The History


For 173 years, Lagos has been arguably home to the oldest storey building in Nigeria.

The famous white one-storey building in Badagry is believed to be the oldest storey building in Nigeria. It might not be as old at the English’s Dover Castle. But it has stood over 170 years of Nigerian history to be recognized as a national monument.

Rev. Henry Townsend of the Church Missionary Society laid the foundation of the building in 1842, and it was completed 3 years later in 1845. The building was the cradle of western education in Nigeria. It was the site of the first school in Nigeria, the Nursery of infant Church. The school was founded by Rev. Golmer, and it was later renamed St, Thomas’ Anglican Nursery and Primary School.

The building was occupied by Bishop Ajayi Crowther, the first Anglican Bishop in Africa around the mid-1980s when he was translating the English Holy Bible to the Yoruba language.

The two copies of the Bible are presently preserved in a glass case in a room in the building. The English copy of the bible is presently 173 years old while the completed version is 170 years old.

The Records


The building is the Custodian of the oldest Bible written in an indigenous language in Nigeria. It is also reputed to be the first place Christianity was preached in Nigeria. This happened precisely at the site of the fallen Agiya tree by Thomas Birch Freeman and presently, a monument is standing there immortalizing that spot.

This building holds historical values to Christians in Nigeria. It attracts about 2000 visitors every year. But in 2016, 5140 people visited the old site while 9009 people visited in 2017.

The Controversies


History books tell us that the building is the oldest in Nigeria, but is this really true?

Some people claim that the 50-feet Gobarau Minaret is the oldest storey building in Nigeria. They claimed that this Minaret was built around 1348-1398. This was even before Nigeria had contact with the Europeans. This date makes the Minaret over 400 years older than the building in Badagry.

But you can tell us what you think by dropping a comment...

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