(KSDK) - The National Baptist Convention will be held in St. Louis next week.  The convention begins June 18 and will conclude June 22.

In a news conference held Friday morning at City Hall, city officials said 25,000 delegates are expected to attend the event.  The convention is expected to utilize 15,000 room nights and generate an estimated $16 million in direct spending.

The National Baptist Convention, founded in 1886, is the nation's oldest and largest African-American religious convention.