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Churches and lodges

Hillsborough Methodist Church

Hillsborough Methodist Church, a congregation organized about 1807, built its brick church on West Tryon Street to the design of John Berry, and it was dedicated on October 6, 1861. The Civil War held up the finishing, and the building, which keeps its original pews, was not paid for until 1874.

Map tiles © OpenStreetMap contributors. Site locations from the N.C. State Historic Preservation Office survey, Open Orange, Orange County GIS, OpenStreetMap and a few other published sources named on each site’s page; town and community pins show approximate locations.

People in its history

People named in events about this site, ordered by number of mentions. Each example links to an entry with a source citation.

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Sites linked through the same people

In the chronology

  1. The Haw River Circuit takes the place of the New Hope Circuit in serving Hillsborough Methodists In 1797 the Methodists replaced the New Hope Circuit with the Haw River Circuit, whose preachers then served the Hillsborough community. The Hillsborough church organized about 1807 belonged to this circuit. Pauline O. Lloyd and Allen A. Lloyd, History of the Churches of Hillsborough, N.C., ca. 1766-1962 (1963), scan p. 92
  2. Methodists organize a church in Hillsborough A Methodist congregation was organized in Hillsborough about 1807. Lefler and Wager, Orange County, 1752-1952 (1953), p. 297
  3. Dr. James Webb deeds Hillsborough's Methodists a lot and house on Tryon Street For ten shillings Dr. James Webb conveyed a 44-foot-square part of town lot 102 on Tryon (then Church) Street to trustees of the Methodist Episcopal Church, on condition that a meeting house be kept there. A house already standing on the lot became the congregation's first church. Pauline O. Lloyd and Allen A. Lloyd, History of the Churches of Hillsborough, N.C., ca. 1766-1962 (1963), scan p. 106
  4. The Hillsboro Methodist Circuit reports twelve Sunday schools Methodist reports counted 12 schools on the circuit, with 54 officers and teachers and 415 pupils. Pauline O. Lloyd and Allen A. Lloyd, Hillsborough Methodist Church, 1807-1961 (1961), scan p. 37
  5. Hillsborough Methodist Church builds its church The Hillsborough Methodist congregation, organized about 1807, bought its lot on April 4, 1859, and John Berry built the church, which was to be dedicated on Sunday, October 6, 1861. The war held up the finishing and the building was not paid for until 1874. Lefler and Wager counted 200 seats, and it was still the congregation's church in 1953. People: John Berry Hillsborough Recorder, September 18, 1861, p. 3 · Also: Lefler and Wager, Orange County, 1752-1952; nccumc.org
  6. Hillsborough Methodists refuse to give their church bell to be cast into Confederate cannon When Confederate authorities, short of cannon, asked the Hillsborough Methodist Church for its bell to melt down, the congregation turned them down. Pauline O. Lloyd and Allen A. Lloyd, History of the Churches of Hillsborough, N.C., ca. 1766-1962 (1963), scan p. 108
  7. Presiding elder William Barringer dedicates the new Methodist church in Hillsborough The brick church that Capt. John Berry built on the Tryon Street lot bought in 1859 was dedicated by William Barringer, presiding elder of the Raleigh District. The first sermon in it was preached by Jesse A. Cunninggim. People: John Berry Pauline O. Lloyd and Allen A. Lloyd, History of the Churches of Hillsborough, N.C., ca. 1766-1962 (1963), scan p. 109
  8. George Laws chairs the stewards of the Hillsborough Methodist church In 1866, when Hillsborough Station took in Hillsborough, Cedar Grove, Walnut Grove, Lebanon and New Sharon, Laws was chairman of its Board of Stewards. As treasurer in 1867 he told members that if they wanted preaching they must pay for it. Pauline O. Lloyd and Allen A. Lloyd, History of the Churches of Hillsborough, N.C., ca. 1766-1962 (1963), scan p. 88
