{"nrhp_refnum":"84001994","name":"Bethany Reformed and Lutheran Church Cemetery","other_names":["Bethany United Church of Christ"],"category":"site","location":{"address":"SR 1716","address_restricted":false,"city":"Midway","county":"Davidson County","state":"NC","lat":35.842901450000056,"lon":-80.11525314999994,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1984-07-10","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Art","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["national"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A roughly 2-acre church cemetery east of SR 1716, near Midway in Davidson County, North Carolina, associated with Bethany Reformed and Lutheran Church (now Bethany United Church of Christ), which was established in 1789.","why_significant":"The cemetery holds about 400 gravestones, roughly 150 of them made by local stonecutters, and these are described as a unique collection of folk art. The decorative soapstone markers carry folk symbols of resurrection and eternity. The site is believed to be the home church of Joseph Clodfelter, the only identifiable stonecutter of the Swisegood School, and it holds many pierced gravestones attributed to him.","narrative":"This church cemetery near Midway, Davidson County, contains about 400 gravestones, around 150 of them made by local craftsmen. The oldest inscribed marker dates to 1781, and the congregation itself was founded in 1789 on land deeded by Frederick Miller. The stones appear to have been rearranged into widely spaced rows, and three Lang family markers were moved here from a nearby family graveyard. The cemetery is notable for its range of folk carving. It holds many Swisegood School stones from 1799 to 1857, including pierced designs attributed to Joseph Clodfelter and perhaps his father Jacob. Other groups include the Livengood monuments by the \"Modern Master,\" early marble stones signed by a stonecutter named Davidson of Petersburg, Virginia, and urn-and-willow markers by Moravian carver Traugott Leinback of Salem. The decorative soapstone markers with folk symbols of resurrection and eternity represent the height of folk art among the Anglo-German farming community of north Davidson County.","period_of_significance":null,"architect_builder":"Stonecutters: Traugott Leinback and unknown others (also Joseph Clodfelter and a stonecutter named Davidson of Petersburg, Virginia, mentioned in the description)","architectural_style":null,"criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"Condition is marked fair and deteriorated; the gravestones appear to have been rearranged into widely spaced rows. The property is occupied and privately owned by the church.","vacant_flag":null,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:57:50.404617-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/51/7176/47717651/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NC/84001994.pdf"},"photo":null,"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/47717651","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bethany_Reformed_and_Lutheran_Church_Cemetery","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q4897773"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/north-carolina/davidson-county/bethany-reformed-and-lutheran-church-cemetery-84001994/"}