{"nrhp_refnum":"98001308","name":"Johnsville Meetinghouse","other_names":["Johnsville Old German Baptist Meetinghouse","80-122"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"8860 Johnsville Church Rd.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Catawba","county":"Roanoke (city and county)","state":"VA","lat":37.31541619300003,"lon":-80.24782259399996,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1998-10-30","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["European","Religion"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A simple one-story, one-room frame meetinghouse built in 1874 by German Baptist (Tunker) settlers in the Catawba Valley of Roanoke County, Virginia, on about 0.85 acre near the north fork of the Roanoke River.","why_significant":"The nomination argues it is significant under Criterion A for its link to the migration and settlement of German Baptist Tunkers in the Valley of Virginia, and under Criterion C for its doctrine-guided, culturally distinctive design built entirely by local congregation members. It is described as the only known frame meetinghouse in Roanoke County to stand essentially unaltered since construction, and it is the sole surviving structure strongly associated with Old Order German Baptists in the county.","narrative":"Built in 1874 in the Catawba Valley of Roanoke County, this plain, one-story, one-room frame meetinghouse was raised by local German Baptist, or Tunker, settlers. Its design follows church doctrine that called for a long, low, unornamented building, with two entrances, plain wooden pews and a lower-level kitchen with a large stone fireplace. Hand-planed clapboards, handmade nine-over-nine windows and a standing seam metal roof remain. The form notes it resembles meetinghouses designed by Tunker architect John Holsinger, though no plans confirm his involvement. The congregation began in the 1840s and later split into Old Order and progressive branches; an 1887 deed shows both groups shared the building. The Old Order group held it until the early 1990s, and it was sold in 1997 to a descendant interested in preservation. It is described as the only known frame meetinghouse in the county to remain essentially unaltered, and as the last structure tied to Old Order German Baptists there.","period_of_significance":"1840 - 1963","architect_builder":"John Holsinger","architectural_style":"Other","criteria":["A","C"],"status_note":"Listed under current function as vacant/not in use; the congregation used it until the early 1990s, and it was conveyed to a private preservation-minded owner in 1997. Described as being in excellent condition.","vacant_flag":true,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:51:59.440252-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/73/6832/41683273/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_VA/98001308.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/98001308/05a4d5e867-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/98001308/05a4d5e867-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","author":"Jerrye &amp; Roy Klotz, MD","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:JOHNSVILLE_MEETINGHOUSE,_ROANOKE_COUNTY.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Jerrye &amp;amp; Roy Klotz, MD</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:JOHNSVILLE_MEETINGHOUSE,_ROANOKE_COUNTY.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/41683273","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Johnsville_Meetinghouse","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q15229701"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/virginia/roanoke/johnsville-meetinghouse-98001308/"}