  9. William H. Brown, Hillsborough Methodist leader, dies William H. Brown died suddenly at Hillsborough in his 57th year. A Methodist for forty years, he had served the Hillsborough church as steward, class leader and trustee and its Sunday school as superintendent for about twenty-five years, and the quarterly conference adopted a tribute to him. Hillsborough Recorder, April 4, 1866, p. 3
  10. The Methodist conference forms a Hillsborough District, with Hillsborough heading a station of five churches In 1866 the Methodists created a Hillsborough District, under presiding elder W. H. Bobbitt, and made Hillsborough a station that also took in Cedar Grove, Walnut Grove, Lebanon and New Sharon. W. C. Wilson was pastor. Pauline O. Lloyd and Allen A. Lloyd, History of the Churches of Hillsborough, N.C., ca. 1766-1962 (1963), scan p. 88 · Also: Hillsborough Recorder, November 21, 1866, p. 2
  11. Hillsborough Methodist Church opens a lending library for its members Around 1868 the church began a library of religious and general books, many donated by members and townspeople and some bought by Sunday school classes. Books went out on Sunday mornings, and the record book later counted 937 volumes. Pauline O. Lloyd and Allen A. Lloyd, History of the Churches of Hillsborough, N.C., ca. 1766-1962 (1963), scan p. 88
  12. Hillsborough Methodist Church finishes paying for its building The Civil War interrupted work on the brick church John Berry designed and built on West Tryon Street, and the congregation did not finish paying for it until 1874. People: John Berry NC State Historic Preservation Office: Hillsborough Historic District Additional Documentation, National Register (OR0077ad, 2014), 130 W. Tryon, Hillsborough United Methodist Church
Show all 38 dated events
  1. The wife of pastor J. H. Wheeler is buried in front of the Hillsborough Methodist Church During J. H. Wheeler's four-year pastorate his wife died and was buried in the church's front yard, a grave the church still showed in 1962. Pauline O. Lloyd and Allen A. Lloyd, History of the Churches of Hillsborough, N.C., ca. 1766-1962 (1963), scan p. 94
  2. Hillsborough Methodists report their Sunday school's hundredth anniversary In 1884 H. N. Brown reported that the Hillsborough Methodist Sunday school had celebrated its centennial; it then had thirty-five pupils and seven teachers and a library of church literature. Pauline O. Lloyd and Allen A. Lloyd, History of the Churches of Hillsborough, N.C., ca. 1766-1962 (1963), scan p. 93 · Also: Orange County Observer (Hillsborough), July 19, 1884, p. 3
  3. The Methodist conference sends W. H. Puckett to the Hillsborough Circuit The annual conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, assigned the Rev. W. H. Puckett to the Hillsboro Circuit, and the minister of the past year moved to the Goldsboro circuit. Puckett was preaching at the Hillsborough Methodist church by early January 1888. Hillsboro Recorder, December 15, 1887, p. 3
  4. C. M. Parks gives the Hillsboro Circuit its first parsonage C. M. Parks bought the James Y. Whitted house on Churton Street in January 1889 and fitted it up as a parsonage for the Methodists' Hillsboro Circuit, and the pastor moved in that February. Parks then gave the house, on about nine-tenths of an acre at Union and Churton streets and valued at $1,800 to $2,000, to the circuit as its first parsonage; the gift was announced in November 1890 and the deed to the church trustees is dated April 13, 1891. People: Samuel Mallett Gattis, O. J. Forrest, Joseph A. Harris, Charles M. Parks Pauline O. Lloyd and Allen A. Lloyd, History of the Churches of Hillsborough, N.C., ca. 1766-1962 (1963), scan p. 110 · Also: Orange County Observer (Hillsborough), November 15, 1890, p. 2; Orange County Observer (Hillsborough), February 9, 1889, p. 3
  5. The Methodist Durham District Sunday School Conference meets at Hillsborough The district's Sunday school conference opened in the Hillsborough Methodist church on a Tuesday night and held well-attended sessions, with delegates from nearly every charge in the district. It elected E. J. Parrish president and chose Roxboro for its 1891 meeting. Orange County Observer (Hillsborough), July 19, 1890, p. 3
