Brief History of Shiloh Baptist Church
Shiloh Baptist Church was organized on July 17, 1899, in the home of Brother and Sister Richard and Eliza Jones at 124 Winyah Avenue, New Rochelle, New York. Eliza and Richard Jones were former slaves who traveled by freight boat from North Carolina to New Rochelle after the Emancipation Proclamation and settled in New Rochelle with their three young sons. In addition to the Joneses, the following people were present at the organizational meeting of the church: Rev. J.A. Sumler, became the first pastor, Rev. Robert Burk also pastured for a few months and William A Bagley served as acting church clerk. This was the beginning of the new church.
Rev. Dr. William Henry Slater
On July 12, 1900, the Rev. Dr. William Henry Slater came to Shiloh’s first meeting place at 13 Railroad Avenue and offered to preach the sermon that day. He was later asked to preach the sermon in the evening as the pastor, Rev. Sumler was absent. Rev. Slater was then officially called to serve as pastor of Shiloh on November 3, 1900.
Rev. William Henry Slater was born on May 16, 1868, in Alexandria, Virginia. He completed his religious studies in Amity Bible School in New York City and Virginia Theological Seminary and College in Lynchburg, Virginia, where he received his Honorary Degree of Doctor of Divinity in May 1911.
As the new pastor of Shiloh Baptist Church, Rev. Slater held the first revival services, an Easter Rally and introduced the members to the New York Clergymen. On May 6, 1903, the members purchased a lot on Railroad Avenue. In December 1905, Shiloh was incorporated. In 1906, the church exchanged the lot on Railroad Avenue for one on Winthrop Avenue.
In June 1908, there was groundbreaking for the new church and on December 13, 1908, a Dedicatory Service was held. In 1924, the new edifice was erected on Winthrop Avenue.
On June 2, 1913, Rev. Slater married Miss Nancy F. Hill of Brooklyn, NY. From this union three children were born. They were Thomas Henry, Clora Ann and Laura Evelyn. After a long illness, Rev. Dr. William Henry Slater died on January 24, 1945, after serving as Pastor of Shiloh Baptist Church in New Rochelle, New York for 45 years.
Rev. Dr. Huston Crutchfield, Sr.
Assumed the leadership of Shiloh Baptist Church in January 1946 and was formally installed as the pastor on April 7, 1946. Rev. Dr. Huston Crutchfield, Sr. was born on August 26, 1900, in Washington, D.C. to Carmelia Robinson and Lucius Crutchfield. He studied theology at Hartford Seminary, Hartford, Connecticut, the Baptist Educational Center, New York, New York, and the Virginia Theological Seminary and College where he received his Honorary Doctor of Divinity Degree on May 27, 1961.
Rev. Crutchfield was known as a kind and generous man with a humble spirit. He was an effective leader and was blessed with people who were willing to follow his wise leadership and share a common dream to build.
On August 7, 1946, a committee was formed to purchase the present site at 185 Lincoln Avenue. In 1953 the work began, and it took ten years to complete Shiloh Baptist Church at 185 Lincoln Avenue. The members marched with pride into the new sanctuary on June 5, 1960. Rev. Crutchfield was given the honorary title of Pastor Emeritus and the library was named in his honor. Rev. Crutchfield died at Grasslands Hospital (Westchester Medical Center) and his funeral services were held at Shiloh on February 5, 1972.
Rev. Dr. Calvin G. Sampson, Sr.
On February 3, 1972, Rev. Sampson accepted the call as God inspired and directed him, and he assumed his pastoral duties on June 4, 1972. He was installed on September 24, 1972. Rev. Sampson was born on September 25, 1942, in the Bronx, New York to Ethel Taylor and Artwell Sampson. He attended New York University and Lynchburg College in Lynchburg, Virginia and received a BA Degree in Sociology. He continued his education at Drew University and received a Bachelor of Divinity and a Master of Divinity Degree in Pastoral Counseling from New York Theological Seminary in New York City. He received the LLD (Doctor of Laws for pastoral work in the ministry) from Lynchburg College in Lynchburg Virginia.
Pastor Sampson embarked upon a campaign for increased religious education and participation of the Shiloh Church community. A Junior Church program was conceived and a church newspaper, “Shiloh Speaks”, was launched. The Senior Citizens Group, the youth basketball teams, the Angelic Ensemble, Board of Christian Education, the Helping Hands Committee, the Women’s Choir, the Nurses Unit, the Shiloh Scholarship Committee, and an after-school tutorial program were all put in place. Rev. Sampson became the host of the “Westchester Church News” radio broadcast on WVOX.
The members of Shiloh benefited greatly from the efforts of Rev. Dr. Calvin G. Sampson, Sr. who strove to keep all of Shiloh “committed to the cause, dedicated to the duty, and pledged to the progress of the church.” Rev. Dr. Calvin G. Sampson, Sr. remained the Pastor until 1989.
