Historic Eau Gallie Church Closes After More Than Six Decades of Ministry

MELBOURNE — After more than six decades of ministry on the Space Coast, Harbor City Baptist Church in Eau Gallie is closing its doors.

The congregation's final service was held Sunday, May 10, bringing to a close a chapter of Brevard County church history that stretched back to 1963.

“Our Lord Jesus used our church family for over six decades to advance His kingdom,” Pastor Matthew Simpson wrote in a statement shared on the church's Facebook page reflecting on the closure. “Remember, this world is not our home. We are heaven bound.”

The church, which sits on a large tract of land between North Harbor City Boulevard and Pineapple Avenue in Melbourne, leaves behind a storied legacy in Brevard. Among its former pastors was the late Jamie Buckingham, a prominent voice in the Charismatic Renewal movement. Buckingham would later found The Tabernacle in Melbourne, a congregation that became the largest church in East Central Florida during the 1980s and early 1990s, drawing more than 4,000 worshippers at its peak.

Originally founded by independent Baptist believers, Harbor City Baptist was at one time affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention. It spent its final years as a Reformed Baptist congregation holding to the 1689 London Baptist Confession.

Simpson was called as the church's eighth and final pastor in 2023. Prior to serving at Harbor City, he ministered as a military chaplain while stationed at Patrick Air Force Base.

The sale of the church's property was finalized earlier this month to a private buyer. Church leaders directed proceeds from the sale to several local congregations recommended as “faithful to the Lord and the Bible,” including Suntree Grace Church, Risen Life Church, and Trinity Church of Melbourne.

Local pastor Seth Tweeddale remembers Harbor City Baptist as the church his grandfather once pastored and where he grew up attending AWANA.

“Harbor City Baptist Church’s closing is deeply personal to me. While my grandfather was pastoring there, he led a man to Christ in a Home Depot line then led that man’s whole family to the Lord. One of those children became my wife ten years later,” Tweeddale said.

Tweeddale said he mourns the loss of Harbor City Baptist while remaining encouraged that the church’s Gospel legacy will continue through the broader body of Christ in Brevard. He expressed hope that the closure would serve as a reminder of the importance of cooperation among local congregations and encourage churches to support one another rather than operate in isolation.

"Churches cannot afford to be islands unto themselves. We need one another. We must labor together as the body of Christ, united around the Gospel, for the sake of our communities, our families, and the next generation, Tweeddale said. "If there is another church in Brevard that is struggling, isolated, or in need of encouragement, I would love to be a support and help connect you with other likeminded congregations. We need to strengthen what remains, encourage one another, and stand together as a united front for the Gospel of Jesus Christ."

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