The National Register of Historic Places — the official list of our nation’s historically and culturally significant spots — added 11 locations in NC to its roster. Two of them are right in our backyard, so let’s take a minute to get acquainted.
Hopkins Chapel AME Zion Church
This Gothic Revival church was designed by architect Richard Sharp Smith and is just one of the four churches constructed by master brick mason James Vester Miller in the East End neighborhood. The current building was finished in 1911, but the congregation and its significance predate the building itself.
The congregation has been worshiping since 1868, parting from the Central Methodist Church after Black worshipers were mistreated by white members of the church and denied the opportunity to welcome a visiting Black minister. One Sunday, the Black church members marched from Central Methodist to the East End, worshiping under an outdoor awning. The church bought the property at its current site in 1883, naming the church Hopkins Chapel after its first pastor.
In the early 1960s, Rev. Percy Smith Jr. encouraged churchgoers’ participation in the Civil Rights Movement. Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, as urban renewal razed the East End community and brought commercial projects surrounding the church, it has remained an integral part of the neighborhood’s identity and history.
Marshall High School
The former school building first earned recognition in the National Register of Historic Places in 2008 for its educational significance to Madison County, but the National Register recently approved additional documentation and a boundary increase. What exactly does this mean? The approval increases the building’s designated period of significance from 1926-1957 through 1974 (when Marshall High School was closed and Madison County High School opened) and lumps the gymnasium into the recognition. The gym, completed in 1956, was significant for hosting large community events — it wasn’t included in the original 2008 recognition.
In 2007, Marshall High Studios took up residence in the former schoolhouse on Blannahassett Island, creating 25+ studios for artists of all mediums. Marshall High Studios was hit hard by Helene and work continues to open the space back up — follow along on Instagram for the latest on how you can help.
