Fazl-i-Umar Mosque

The Fazl-i-Umar Mosque in Dayton’s Miami Chapel neighborhood.

This is one of Dayton’s most historic houses of worship. It is Ohio’s first mosque and the first mosque built in the United States by African American converts to Islam. The property was donated to the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community in 1949.

Although they are one of the smaller Muslim sects, Ahmadiyya Muslims are well known for their charitable work. When I visited the mosque one day I met a man who wore a baseball cap with the name Humanity First. That’s their agency that does a lot of disaster relief work. The Ahmadiyya Muslims have also built more than 30 hospitals around the world.

Every Wednesday at 6:30 pm the mosque has something it calls “Coffee, Cake & True Islam.” Everyone is welcome, and you can ask questions about the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community or about Islam in general. For more information, call them at (937) 901-2408.

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