The Facts
Building Type: Religious building
Built: 1953
Original Name: Lincoln Baptist Church
Church Closed: 2017
Structure: Masonry and brick
Parking: 55 spaces
Size: Approximately 11,400 square feet
Purchased by Holtz: 2018
When Lincoln Baptist Church was founded in 1953, an unusual provision was written into its bylaws: if the church ever closed its doors, ownership of the property would pass to the International Board of Jewish Missions.
When the church eventually closed in 2017, that provision came into effect. A year later, the International Board of Jewish Missions unexpectedly found itself the owner of an old Baptist church in Huntsville, Alabama.
Understandably surprised by the gift, representatives from the organization traveled to Huntsville to quickly sell the property.
Could you imagine being gifted a building out of the blue from a bylaw written in the 1950’s… crazy!
(Old School - I remember these from when I was a kid… found these in the foyer before cleaning it out)
My good friend and next door neighbor Jason Butler of Preservation Co. stumbled across the opportunity. Jason has always been good at knocking on doors and creating those opportune moments. He was generous enough to pass it along to us, knowing that we dreamed of one day owning our own flagship store for Holtz Leather Co.
Jason even provided some early hand drawn renderings that he did for us to get us excited about the potential of the old building allowing us to visualize its potential. This was pre-ai.
We purchased the building—but that dream would have to wait for the right moment.