  6. Hillsborough Methodists hold a protracted revival meeting Pastor W. H. Puckett, helped for the first week by L. L. Johnson of Carr Church in Durham, held nightly revival services at the Methodist church. The paper reported large congregations and several conversions. Orange County Observer (Hillsborough), November 22, 1890, p. 3
  7. J. E. Bristowe preaches his first sermon as pastor of the Hillsboro Circuit The new Methodist pastor preached his first sermon at the Hillsborough Methodist church on a Sunday night and published his preaching plan for the circuit's churches: Hillsborough, Cedar Grove, Walnut Grove, New Sharon, New Bethel and McTyere's. Orange County Observer (Hillsborough), January 17, 1891, p. 3
  8. Hillsborough Methodists hold a pound party for their new pastor at the parsonage Methodists and friends met at H. N. Brown Sr.'s house and walked together to the parsonage, bringing household goods and a hand wagon of flour and provisions for the new pastor, J. E. Bristowe. Bristowe answered with a printed card of thanks. Orange County Observer (Hillsborough), January 24, 1891, p. 3
  9. Rev. Y. Yoshioka of Japan lectures at the Hillsborough Methodist church Rev. Y. Yoshioka, a native of Japan, lectured to a large audience at the Hillsborough Methodist church on Japanese manners and customs and on mission work in Japan. He had been in America only since the previous October, and the paper praised his English. People: Charles M. Parks Orange County Observer (Hillsborough), September 5, 1891, p. 3
  10. Rev. D. N. Caviness takes charge of the Hillsborough Methodist church Rev. D. N. Caviness came to Hillsborough as the new pastor of the Methodist church, which he served together with Cedar Grove, and was to preach his first sermons there on January 8, 1893. Orange County Observer (Hillsborough), January 7, 1893, p. 3
  11. Frank Yun, a Korean educated in Georgia and at Vanderbilt, lectures on Korea at the Hillsborough Methodist church Frank Yun, a native of Korea educated at Oxford, Georgia, and at Vanderbilt University and about to go home for church work, lectured on Korea's government, customs and people at the Methodist church in Hillsborough. He charged no admission and asked only for a collection. Orange County Observer (Hillsborough), August 5, 1893, p. 3
  12. D. N. Caviness leaves the Hillsborough Methodist charge after four years At the end of his fourth year, the Methodist conference moved Rev. D. N. Caviness from the Hillsborough church and circuit to the East Durham station, and he and his family left Hillsborough on December 23. A minister transferred from the Virginia Conference was named to the Hillsborough Circuit. Orange County Observer (Hillsborough), December 24, 1896, p. 3
  13. L. Leitch preaches his first sermon as the new Hillsborough Methodist pastor L. Leitch, the new pastor of the Hillsborough Methodist circuit, preached his first sermon in the Methodist church in Hillsborough. He and his family had moved into the parsonage on Churton Street at the turn of the year, but grippe kept him in bed for weeks. Orange County Observer (Hillsborough), February 11, 1897, p. 3
  14. Hillsborough Methodists sell their Churton Street parsonage lot to Shepperd Strudwick The trustees of the Hillsborough Methodist church sold the Churton Street house and lot used as the parsonage to Shepperd Strudwick, who planned to build a residence there, and moved the parsonage to the Webb house at Tryon and Wake streets. People: Shepperd Strudwick (1868-1961) Orange County Observer (Hillsborough), April 30, 1903, p. 3
  15. Hillsborough Methodist Church buys town lot 94 and its house for a new parsonage The church bought lot 94, with a one-story five-room house, from James Webb, son of Dr. James Webb, and used it as the parsonage. The lot later held the 1958 parsonage. People: James Webb Jr. Pauline O. Lloyd and Allen A. Lloyd, History of the Churches of Hillsborough, N.C., ca. 1766-1962 (1963), scan p. 110
  16. The Hillsborough Methodist parsonage is remodeled and raised to two stories Under pastor J. E. Blalock the one-story parsonage on lot 94 was remodeled with a second story added. It served until 1956. Pauline O. Lloyd and Allen A. Lloyd, History of the Churches of Hillsborough, N.C., ca. 1766-1962 (1963), scan p. 111
