County of church: Lincoln County
Location of church: Auburn Church Rd., Just W. off Old Auburn Rd., 5 miles E. of Silex; 11 miles W. of Elsbarry, Auburn
Phone: (573) 384-6302
This particular church has the dual doors, and the one on the right is marked with the words Men and the one on the left has the image of a woman, like many use for rest room identification
"Two-Door Churches:
"Two-door churches are not considered a separate property type, but an interesting
phenomenon in the survey. Based on extant examples and historic photographs, rural
churches in the county often had two entrance doors of equal prominence on the facade—
one for women and one for men. ... with a central
exterior entrance leading to a small foyer at which point men and women traditionally
entered the church through separate doorways to sit in segregated pews.
"The segregation of the sexes was, ..., “the Presbyterian way” at least for a time in the 19th century. The tradition of
segregated entrances and seating was not limited to Presbyterians, but was common
among evangelical churches in the mid-19th century. ...
To classify as a “two-door” church, the buildings had to have two exterior
entrances treated “identically in terms of their placement in the façade, their size, and
their architectural styling and details.” In the study, examples were associated with
several Protestant denominations including Christian (a.k.a. Church of Christ/Disciples of Christ), Presbyterian, and Baptist churches.
"This resulted in many buildings constructed with separate entrances and segregated
interior seating. Though segregated, in most cases women were not relegated to the back
of the church nor was the status of women in the church diminished by providing
entrances of a different scale or decoration.
"The construction of two-door churches was by no means universal among frontier
Baptist, Christian and Presbyterian churches in Kentucky or Missouri. However, there is
evidence in historic photographs and the design of extant churches that two-door
churches were historically more common in Callaway County than they are today.
According to the Kentucky study, the use of two-doors was in decline by the end of the
19th Century evidenced by the modification of many church facades to close one entrance
or to rebuild with a single central entrance. This seems also to be the case in Callaway County as the construction of two door churches (or hybrid examples such as White
Cloud) dwindled after c. 1900. Also, it is likely that some Callaway County churches
with early 20th century front foyer additions were originally two-door churches." ~ Rural Church Types Survey, Missouri Department of Natural Resources, PDF page 22
Service on Sunday are held every other month here, then Whiteside, then back to here.
"The Auburn Presbyterian Church is located approximately, 1/2 mile from the intersection of US 61 and Lincoln County Road B. Our church is located South on Old Auburn Church Road approximately 1/4 mile from County Road B. Although the directions may seem a bit confusing, do not worry! The church is easy to locate! Just look for the "big" sign that points the direction to Auburn." ~ North Lincoln Parish
"It had two churches -- Presbyterian and Colored Methodist, and an academy. Population, about 100 (1874)." ~ Campbell's Gazetteer of Missouri, 1874, Campbell, page 314