Court Street Baptist Church - Lynchburg, Virginia - U.S. National Register of Historic Places on Waymarking.com

The original congregation was organized in 1833 and known as the African Baptist Church of Lynchburg. The congregation worshiped in a building not far from the current church and it was there that a great tragedy happened in the fall of 1878. In October 1878 members of the congregation were gathered in the original church for a wedding when someone sounded an alarm that the balcony was collapsing. The alarm proved false but the ensuing panic resulted in the deaths of eight people who were trampled or crushed trying to escape.

As a result of the tragedy the congregation decided to destroy the church and use the material in a new church build that would be constructed nearby on Court Street. R.C. Burkholder designed the new church, and the corner stone was placed in the late summer of 1879. The church was completed in July 1880 and has remained largely unchanged sing then with only plumbing and electricity being added. Today the Court Street Baptst Church is home to an active Baptist congregation.
Source/Credit: Virginia Department of Historic Resources

Street address: 517 Court Street Lynchburg, Va. United States 24504 County / Borough / Parish: City of Lynchburg Year listed: 1982 Historic (Areas of) Significance: Architecture, Engineering, Event Periods of significance: 1875 - 1899 Historic function: Religious Structure Current function: Religious Structure Privately owned?: yes Primary Web Site: [Web Link] Secondary Website 1: [Web Link] Season start / Season finish: Not listed Hours of operation: Not listed Secondary Website 2: Not listed National Historic Landmark Link: Not listed

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