{"nrhp_refnum":"04000352","name":"Church of St. John the Evangelist","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"Philadelphia Hill Rd.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Hunter","county":"Greene County","state":"NY","lat":42.18239268700006,"lon":-74.14764618199996,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"2004-04-21","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A single-story Stick Style church on a 1.5-acre wooded lot on Philadelphia Hill Road in Hunter, Greene County, New York, built in 1885 as a summer chapel, with an adjoining burial ground.","why_significant":"The nomination presents it as an outstanding regional example of late nineteenth-century eclectic Victorian church architecture, designed by noted architect William Halsey Wood. It was built to serve the seasonal community of Philadelphia Hill and remains virtually intact with its woodland setting. It is also described as a local landmark and a reminder of the Hemsley family and the enclave.","narrative":"Set among trees, ferns and shrubs on Philadelphia Hill Road in Hunter, this small Episcopal church was built in 1885 as a summer chapel for a seasonal community of Philadelphia families. Alexander Hemsley, who ran the nearby Blythewood boarding house, set aside the 1.5-acre lot in 1884 and hired his future son-in-law, architect William Halsey Wood, to design it. Summer residents raised the construction funds, with substantial gifts from the Hemsleys. The building combines fieldstone walls, a light wood frame and narrow boards set at varied angles in panels, giving it a Stick Style appearance. A square belfry with a pyramidal roof rises from the ridge, and the interior has a barrel-vaulted ceiling of matchstick boards and original Victorian wood chairs. Wood is best known for his competition design for the Cathedral of St. John the Divine in New York. The church survives largely unaltered, with a burial ground beside it, and is regarded as a local landmark.","period_of_significance":"1885","architect_builder":"William Halsey Wood","architectural_style":"Late Victorian/Stick Style","criteria":["C"],"status_note":"Described as virtually intact and still in use as a church; the floor of the north wing has collapsed.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:51:52.727227-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NY/04000352.pdf"},"photo":null,"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/75317934","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Church_of_St._John_the_Evangelist_(Hunter,_New_York)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5117259"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/new-york/greene-county/church-of-st-john-the-evangelist-04000352/"}