About

The wooden Saint Paul's Episcopal Church, located in a quiet, tree-shaded spot off busy U.S. 301 near Hanover Court House, exemplifies a rural American interpretation of the glories of the Gothic style. Hundreds of such churches were hammered together throughout the country in the 19th century, and all have undeniable character. St. Paul's demonstrates how basic lumber—mainly simple boards—could be used with ingenuity to give architectural effect, seen here primarily in the decorative surfaces of the tower. Like the outside, the interior remains little altered with a vaulted ceiling of bent wood. The chancel and sanctuary retain their original wooden fittings ornamented with trefoils and quatrefoils. St. Paul's Episcopal Church was built in 1895 to replace an 1845 church on the site that burned. Nearby is a cemetery established in the 1840s.