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Rainelle United Methodist Church

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1913–1914. 1930. North side of U.S. 60 (Kanawha Ave.), east of intersection with WV 20
  • HABS/HAER, 1975 (HABS/HAER)
  • (Photograph by Mark Double)
  • Interior (Photograph by Mark Double)
  • Interior (Photograph by Mark Double)
  • Bookshelves (Photograph by Mark Double)
  • (Photograph by Mark Double)

The Meadow River Lumber Company built this large Craftsman style frame church for its employees. It has the distinction of being constructed entirely of chestnut, a once common forest tree virtually eliminated by blight early in the twentieth century. Company employees chose the denomination because the owners wanted only one church in town. In 1930 a Sunday school wing with a wormy chestnut interior was added: “wormy” because the wood, taken from trees felled by blight, had become infested with worms that left minuscule trails. Although the entire building is now covered with vinyl siding, its distinctive Craftsman lines and rudimentary Gothic details remain.

Writing Credits

Author: 
S. Allen Chambers Jr.
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Data

What's Nearby

Rainelle
Babcock State Park

Citation

S. Allen Chambers Jr., "Rainelle United Methodist Church", [Rainelle, West Virginia], SAH Archipedia, eds. Gabrielle Esperdy and Karen Kingsley, Charlottesville: UVaP, 2012—, http://sah-archipedia.org/buildings/WV-01-GR30.1.

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