Rodney Presbyterian Church
Rodney Presbyterian Church is located in Mississippi
Rodney Presbyterian Church
Rodney Presbyterian Church is located in the United States
Rodney Presbyterian Church
Nearest cityAlcorn, Mississippi
Coordinates31°51′46″N 91°11′59″W / 31.8628°N 91.1998°W / 31.8628; -91.1998
Area22 acres (8.9 ha)
Built1832
NRHP reference No.73001018[1]
Added to NRHPFebruary 6, 1973

Rodney Presbyterian Church is a historic church in Alcorn, Mississippi, United States.

History

Plantation owner and millionaire David Hunt (1779-1861), also known as "King David," donated the land upon which the church was built.[2] Presbyterian Reverend Jeremiah Chamberlain began the building of the church in 1829.[3]

The church building was built from 1829 to 1832 in the Federal architectural style.[4][5][6] It was built with red bricks, "rounded archives, "a stepped gable" and "an octagonal bell tower."[5]

The church played a specific role during the American Civil War of 1861-1865. On Sunday, September 13, 1863, Reverend Baker invited crew members of the Union USS Rattler gunboat to attend his service.[5][6] However, Confederates burst into the church to arrest them.[5][6] When other Union crew members found out about the Confederate violation of Sunday truce, they fired a cannonball at the church, which damaged its front wall.[5][6] The damage is still visible to this day.[5][6]

It has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1973.

References

  1. ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
  2. ^ Dunbar Hunt, "Sketch of David Hunt," Fayette, Mississippi: The Fayette Chronicle, 29 May 1908, Volume XLI, Number 35 [1]
  3. ^ And Speaking of Which
  4. ^ Sherry Pace, Historic Churches of Mississippi, Oxford, Mississippi: University Press of Mississippi, 2007, p. xi [2]
  5. ^ a b c d e f Jim Fraiser, Mississippi River Country Tales: A Celebration of 500 Years of Deep South History, Gretna, Louisiana: Pelican Publishing, 2000, p. 96 [3]
  6. ^ a b c d e June Davis Davidson, Country Stores of Mississippi, The History Press, 2014, pp. 93-94 [4]
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