Laurel Hill Presbyterian Church is a historic
Presbyterian
Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...
church near
Laurinburg
Laurinburg is a city in and the county seat of Scotland County, North Carolina, Scotland County, North Carolina, United States. Located in southern North Carolina near the South Carolina border, Laurinburg is southwest of Fayetteville, North Car ...
,
Scotland County, North Carolina
Scotland County is a county located in the southern part of the U.S. state of North Carolina and is its smallest county by area. Its county seat is and largest city is Laurinburg. The county was formed in 1899 from part of Richmond County an ...
. The congregation was founded in 1797, and the current
meeting house was completed in early 1856. It is a two-story, gable front
Greek Revival
The Greek Revival was an architectural movement which began in the middle of the 18th century but which particularly flourished in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, predominantly in northern Europe and the United States and Canada, but a ...
style frame building. The land on which the church stands was donated by planter and politician
Duncan McFarland. The current building was constructed between 1853 and 1856 by black freedman Jackson Graham under contract. The church was used for a short period by Union General
William Tecumseh Sherman
William Tecumseh Sherman ( ; February 8, 1820February 14, 1891) was an American soldier, businessman, educator, and author. He served as a general in the Union Army during the American Civil War (1861–1865), achieving recognition for his com ...
as his headquarters in March 1865 prior to the
Battle of Bentonville
The Battle of Bentonville (March 19–21, 1865) was fought in Johnston County, North Carolina, near the village of Bentonville, as part of the Western Theater of the American Civil War. It was the last battle between the armies of Union Maj ...
. It is the oldest church building in Scotland County.
[Kirkpatrick, G. F. 1931. Historical sketches of Laurel Hill and Smyrna Presbyterian Churches. N.p: n.p., 6, 16]
The building was added to the
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...
in 1983.
References
External links
YouTube video
Presbyterian churches in North Carolina
Churches on the National Register of Historic Places in North Carolina
Greek Revival church buildings in North Carolina
Churches completed in 1856
19th-century Presbyterian church buildings in the United States
Buildings and structures in Scotland County, North Carolina
National Register of Historic Places in Scotland County, North Carolina
Wooden churches in North Carolina
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