(former) Vinland Presbyterian Church - Vinland, Kansas - Presbyterian Churches on Waymarking.com

My Commentary
It appears that some repairs have been completed on the old church, however, it looks like the building could use some paint. This is a really nice example of Gothic Revival architecture. The church is now a private residence.

The Vinland Presbyterian Church is located on slightly less than one acre that comprises lot 3 in Vinland, once a thriving farm community in northern Palmyra Township in southeastern Douglas County, Kansas. It has a western facade orientation with a large, open yard in the front. Beyond the yard, trains of the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe Railroad passed by daily during most of the church's years of active use. The church's northern property line is Douglas County Highway 460. Across the highway, a hillside pasture is surmounted by a large Victorian home built by nurseryman William E. Barnes in the late 1800s. Barnes is often called the "father of Vinland" because he donated land for many of the town's buildings, including the Presbyterian Church.

The church building is a one-story wood frame structure built in the Gothic Revival style. It consists of a sanctuary, which was completed in 1879, and a Sunday School classroom added in 1910. The classroom was converted to a 1 1/2-story residence with two small additions in the 1980s. Aside from these additions, the original structure is largely intact.

The sanctuary is of a simple rectangular floor plan with a front-gabled roof. Its most distinctive feature is a decorative steeple that reaches a height of 50 feet.

The sanctuary is entered through a vestibule, which is centered on the building's west elevation. The vestibule has a sloping, shed roof and paired front doors that are lancet-shaped and made of diagonal beaded tongue and groove.

Pointed-arch windows are on the north and south walls of the vestibule. On the west wall of the sanctuary, to each side of the vestibule, are four-over-four windows that originally were shuttered. Immediately above the vestibule roofline is a pointed-arch window.

Above the vestibule - at the gable's peak - is an exposed, timber-framed belfry surmounted with a four-sided, steep pitched roof that is crowned with a decorative metal finial. The steeple's lower, enclosed portion is wood-sided on four sides and, on the western face, contains a decorative, diamond-shaped wood medallion. Brackets support the overhanging box-like base of the steeple.

The north elevation of the sanctuary contains three Gothic pointed-arch windows that retain the wood louvers in their pointed arches.

The east elevation contains a pair of Gothic pointed-arch windows that flank the interior pulpit area. The windows originally held stained-glass windows given by an anonymous donor. After the church's abandonment, the stained glass windows were stolen. One window was located later and reinstalled in the south opening.

The south elevation originally was symmetrical to the north elevation, with three Gothic pointed-arch windows. A one-story Sunday School classroom addition was built on this side in 1910 and a 1 1/2-story residential addition was constructed in 1980 covering one of the window openings.

The gable roof, originally wood-shingled, now has been replaced with asphalt shingles on the north slope. The south slope, which has a brick chimney, remains covered with wood shingles. Metal-lined gutters are built into the eaves on the north. The south slopes contain wood gutters.

- National Register Application

Vinland Presbyterian Church is a historic church in Baldwin, Kansas. Its Gothic Revival style building was constructed in 1879 and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2003.

It was nominated for the National Register on basis of its Gothic Revival architecture, which includes a steep roof, pointed-arch windows, and tower.

- Vinland Presbyterian Church wikipedia page

Vinland Presbyterian Church
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1879 Sanctuary built. Gothic Revival Architectural style.	2001 Vinland Preservation, L.L.C. formed by
1910 Sunday School room added.	neighbors to preserve the building and the
1919 James Naismith, inventor of basketball,	residential character of the neighborhood.
was pastor for 2 years.	2003 Placed on National Register of Historic Places.
1954 Church disbanded. Building sold to private owners.	2004 Vinland Preservation, L.L.C. needs cash
1960's Sunday School addition remodeled into private	donations to match the HTF grant for sanctuary
residence.	preservation.
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To Help, Send Donations to:
Lawrence Preservation Alliance
P.O. Box 1073 • Lawrence KS 66044
"For Vinland Presbyterian Church"	"For information, call: 785-594-3801"
Not open to the public. Please respect the privacy of the current residents.

- Marker Text

Presbyterian Denomination: Vacant/Inactive Status: Converted to other use Address: 697 East 1725 Road Vinland, KS USA 66006 Date Built: 1879 Architect: unknown Relevant Web Site: [Web Link]

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