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St. Marks Presbyterian Church (Rogersville, Tennessee)

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Coordinates: 36°24′34″N 83°0′29″W / 36.40944°N 83.00806°W / 36.40944; -83.00806
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St. Marks Presbyterian Church
St. Marks Presbyterian Church (Rogersville, Tennessee) is located in Tennessee
St. Marks Presbyterian Church (Rogersville, Tennessee)
St. Marks Presbyterian Church (Rogersville, Tennessee) is located in the United States
St. Marks Presbyterian Church (Rogersville, Tennessee)
LocationJct. of N. Hassen and W. Kyle Sts., Rogersville, Tennessee, U.S.
Coordinates36°24′34″N 83°0′29″W / 36.40944°N 83.00806°W / 36.40944; -83.00806
Arealess than one acre
Built1912
Architectural styleShingle Style
MPSRural African-American Churches in Tennessee MPS
NRHP reference No.06000132[1]
Added to NRHPMarch 10, 2006

St. Marks Presbyterian Church is a historic African-American Presbyterian church in Rogersville, Tennessee. Its building was added to the list of National Register of Historic Places in March 10, 2006.[2]

History

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The congregation was established in about 1875. Rev. William Henderson Franklin was its first minister, serving from 1883 until 1926.[2][3][4] Franklin was also the founding president of Swift Memorial Junior College in Rogersville, with which the church was closely associated.[5] Swift students and faculty were required to attend worship at St. Marks twice each week.[2]

The church building is located at the junction of N. Hassen and W. Kyle Streets in Rogersville. The site was purchased some time after 1885 for the campus of Swift Memorial Junior College.[6] The church was built in 1912.[2] It is a wood-frame building on a brick foundation with decorative patterned wood shingles, a characteristic of Shingle Style architecture. It has a high peaked roof with a tower on one side of the roof peak. Stained-glass windows are a prominent feature of the sanctuary.[4][2] There are two front entrances to the building; the western door was originally for women and the eastern door was for men.[2] Men and women formerly sat separately during services.[2]

Swift Memorial College closed in 1955 due to financial problems. St. Marks Church and other properties associated with college were sold to Hawkins County the following year, but the St. Marks congregation was permitted to continue using the church building. A day care center operated in the church basement between 1973 and 1979.[2]

With dwindling membership, the St. Marks congregation stopped holding regular worship services in 2000 and dissolved in 2002.[4][2] Its building was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2006 for its importance to the local African-American community and as a "fine example of 20th-century Shingle Style architecture".[1][7] The Rogersville Historic District, which the church property abuts, does not include any buildings in the Shingle Style; this architectural style is uncommon in East Tennessee.[2]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j "National Register of Historic Places Registration Form: St. Marks Presbyterian Church" (PDF). Tennessee Historical Commission. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 26, 2006.
  3. ^ "Franklin, William Henderson". Who's Who in Colored America. Who's Who in Colored America Corporation. 1927. p. 65 – via Google Books.
  4. ^ a b c "St. Marks Presbyterian Church: front view". Center for Historic Preservation, Middle Tennessee State University. Retrieved March 15, 2014.
  5. ^ "Franklin, William Henderson". Who's Who in Colored America. Who's Who in Colored America Corporation. 1927. p. 65 – via Google Books.
  6. ^ "Rogersville, Tennessee Walking Tour". Rogersville Main Street Program. Archived from the original on March 15, 2014. Retrieved March 15, 2014.
  7. ^ Zachary, Jim (May 17, 2006). "St. Marks & Moore Farm added to National Register of Historic Places". The Rogersville Review. Archived from the original on March 15, 2014.
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