{"nrhp_refnum":"99000160","name":"First Methodist Episcopal Church","other_names":["Stillmore United Methodist Church","Stillmore Methodist Episcopal Church South"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"Jct. of Third Ave. and Third St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Stillmore","county":"Emanuel County","state":"GA","lat":32.44136828100005,"lon":-82.21360705599994,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1999-02-12","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A large Romanesque Revival brick church with a three-story corner tower, at the northwest corner of Third Avenue and Third Street in Stillmore, Emanuel County, Georgia. It was designed by Charles Edward Choate and built in 1907-1908.","why_significant":"The church is significant in architecture as an excellent example of the early work of Charles Edward Choate, one of Georgia's most prolific architects. It is also an excellent example of Romanesque Revival style in Georgia, where the style was among the less popular historical styles. Only 81 of 43,800 surveyed buildings are identified as Romanesque Revival.","narrative":"Brick walls, round-arched windows and a three-story corner tower define this Romanesque Revival church in Stillmore, Georgia. Architect Charles Edward Choate designed it, and it was built in 1907-1908 after lightning and fire destroyed the congregation's first frame church. Choate had served as the congregation's first pastor in 1892 before leaving the ministry for architecture. A fire in December 1915 destroyed much of the interior, but the exterior walls survived, and the church was rebuilt in 1916 to the original design with minor changes, such as a raised chancel ceiling. The building is significant as an excellent example of Choate's early work and of Romanesque Revival architecture, a style that was uncommon in Georgia. The state survey identifies only 81 buildings as Romanesque Revival, and 40 of these are churches. A social hall was added at the rear in the mid-1990s. The church remains an active Methodist congregation.","period_of_significance":"1907-1916","architect_builder":"Choate, Charles Edward","architectural_style":"Romanesque Revival","criteria":["C"],"status_note":"The church remains active and is currently known as the Stillmore United Methodist Church.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:55:42.872359-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_GA/99000160.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/99000160/46c0495e49-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/99000160/46c0495e49-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 4.0","author":"Jud McCranie","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:First_Methodist_Episcopal_Church,_Stillmore,_GA,_US.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">Jud McCranie</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:First_Methodist_Episcopal_Church,_Stillmore,_GA,_US.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/93207953","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Methodist_Episcopal_Church_(Stillmore,_Georgia)","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q30603557"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/georgia/emanuel-county/first-methodist-episcopal-church-99000160/"}