  17. S. F. Nicks begins the first of two pastorates on the Hillsborough Methodist charge Nicks, born in Orange County, served the five-church charge until 1927 and returned for 1940-1945. The book counts him among the charge's greatest pastors, liked across denominations. Pauline O. Lloyd and Allen A. Lloyd, Hillsborough Methodist Church, 1807-1961 (1961), scan p. 32
  18. Hillsborough Methodist Church builds an educational wing The congregation added a two-story educational wing behind its 1859 church in the 1940s. Another addition and a covered breezeway followed in 1985. NC State Historic Preservation Office: Hillsborough Historic District Additional Documentation, National Register (OR0077ad, 2014), 130 W. Tryon, Hillsborough United Methodist Church
  19. Pastor S. F. Nicks leads a $12,000 addition of rooms to the Hillsborough Methodist Church Soon after returning to Hillsborough in 1940, Nicks proposed adding rooms to the church. Robert Forrest and A. A. Lloyd raised the money with a match of one dollar from the Duke Endowment for every three raised, and much of the work was volunteer labor, Nicks included. People: Robert O. Forrest Pauline O. Lloyd and Allen A. Lloyd, History of the Churches of Hillsborough, N.C., ca. 1766-1962 (1963), scan p. 103
  20. Rev. S. F. Nicks retires from the Hillsborough Methodist charge after 42 years in the ministry The Methodist Conference at Goldsboro retired Rev. S. F. Nicks and sent Rev. C. S. Hubbard from Roseboro to the Hillsborough charge. It also moved new pastors to Efland, Carrboro and Cedar Grove; Nicks stayed on in Hillsborough. People: Charles S. Hubbard The News of Orange County (Hillsborough), November 15, 1945, p. 1
  21. Five Orange County churches hold a joint day camp at Camp New Hope In place of their vacation church schools, the New Hope, Chapel Hill, Efland and Hillsboro Presbyterian churches and the Hillsboro Methodist Church ran a joint day camp at Camp New Hope, with study, handicrafts and recreation. The Rev. John E. Ensign and the Rev. Irving E. Birdseye directed it. The News of Orange County (Hillsborough), May 17, 1951, p. 1
  22. Charles S. Hubbard leaves the Hillsborough Methodist charge for Trinity Methodist Church in Raleigh The annual Methodist conference at Wilmington moved Charles S. Hubbard from the Hillsborough Methodist Church to Trinity Methodist Church in Raleigh and assigned the Rev. W. L. Maness to Hillsborough in his place. The News of Orange County: Maness New Pastor (November 8, 1951, p. 1)
  23. Shepperd Strudwick carves the cross for the Hillsborough Methodist sanctuary Shepperd Strudwick, a Presbyterian elder who took up wood carving late in life, made the cross for the Methodist sanctuary as well as one for his own church. Pauline O. Lloyd and Allen A. Lloyd, History of the Churches of Hillsborough, N.C., ca. 1766-1962 (1963), scan p. 113
  24. Hillsborough and New Sharon Methodists dedicate the parsonage they built together The two churches put up a new parsonage on lot 94 in 1957-58 at a cost of about $22,000 and dedicated it on a Sunday afternoon in March 1958, with W. A. Seawell as pastor and Taylor Bivins chairing the building committee. Pauline O. Lloyd and Allen A. Lloyd, History of the Churches of Hillsborough, N.C., ca. 1766-1962 (1963), scan p. 111
  25. Hillsborough and New Sharon Methodist churches each become a station church At the Methodist Conference of June 26, 1958 the Hillsborough and New Sharon churches, which had shared a pastor, were given one each: the Rev. S. T. Kimbrough Jr. went to Hillsboro Methodist and the Rev. L. R. Schmitz to New Sharon, and the Rev. W. A. Seawell, who had served both, moved to another charge. Pauline O. Lloyd and Allen A. Lloyd, History of the Churches of Hillsborough, N.C., ca. 1766-1962 (1963), scan p. 111 · Also: The News of Orange County (Hillsborough), July 3, 1958, p. 1
  26. Hillsborough Methodist Church marks the 100th anniversary of its church building Pauline O. and Allen A. Lloyd wrote a history of the church for the occasion, put together in about ten months, and it was read at the observance. Pauline O. Lloyd and Allen A. Lloyd, Hillsborough Methodist Church, 1807-1961 (1961), scan p. 15

