The first Baptist service in Melbourne was held in 1838 in a tent on a vacant allotment of land opposite the present church and where the Regent Theatre now stands.

[citation needed] In conformity with the Baptist dislike of decoration in churches, the interior has plain plastered walls.

Early Baptist tradition also disapproved of music in churches, but in 1854 a small organ was installed.

The church land grant extended through to 203 Little Collins Street, where a meeting room called Central Hall was built in 1852.

This was replaced in 1928 by an extension of the Victoria Palace hotel next door on Little Collins Street, with a new Central Hall on the ground level.

[1] Thomas Elias Ruth (1875–1956) was born in Devonshire and studied for holy orders in the Church of England but became a fervent Baptist.

degree at Bristol Baptist College and fought with distinction in the Royal Field Artillery during the WWI.

[5] He sailed for Australia aboard SS Aeneas,[6] and began preaching at Collins Street in September 1924.