex relationships. One thing was certain: such services were never confused with “Gay weddings”; something that was repeated several times during my conversations with a couple prior to their service of affirmation. I suspect that “Blessing Service” would be closest to what occurred, since not even the (Presbyterian) General Assembly had thought to limit what its clergy could or couldn’t bless.
I remember one in particular because it involved two women, one of whom was a police officer. What was memorable was the fact that her ex-husband was also a police officer, and she had grave concerns that he might show up and disturb the proceedings. He didn’t, but it added a layer of tension to the proceedings that they/we could have done without.
Another LGBTQIA+ issue that I got caught up in was police entrapment of gay men…I want to say Howard St. A man who attended First & Franklin…showed up at Backus House where I was then living (’78-’79) and explained that he had been arrested…As it turned out, it wasn’t the first time. I can’t remember her name, but he recommended a woman attorney whose husband owned a gay bar in W. Baltimore called Lynn’s. These kinds of cases turned out to be something of a specialty for her practice. I attended his hearing as a character witness. Subsequently, she and I met up for lunch; at which she opened my eyes to the extent of the entrapment problem. Several years later, a member of the church was also entrapped, this time at a prominent spot on a road the name of which is long forgotten. He was married and very shaken up. Guess who his attorney was? His character witness?
In between these two events, I was asked whether I would join with a few other clergy who planned to set up an appointment with the police to talk about their entrapment practices…The meeting took place. Nothing changed. But the church was present.
There was no blueprint in place for manifesting First & Franklin’s LGBTQIA+ aspirations. It was always a work in progress and a bit of a one-man band.”
First and Franklin Presbyterian Church and the Fight Against AIDS
In 1981, word of a Gay-Related Immune Deficiency or GRID first began to circulate. By 1983 the disease was spreading rapidly in Baltimore. Certain doctors at Johns Hopkins University began treating individuals with symptoms of what would become known as AIDS. In early spring of 1983, the first support group for people with AIDS began meeting in Dr. Bernie Branson’s office in the Medical Arts Building on Read St. By the end of April these meetings outgrew his office and the first AIDS Support Group outside of a clinical environment was held at First & Franklin on April 27th.
On June 8, 1983, Dr. Branson notes that local interest became overwhelming.
“I have plenty of recollections from that time period, and a few clippings as well. I’m not sure of the exact June 8 date – a group consisting of patients and their significant others began weekly meetings in my waiting room March 30, 1983. Because of extensive public interest, we soon outgrew the space; First & Franklin allowed us to meet there, and we held a public meeting for the community shortly thereafter.”
In 1985, it became clear that the suffering caused by the social isolation from the fear of AIDS was taking its toll on the physical and spiritual health of those infected with the disease. In response, First & Franklin began the “passing of the peace” through hugs and handshakes. That same year, a small but growing group of Presbyterian churches around the country were forming Presbyterians for Lesbians and Gay Concerns. That group held several of their national meetings at First & Franklin.
By 1986, the new pastor at First & Franklin, Harry Holfelder, gathered a group of like-minded denominations and congregations around downtown to establish the AIDS Interfaith Network, coordinating religious leaders in response to AIDS and leading to the establishment of a hospice for persons with AIDS in Baltimore.
First and Franklin Presbyterian Church and the Fight for LGBTQIA+ Equality
Around this time, David Colman met his partner, David Clarke. It was clear to David that he could no longer hide his relationship from his congregation and hold an official office in a national organization that prohibited his presence as a leader of the church. So, one day in early 1987, David announced his sexuality from the pulpit and resigned a few minutes later. Today he resides in Vermont with David Clarke.
All of this activity put First & Franklin at serious risk of offending the Presbyterian National Church, and exposing itself to dissolution of the congregation, closure, and seizure of its endowment. First & Franklin consistently worked with others to overture the national church to change their Book of Order regarding same-sex marriage and the ordination of gay and lesbian people.
As the pastor of First & Franklin, Allison Halseyfiled an Amicus Brief in 2009 and spoke at a state hearing in Annapolis promoting marriage equality in Maryland. The next year she began performing same-sex weddings. The very first was Phil Adams and Gary Norris on June 28, 2010. She subsequently performed three additional weddings before same sex marriage became legal in Maryland in 2013.
With the passage of the marriage equality act in 2015, many groups including First & Franklin relaxed their focus on LGBTQIA+ rights. First & Franklin took up the anti-gun violence cause in the city of Baltimore with their powerful weekly purple ribbon protest and their Guns to Gardens gun buyback program. However, it’s clear that the work of social justice for the LGBTQIA+ community is far from over. Recent state laws and efforts to silence this community have gained momentum. It’s clear that there is still work to be done.
First and Franklin Presbyterian Church Today
This year marks the 40th anniversary of the scourge of AIDS in Baltimore. In commemoration of the lives lost, First & Franklin will be hosting two panels of the NAMES Project AIDS Memorial Quilt. The quilts will be on display through June, on Wednesdays from 5:30pm to 7pm, and Saturdays and Sundays from noon to 2pm.
The church is located at 210 W. Madison St. Baltimore, MD 21201. www.firstfranklin.org
Our History, Our Heritage 