Open these in the chronology →

Deeds

2 deeds from the county’s deed books that bear on this site, from Mark Chilton’s published abstracts. The note under each says why: the site’s survey file or National Register nomination cites it, it names the site, or it passes the site’s land along the chain of title the survey traces. Each deed’s page links to its deed-book page at the Register of Deeds.

Search every historic deed →

Indexed works

The index has no works about Hillsborough Methodist Church itself yet. The surveys and maps below cover where it stands. Search the index for Hillsborough Methodist Church, or tell us about a book or record we have missed.

Surveys and maps of the area

Not about Hillsborough Methodist Church alone: the architectural surveys that cover its town or the county, and maps drawn while it stood. Several of the surveys can be read free online at NC Digital Collections.

Hillsborough architectural survey

Slane, Heather Wagner · 2017 · hmwPreservation

Survey of Hillsborough's historic buildings by Heather Wagner Slane of hmwPreservation, completed in September 2017. The 40-page report covers the town's architecture and history with color illustrations and maps.

Included because: A survey or map of the town or county where the site stands.

NC Cardinal NC Digital Collections DPLA

NC Digital Collections record courtesy of the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources.

Time in place, place in time : history and sense of place in Hillsborough, North Carolina

Warren, Cheryl Davis · 2005

Cheryl Davis Warren's 2005 study of history and sense of place in Hillsborough, 216 leaves with illustrations, maps and a bibliography. Written as human geography, it treats the town's past alongside its social conditions and the ways residents understand where they live.

Included because: A survey or map of the town or county where the site stands.

UNC

Plan of the town of Hillsboro, taken in October 1863

1863

Plan of Hillsborough drawn in October 1863, showing the downtown blocks around the crossing of Tryon and Churton Streets, with the Eno River, spelled Enoe on the sheet.

Included because: A survey or map of the town or county where the site stands.

DigitalNC DPLA

Sanborn Fire Insurance Map from Hillsboro, Orange County, North Carolina.

1905

Fire insurance map of Hillsborough, spelled Hillsboro, drawn by the Sanborn Map Company in January 1905 on two sheets, from the Sanborn Maps collection.

Included because: A survey or map of the town or county where the site stands.

Library of Congress Digital Collections

Birdseye View of Hillsboro, N.C. Looking East

1905 · A. C. Bosselman & Co., New York, N.Y

Bird's-eye view of Hillsborough looking east, with houses and industrial buildings, on a postcard published by A. C. Bosselman & Co. of New York about 1905 to 1915. Card number 11116.

Included because: A survey or map of the town or county where the site stands.

DPLA

Found a book OCPL doesn’t own? You can often borrow it through interlibrary loan at OCPL.

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    Where to look on the shelf

    These books don’t necessarily mention Hillsborough Methodist Church, but they cover where it stands, its kind of building and the land, family and burial records behind it, and they are where a search for a place like this usually goes next. All are at OCPL, most in the Wall Collection.

    Histories of the town and county

    • Start here · NC 975.656 LLO History of the Town of Hillsborough, 1754-1982 Lloyd, Allen Alexander · 1983

      A 1982 revision of Allen Alexander Lloyd's history of Hillsborough, now written with Pauline O. Lloyd and carried forward from the town's founding in 1754 to 1982. Published in Hillsborough by A. A. Lloyd, 310 pages with illustrations and a bibliography.

    • Rebecca Wall Collection · NC 975.656 HOLADAY Hillsborough Holaday, Chris · 2002

      J. Chris Holaday's Images of America volume on Hillsborough (Arcadia, 2002), built mostly from photographs and postcards. Chapters cover homes, churches and schools, business and industry, local people, scenes around town, and sports, entertainment and events.

