THE CHURCH THAT STARTED IN A MERRY GO ROUND

Mrs. Jeannette Dubois Meech was the wife of Rev. W. Meech, a Baptist pastor.   As a summer visitor to Holly Beach she took a keen interest in the religious life of the Island, often conducting cottage prayer meetings.  In the summer of 1888 she procured a tent and pitched it on the beach where services were conducted.  Before long, however a bad windstorm ended the gospel mission of the tent, but Mrs. Meech continued holding meetings in homes or pavilions.  

Early in the summer of 1892, a merry-go-round building was erected and a merry-go-round installed.  Meetings were now held in the carousel building.  

On August 31, 1892 the corner stone was laid for the First Church, being built on Pine Avenue.  The cornerstone was laid by the Secretary of the N.J. Baptist Convention.  

In 1906 there was a decision to move the church from the Pine Avenue site to the corner of Maple and Pacific Avenues.  By Easter Sunday, April 15, 1906 the buiding was on the new location where an outdoor service was held in connection with the re-laying of the cornerstone.  

In 1923 ground was broken at the corner of Maple and Atlantic Avenues for our current church building.  The cornerstone was laid January 5, 1924.  The first service in the new building was held Sunday, July 13, 1924. 

 THE ORGAN AT FIRST BAPTIST   

The organ in our church was built by M.P. Moller, Inc. Hagerstown, Maryland, and contains a total of 1,830 pipes.  The organ was heard for the first time at our services of February 12, 1956 with formal dedication Sunday March 11, as the "Sarah E. Rice Memorial Organ", presented by her children.     

The organ is divided into four sections, known as the Great organ, the Choir organ, the Swell organ, and the Pedal organ, each of which has a separate group of pipes.