Rev. Jimmie Brown
Rev. Jimmie Brown was called and installed in June 1991. Rev. Jimmie Brown was born on June 24, 1941, to James Louis Brown and Florence Spry-Brown of Savannah, Georgia. Rev. Brown obtained a Bachelor of Science Degree in Chemistry and his Master’s Degree in Chemistry and General Science. Rev. Brown was granted the New York State Teacher Certificate in Science Education. He also taught chemistry in the Yonkers School System for many years. Rev. Brown married Lucile Evans in 1965 and had a son, Stephen James, and an adopted daughter.
Rev. Brown joined Shiloh in 1973 and entered New York Theological Seminary in 1982 and did his trial sermon in 1983 and served as an Assistant pastor and later was called to the Senior Pastor’s position. During his tenure as pastor, he established the Outreach Committee which was dedicated to community evangelism and meeting the needs of the poor. He also established an external certificate program in collaboration with The Evangelical Training Association in Wheaton Illinois for teachers providing in-service training and offering college credits. The church adopted the Angel Tree program which gave gifts to the children of inmates at Christmas time. He established a Women’s Ministry and a Sunday morning daycare for infants and toddlers. Rev. Brown’s goal was to see Shiloh become a tithing church and an evangelistic church. Rev. Brown strongly emphasized, “We should always help someone in need; and anything short of that, we are just spinning our wheels. This is the essence of my ministry. Only what we do for Christ will last.” After the death of his beloved wife, he retired from Shiloh in 2004.
Rev. Dr. DeQuincy M. Hentz
Dr. DeQuincy M. Hentz was the fifth Pastor of the Shiloh Baptist Church. He was called to the pastorate of Shiloh in March 2005. Pastor Hentz was a native of Greenwood, South Carolina.
He was a 1996 Cum Laude graduate of Morehouse College, where he received his Bachelor of Arts Degree in Religion and History. In 1999, he received his Master of Divinity Degree from the Howard University School of Divinity.
Since Pastor Hentz’s arrival at Shiloh in July 2005, church attendance more than tripled and over 800 new disciples were added to the Shiloh family. Ministries within the church and outreach to the community have expanded. Under his dynamic leadership, the church’s vision of a 40-unit Senior Housing complex was realized, and the facility was opened to residents in January 2013.
Pastor Hentz was an activist and leader on both a local and national scale. He was a leader of the “Enough is Enough” Campaign for Corporate Responsibility in Entertainment- a 15-month protest in New York City and Washington, D.C. From 2004 to 2008, he served as a Co-Convener for the Progressive National Baptist Convention’s Minister’s Seminar. He served on the Executive Boards of the Interreligious Council of New Rochelle (Executive Vice President), the Christian Action Ministry, the New Rochelle Branch of the NAACP (Housing Committee Chair), and the New Rochelle Community Action Program.
Dr Hentz was a gifted man of God who was frequently called upon to preach for varying audiences of all ages across the nation near and far. He was included as a contributor to a book honoring the golden (50th) anniversary of the Progressive National Baptist Convention entitled The Best of PNBC: The First 50 Years, Volume Three. In January 2018 Pastor Hentz defended and received the Doctor of Arts in Marriage and Family Studies from Eastern University, Philadelphia, PA. This man of God clearly distinguished himself among the most gifted, yet he continued to remain humble to his calling and ministry. After an extended illness, Rev. Dr. DeQuincy M. Hentz departed this life on December 25, 2020.
Rev. Dr. Henry Lee Jordan, Jr.
On June 25, 2023 Shiloh called our 6th Pastor, the Rev. Dr. Henry Lee Jordan, Jr who started his ministry here on September 3, 2023 and was installed on December 9, 2023.
Dr. Jordan believes in teaching the word of God in ways that motivate and provide principles of living Kingdom lives here on earth until our last days. Within his pastoral role, week after week, Dr. Jordan continues to shepherd the congregation, share the love of Jesus Christ, preach Gospel messages to encourage non-believers how to inherit eternal life, while navigating believers into the ways of living Christian quality lives and spiritual excellence.
Dr. Jordan married his teenage sweetheart Lady Tia in 2002 and is the proud devoted father of Henry III and Layla Jordan.
He received his Bachelor of Arts degree in Theology from Chelsea University and his Doctoral Degree in Divinity from St. Thomas Christian University.
Rev. Dr. William H. Slater
Rev. Dr. Houston Crutchfield, Sr.
Rev. Dr. Calvin G. Sampson, Sr.
Rev. Jimmie Brown
Rev. Dr. DeQuincy M. Hentz
Rev. Dr. H. Lee Jordan, Jr.
