Westover Church is a historic church located west of Charles City off

Virginia State Route 5 Virginia State Route 5 (SR 5) is a primary state highway in the Virginia, Commonwealth of Virginia. It runs between the independent city, independent cities of Richmond, Virginia, Richmond and Williamsburg, Virginia, Williamsburg. Between Charle ...

Charles City, Virginia Charles City is a census-designated place (CDP) in Charles City County, Virginia, United States. It is the county seat of Charles City County. The population as of the 2020 census was 104. The community is centered on the Charles City County Cou ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. It was built in 1731 and 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 v ...

in 1972.

Theodorick Bland of Westover Theodorick Bland (January 16, 1629 – April 23, 1671), also known as Theodorick Bland of Westover, was a planter, merchant and politician in colonial Virginia. Early and family life Born in London, he served as his family's business agent ...

, Walter Aston, and

William Byrd I William Byrd I (1652 – December 4, 1704) was an English-born Virginia colonist and politician. He came from Shadwell, London where his father John Bird (c. 1620–1677) was a goldsmith. His family's ancestral roots were in Cheshire. Personal li ...

are buried near the original site of the Westover Church. The tomb of Benjamin Harrison IV has also been reported to be on the grounds.

History

Between 1611 and 1613, as the colonists moved west from Jamestown, several small parishes were formed, Weyanoke, Wallingford, and Wilmington, among others. These parishes later merged and became Westover Parish in 162

In 1724 Westover Parish became and remains coterminous with

Charles City County Charles City County is a county located in the U.S. commonwealth of Virginia. The county is situated southeast of Richmond and west of Jamestown. It is bounded on the south by the James River and on the east by the Chickahominy River. The ...

. The predecessor of the existing Westover Church was constructed between 1630 and 1637 on the grounds at Westover. The present sanctuary was completed circa 1730 at its present site on Herring Creek about 1 ½ miles north of the Westover mansion. The ending of support by public taxation for the Church at the start of the American Revolution in 1776, followed by the

disestablishment The separation of church and state is a philosophical and jurisprudential concept for defining political distance in the relationship between religious organizations and the state. Conceptually, the term refers to the creation of a secular stat ...

of the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britain ...

in America in 1784 resulted in a period of decline. Westover Church was finally abandoned in 1803, and later even used as a barn for a period, during the three decades that services of the Protestant Episcopal Church of Virginia lapsed completely in Charles City County. However, in about 1833 religious services were revived by a missionary to the county, the Reverend Parke Farley Berkeley. At this time the Church structure was repaired and restored, principally through the efforts of the

Harrison family The Harrison family of Virginia is an American family with a history in politics, public service, and religious ministry, beginning in the Colony of Virginia during the 1600’s. Their descendants include a Founding Father of the United States, ...

of nearby Berkley Plantation and the Carters of

Shirley Plantation Shirley Plantation is an estate located on the north bank of the James River in Charles City County, Virginia, USA. It is located on scenic byway State Route 5, between Richmond and Williamsburg. It is the oldest active plantation in Virgi ...

a few miles west. During the American Civil War the church was badly damaged by Federal troops, who used the church as a stable for their horses. Following the war, services were restored in 1867 and Westover Church has been used faithfully ever since. Worshipers at Westover have included farmers, plantation owners, slaves, as well as US Presidents

George Washington George Washington (February 22, 1732, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of th ...

Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson (April 13, 1743 – July 4, 1826) was an American statesman, diplomat, lawyer, architect, philosopher, and Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father who served as the third president of the United States from 18 ...

William Henry Harrison William Henry Harrison (February 9, 1773April 4, 1841) was an American military officer and politician who served as the ninth president of the United States. Harrison died just 31 days after his inauguration in 1841, and had the shortest pres ...

John Tyler John Tyler (March 29, 1790 – January 18, 1862) was the tenth president of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president dire ...

, and

Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. ( ; October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), often referred to as Teddy or by his initials, T. R., was an American politician, statesman, soldier, conservationist, naturalist, historian, and writer who served as the 26t ...

References

{{National Register of Historic Places in Virginia Churches in Virginia Churches completed in 1731 Churches in Charles City County, Virginia Churches on the National Register of Historic Places in Virginia National Register of Historic Places in Charles City County, Virginia Episcopal churches in Virginia 18th-century Episcopal church buildings