{"nrhp_refnum":"80002831","name":"St. Paul Baptist Church","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"Edmondson St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Tarboro","county":"Edgecombe County","state":"NC","lat":35.97820382500004,"lon":-77.53136121099999,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1980-04-02","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture","Social History"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A late 19th century eclectic frame church at the northwest corner of Edmondson and Lloyd Streets in Tarboro, Edgecombe County, North Carolina, moved there from North Main Street around 1926.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the church is architecturally significant as the only elaborately decorated late Victorian frame church in Tarboro, with rich and abundant wooden detail. It is historically significant as the original home of a prominent Baptist congregation and, for over fifty years, as a focal point for the black community through St. Paul Baptist Church.","narrative":"Irregular massing, multiple gabled wings, a corner tower and abundant wooden ornament distinguish this frame church in Tarboro. Weatherboarded walls carry bands of panels, brackets and heavy window labels, and windows with small outlining panes reflect the Queen Anne style. Inside, a large open sanctuary is crowned by a dome with an oculus, and much of the original woodwork survives. The building began on North Main Street as a Missionary Baptist church, financed on land given by business leader O. C. Farrar, who died in 1891. St. Paul Baptist Church, organized in 1871 with sixteen members from the black community, later occupied it; the building was moved to its present site around 1926. The tower was shortened around 1976, though photographs record its original form and it could be restored. The church is valued as Tarboro's only elaborately decorated late Victorian frame church and as a long-standing social and architectural focal point for the black community.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":"Eclectic late 19th century church with Queen Anne elements","criteria":[],"status_note":"Largely unaltered apart from the corner tower, which was truncated around 1976; the original curved pews were recently replaced.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:58:57.371107-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/97/7177/47717797/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NC/80002831.pdf"},"photo":null,"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/47717797","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/St._Paul_Baptist_Church_(Tarboro,_North_Carolina)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q7591227"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/north-carolina/edgecombe-county/st-paul-baptist-church-80002831/"}