First Baptist Church, Lakeland, Architectural and Historical Survey.

Abstract

Religion and education are key foundational elements in the establishment of the built environment of Lakeland, a historic African American community, located adjacent to the University of Maryland in College Park, Maryland and in close proximity to the nation's capital, Washington DC. They make up paramount and essential elements to the history and culture of African American communities. This paper aims at providing a comprehensive architectural and historic survey report on the First Baptist Church of Lakeland, with the goal of preserving the remaining built environment’s cultural resources of the Lakeland community, facilitating efforts of restorative justice, and in developing a National Register of Historic Places nomination or a multiple property nomination, adding to the effort and great work already done by the Lakeland Community Heritage project. This study will use research and methodology from primary and secondary resources as well as 3D digital documentation to create a 3D model of the church. Digital documentation has proven vital in historically African American neighborhoods and the impact of urban renewal and segregation on the creation (and threat of demolition and neglect) of the built environment.