In Badagry, Lagos State, a historic well has become one of the town’s most intriguing landmarks. Known as the Miracle Well, it is associated with the compound of Nigeria’s first storey building and has attracted visitors interested in its age, its water and the stories of healing connected to it.
The Well Beside Nigeria’s First Storey Building
The story of the Miracle Well is closely connected to the early Christian missions in Badagry. In 1842, missionaries associated with the Church Missionary Society established a presence in the town. Their activities contributed to the growth of a Christian community and the establishment of a permanent missionary residence.
The residence later became known as Nigeria’s first storey building. Completed in 1845 under the supervision of the Reverend Charles Andrew Gollmer, it remains one of Badagry’s most recognised historical structures.
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The well, dug within the compound in 1842, provided a necessary source of water for the people living and working there. At a time when reliable access to water was essential to daily life, a well within the compound would have been a valuable facility.
The building is also associated with the wider history of early Christianity in Nigeria, including the work of missionaries and African converts such as Samuel Ajayi Crowther, who later became the first African Anglican bishop. Together, the building and the well preserve the memory of a period when Badagry was an important centre of missionary activity.
Although the building is the better known monument, the well has developed a distinct identity of its own.
The Stories Behind the Name
The well became widely known as the Miracle Well because of stories about the effects of its water. Visitors have associated it with healing, answered prayers, fertility and good fortune. For many believers, drinking the water is an act of faith and a way of seeking divine intervention in their lives.
The well’s reputation became particularly prominent through accounts of religious gatherings at the historic compound. In religious revival held in 1988, during the programme, a young girl was said to have received a spiritual revelation that the water possessed healing properties. The story became part of the tradition surrounding the well and helped attract people from different religious backgrounds.
Over time, visitors began travelling to the site with personal hopes and prayers. Some came seeking relief from illness, while others hoped for children, good fortune or solutions to difficult circumstances. These stories helped transform the well from a practical water source into a destination of religious and cultural interest.
The name Miracle Well reflects these beliefs and experiences. Its reputation has continued through local storytelling, religious gatherings and reports about people who visit the compound in search of blessings.
Why the Water Continues to Attract Visitors
Another feature frequently associated with the Miracle Well is the reported quality of its water. Accounts from visitors and local guides describe it as clear, fresh and odourless. Some reports also state that the well has continued to provide water through dry seasons, when other wells in the area may experience reduced supplies.
Its reported longevity has contributed to the fascination surrounding it. A water source that has served generations of people naturally becomes an important part of local memory, particularly when it remains connected to a building that has survived since the nineteenth century.
The well is also popularly described as the first cemented well in Badagry and Lagos State. Some accounts go further and identify it as Nigeria’s first well of its kind. Its documented association with the missionary compound dates to 1842, making it an important feature of the area’s early missionary history.
For visitors, the appeal lies in experiencing a historical structure that remains part of the compound rather than simply reading about it. The well offers a tangible connection to the people who lived and worked in the residence nearly two centuries ago.
A Living Part of Badagry’s Heritage
The Miracle Well forms part of a wider collection of historical landmarks that make Badagry significant in Nigerian history. The town preserves buildings and monuments associated with early Christian missions, the development of Western education and the transatlantic slave trade.
The First Storey Building provides a particularly important setting for understanding the well’s history. Its construction marked the establishment of a permanent missionary residence, and the compound became associated with the work of early Christian figures, including Samuel Ajayi Crowther.
The well adds another dimension to this history. While the building recalls the activities of the missionaries, the water source illustrates the practical needs of everyday life in the compound. Its later reputation reveals how a historical structure can acquire new meanings through religious belief and community memory.
Visitors who come to Badagry to see the First Storey Building often encounter the Miracle Well as part of the same heritage experience. Together, they offer a glimpse into the town’s nineteenth-century past and the traditions that have developed around its surviving landmarks.
The Miracle Well remains an enduring attraction because its story brings together history, faith and local identity. Dug in 1842, it has become much more than a source of water. It is a reminder of Badagry’s missionary past and a place where generations of visitors have continued to find personal and spiritual meaning.
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Author’s Note
The Miracle Well in Badagry has been part of the historic First Storey Building compound since 1842. Originally serving as a source of water for the missionary residence, it later became famous for stories of healing, answered prayers and blessings. Today, the well remains an important feature of Badagry’s heritage, drawing visitors interested in both its nineteenth-century history and the beliefs that have shaped its reputation.
References
The Punch. “Untold Story of Nigeria’s 170-Year-Old Slave Wells.” 25 February 2017.
The Nigerian Voice. “Visit Badagry for a Harvest of Firsts.” 15 March 2010.
Badagry Local Government. “Historical Monuments.” Official local government website.
National Library of Nigeria. “The Picture of the First Storey Building in Nigeria.” Nigeria Repository.
The Nation Newspaper. “Travelogue: Journey to Badagry’s Historic Sites.” 2024.
New Telegraph. “Healing Power of Water from Nigeria’s First Well, Still Celebrated 184 Years After.” 3 September 2026.
