{"nrhp_refnum":"85001778","name":"Ephphatha Church","other_names":["Faith Tabernacle"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"220 W. Geer St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Durham","county":"Durham County","state":"NC","lat":36.005765807000046,"lon":-78.89773625399994,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1985-08-09","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture","Religion"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A small one-story brick Late Gothic Revival church at 220 West Geer Street in the North Durham neighborhood of Durham, North Carolina, built in 1930 from plans by Durham architect George Watts Carr, Sr.","why_significant":"When built, it was the first formal church in the South and one of only four in the nation built exclusively for a deaf congregation. It is tied to Episcopal clergy who ministered to the deaf, including Bishop Joseph Blount Cheshire and the Reverends Sidney S. Bost, Roma C. Fortune and James R. Fortune, Sr. It also exemplifies the Late Gothic Revival style used by Episcopal congregations.","narrative":"Built in 1930 on a small corner lot in Durham's North Durham neighborhood, this brick Gothic Revival church was designed by architect George Watts Carr, Sr. It has a steeply pitched slate roof, stone-accented buttresses, lancet windows with diamond-pane glass, and an interior of exposed pine trusses and brick walls. Its importance lies in its purpose: it was the first formal church in the South, and one of only four in the country, built exclusively for a deaf congregation. That congregation began in 1906 with Bible classes in sign language led by the Reverend Sidney S. Bost at St. Philip's Episcopal Church. The Reverend Roma C. Fortune, a deaf charter member trained by Bost, later served as its rector. The church was funded by a drive that raised $16,000 and was built as a memorial to Bishop Joseph Blount Cheshire. James R. Fortune, Sr. succeeded his father and served until 1977. The building now houses another congregation.","period_of_significance":"1930","architect_builder":"George Watts Carr, Sr. (architect); the contractor was reportedly from Sanford, North Carolina","architectural_style":"Late Gothic Revival","criteria":["A","B","C"],"status_note":"Deaf congregation used it until 1977; later rented to another congregation, which renamed it Faith Tabernacle. Described as unaltered, in good condition, and occupied.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:57:49.119849-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/65/7177/47717765/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NC/85001778.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/85001778/40d0966772-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/85001778/40d0966772-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","author":"Maria Miracoli","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ephphatha_Church.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Maria Miracoli</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 4.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ephphatha_Church.jpg"},"district":{"nrhp_refnum":"85001338","name":"North Durham-Duke Park District","url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/districts/north-carolina/north-durham-duke-park-district-85001338/"},"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/47717765","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ephphatha_Church","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5382231"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/north-carolina/durham-county/ephphatha-church-85001778/"}