{"nrhp_refnum":"73002148","name":"Glebe Church","other_names":["Bennett's Creek Church"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"W of Chesapeake City on VA 337","address_restricted":false,"city":"Driver (Independent City)","county":"Suffolk","state":"VA","lat":36.82477041400006,"lon":-76.49655828799996,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1973-05-25","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture","Religion"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"Glebe Church, also called Bennett's Creek Church, is a brick colonial parish church above the west fork of Bennett's Creek, about half a mile east of Driver on Route 337 in the former Nansemond County, Virginia. It was built in 1737-1738.","why_significant":"It is one of only two colonial churches remaining in Nansemond County. It still holds its original glebe lands, which makes it an important historic rarity. Although altered, it is noted for its fine colonial brickwork.","narrative":"Glebe Church is a brick parish church above the west fork of Bennett's Creek, east of Driver in the former Nansemond County, Virginia. It was built in 1737-1738 after the Virginia Council ruled that the earlier church of the lower parish was too ruinous to keep and ordered a new brick church. It was first known as Bennett's Creek Church. A north wing was added in 1759. After Disestablishment the congregation kept its glebe lands as a private donation, which gave the church its present name. The building stood in ruins until 1856, when the wing was removed and its bricks were used for repairs and a vesting room. The church was reoriented, with the chancel now at the west end, and an east gallery was added. Flemish and English bond brickwork survives, though the interior has no original fabric. It is one of two colonial churches left in the county and still holds its glebe lands.","period_of_significance":"1737-1738","architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":null,"criteria":[],"status_note":"Listed in good condition and altered; used as a religious building and occupied. The chancel was moved to the west end, and the interior retains no original fabric.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:51:56.68424-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/81/6838/41683881/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_VA/73002148.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/73002148/aef5a40bc4-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/73002148/aef5a40bc4-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"Capt1922","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Glebe_Church,_Suffolk_VA_18SEP2014.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Capt1922</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Glebe_Church,_Suffolk_VA_18SEP2014.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/41683881","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glebe_Church","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5567426"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/virginia/suffolk/glebe-church-73002148/"}