Asbury UMC, Natchitoches partners on tri-centennial concert

Asbury United Methodist Church, Natchitoches and Cane River Creole National Historical Park are partnering to present a free concert Feb. 7 at 7 p.m. celebrating the Natchitoches tri-centennial. The concert will feature musicians from New Orleans Jazz National Historical Park playing selections from their acclaimed CD collection, “Freedom is Coming: Songs of Freedom, Resistance, and the Underground Railroad.”

The concert will take place at historic Asbury UMC, 704 5th St. According to the late historian Robert B. DeBlieux, “Rev. Ebenezer Haywood, a clergyman of the Methodist faith, formed an association of 100 members. Each person paid one dollar for membership and made a monthly contribution of a quarter of a dollar; these funds were applied to church construction. In December of 1866, Methodist Episcopal Society of New York allotted $2,000 to aid in the creation of Rev. Haywood’s church on the corner of Rue St. Denis and 5th Street. Thus began Asbury United Methodist Church, the first black church in Natchitoches.” Find event flyer here.