Mount Zion Missionary Baptist Church has been a center of spiritual, social and economic life since San Diego's first Black pioneers settled here over a century ago. The Mount Zion Baptist Church was the first in Logan Heights.

In 1895, in the month of May, the Lord came to Sister Joella Lee Freeman in a vision and said to her, "The time is ripe. I want a church established in the next street, in the middle of the block!"

She told some of the old timers of the vision and on a Wednesday night they met at the home of Sister Freeman on Martin Avenue and held a wonderful prayer meeting. After several Wednesday night meetings for about one month, Sister Freeman was given papers signed by seven members with the desire to establish a church. The papers were taken to the Mayor of San Diego and to the City Council, who willingly signed papers authorizing her to collect funds to purchase the ground on which a small building was standing.

Sister Freeman had success wherever she went to solicit funds. She received a check from Mayor J. Wilds and also a check from the City Council. With this money, they drew up a contract and agreed to purchase the two lots on Greely Avenue. A small dwelling on the property was removed, room dividers were removed and a pulpit was made. (Although deed research shows that Mrs. Olive Luscomb and C. E. Luscomb purchased the property in 1895 and sold it to the church's trustees in October 1897, the Luscombs may have been church members and made the purchase for the church before the formal sale two years later).

In the month of July 1895, seven ministers from Los Angeles came down with nine members. The Mount Zion Baptist Church was organized with Reverend Pius as the first Minister. Sister Freeman organized a Missionary Society, of which she was President for many years. Reverend Pius pastored the church for a little over a year and the membership increased to about 25 members.

Reverend McCarty supplied the pulpit for a few months, when Reverend Langley was then called. After Reverend Langley, Reverend R.V. Green supplied the pulpit for about six months.