    • Foundational · 975.656 RYAN Orange County Trio: Hillsborough, Chapel Hill, and Carrboro, North Carolina, Histories and Tour Guides Ryan, Elizabeth Shreve · 2004

      Elizabeth Shreve Ryan's combined histories and tour guides for Hillsborough, Chapel Hill and Carrboro, the three towns of Orange County, with the University of North Carolina treated alongside Chapel Hill. Each town gets a narrative history and a tour of its streets and buildings. Published by Chapel Hill Press in 2004, 369 pages with illustrations and maps.

    Buildings and surveys

    • Foundational · NC 720.975 BIS A Guide to the Historic Architecture of Piedmont North Carolina Bishir, Catherine W. · 2003

      Catherine W. Bishir and Michael T. Southern's field guide to the historic buildings of the North Carolina Piedmont, arranged county by county from Wake and Franklin in the east to Mecklenburg and Gaston in the west. The Orange County section takes in Hillsborough, Chapel Hill and Carrboro along with the rural county, with entries on individual buildings and maps for finding them. Published 2003, 596 pages with illustrations and maps.

    • Foundational · NC 720.975 HILLSBOR Hillsborough Historic District Inventory 2006

      An inventory of the buildings in the Hillsborough Historic District, dated 2006. It concerns historic buildings and the buildings and structures of Hillsborough. Useful for anyone checking a particular property in the town's historic district.

    • Start here · NC 720.975 BEL Photocensus: A Photographic Survey of Buildings in the Hillsborough, N.C. Historic District Built Before 1950 Bellinger, Susan McArtor · 1991

      Susan McArtor Bellinger's photographic survey of the buildings in the Hillsborough Historic District put up before 1950, self-published in Hillsborough in 1991. Arranged as a guidebook, it records houses and other structures in photographs. 142 pages with illustrations.

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    • Rebecca Wall Collection · 917.565 DUL The Pelican Guide to Hillsborough, Historic Orange County, North Carolina Dula, Lucile Noell · 1989

      Lucile Noell Dula's guidebook to Hillsborough and its historic buildings, published by Pelican in 1989. It pairs a tour of the town with notes on its history, in 128 illustrated pages with a bibliography. Part of the Wall Local History Collection.

    • Start here · REF 275.6 LLO History of the Churches of Hillsborough, N.C. Ca., 1766-1962 Lloyd, Pauline O. · 1962

      Pauline O. Lloyd's history of the churches of Hillsborough from about 1766 to 1962, nearly two centuries of the town's congregations, with attention to the church buildings themselves. Published in Hillsborough in 1962, 151 pages with illustrations, maps and portraits, and a bibliography on the final page.

    Land, family and burial records

    • Foundational · NC 333.3 DUNAWAY Hillsborough, North Carolina History of Town Lots: The Complete Reference Guide Dunaway, Stewart E. · 2013

      Stewart E. Dunaway worked through Hillsborough, N.C., lot by lot, giving each town lot a synopsis of its history, a plat showing where it sits and transcripts of the deeds he could locate for it. The second issue runs to 720 pages with illustrations, maps and facsimiles.

    • Rebecca Wall Collection · NC 333.3 DUNAWAY Hillsborough, North Carolina History of Town Lots: Addendum 2015 Dunaway, Stewart E. · 2015

      Stewart E. Dunaway's 2015 addendum to his history of Hillsborough's town lots, adding deed records arranged by lot number and further town history, with the expansion of the 1890s covered for the first time. Self-published in North Carolina as version 1.0, 446 pages with illustrations, facsimiles and maps. Topics include deeds, court records, land titles and real property in Hillsborough.

    • Foundational · NC 333.3 IND An Index to the Town Lots of Hillsborough: Orange County, North Carolina 1982

      An index to the town lots of Hillsborough, Orange County, compiled in 1982 as a guide to the deeds and court records that trace each lot's ownership.

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    Research sources

    Sources cited in this site’s history, National Register documents, and places to get research help. Research guide: Investigate a school or community institution.

    National Register files

    Historic sites, markers, and maps

    Records of the time 23

    Show all 23

    Collections and databases 5

    Local help 5

    Nearby

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