Centralia is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...

located in

Chesterfield County, Virginia Chesterfield County is located just south of Richmond in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The county's borders are primarily defined by the James River to the north and the Appomattox River to the south. Its county seat is Chesterfield Court H ...

. The community is situated at the intersection of

Virginia State Route 145 State Route 145 (SR 145) is a primary state highway in the U.S. state of Virginia. The state highway runs from SR 10 in Chesterfield east to U.S. Route 1 and US 301 in Bellwood in eastern Chesterfield County. Route description SR 145 begin ...

and State Route 144. It was so named because it was located at the midpoint of the old

Richmond and Petersburg Railroad The Richmond and Petersburg Railroad moved passengers and goods between Richmond and Petersburg from 1838 to 1898. It survived the American Civil War and eventually merged into the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad in 1900. History The Richmond and Pe ...

, later the

Atlantic Coast Line Railroad The Atlantic Coast Line Railroad was a United States Class I railroad formed in 1900, though predecessor railroads had used the ACL brand since 1871. In 1967 it merged with long-time rival Seaboard Air Line Railroad to form the Seaboard Coast L ...

and today owned and operated by

CSX CSX Transportation , known colloquially as simply CSX, is a Class I freight railroad operating in the Eastern United States and the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. The railroad operates approximately 21,000 route miles () of track. ...

. A historical marker was erected in 2014 by The Department of Historic Resources which says: "In 1867, the

African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...

members of nearby Salem Baptist Church separated and founded Salem African Baptist Church. The new

congregation A congregation is a large gathering of people, often for the purpose of worship. Congregation may also refer to: * Church (congregation), a Christian organization meeting in a particular place for worship *Congregation (Roman Curia), an administr ...

held worship services under a brush arbor before constructing a building here on a one-acre tract deeded in 1869 by members of the

mother church Mother church or matrice is a term depicting the Christian Church as a mother in her functions of nourishing and protecting the believer. It may also refer to the primary church of a Christian denomination or diocese, i.e. a cathedral or a metropo ...

. The congregation soon changed its name to First Baptist Church (Centralia). Early in the 20th century, members erected a large new

sanctuary A sanctuary, in its original meaning, is a sacred place, such as a shrine. By the use of such places as a haven, by extension the term has come to be used for any place of safety. This secondary use can be categorized into human sanctuary, a sa ...

incorporating elements of the Gothic Revival and Colonial Revival styles. Razed by fire in 1996, this structure was rebuilt to original specifications in 1997, In 1963, the growing congregation moved two miles east."

References

Unincorporated communities in Chesterfield County, Virginia Greater Richmond Region Unincorporated communities in Virginia {{ChesterfieldCountyVA-geo-stub