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St. John's Church: then and now

1901 vs 2011 · Richmond, VA

St. John's Church, 2011St. John's Church, 1901
NowThen
Then, 1901A color print from 1901 of the white church among bare trees and graves.Photo: Detroit Publishing Company (Library of Congress) · Public domain · Source · resized, cropped
Today, 2011The white church and its tower seen from the front, with trees all around.Photo: Billy Hathorn · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Source · resized

The story

St. John's is the oldest church in the city of Richmond. It was built in 1741 by Colonel Richard Randolph, and the Church Hill neighborhood was named for it. It stands at 2401 East Broad Street and is a National Historic Landmark.

The church was the site of two important conventions in the years before the American Revolution. It is famous as the place where Founding Father Patrick Henry gave his speech at the Second Virginia Convention.

The parish grew out of earlier ones. The first, Henrico Parish Church, was at Henricus in 1611. Henricus was destroyed in 1622 and was never rebuilt.

Did you know? The hill is named for the church.
Historians argue about this. Many people assume the church was built in the 1770s, when the speech was given. Wikipedia says it was built in 1741.

Fact or tall tale?

Sources

More: Look for historic photos at the Library of Congress

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Next: Jefferson Hotel. Written from the cited sources, not yet walked on site unless noted.