Early Commercial Store and Church Locations

This intersection of Jefferson Street and Gilmer Avenue hosts an early commercial building, Moses Store (circa 1900), which housed a family grocery store and residence (on second floor).

Across Gilmer Avenue is a vacant piece of property that once contained the historic First Baptist Church, which was constructed in 1898 and destroyed by a suspicious fire in 1995. The church was listed on the National Register of Historic Places for its significance to the black heritage of the Roanoke Valley and for the leadership of its long-term pastor, Reverend Arthur L. James.