Hartwell Methodist Episcopal Church, South

Built in 1897, this red brick Gothic Revival church stands on a prominent corner at Howell and Webb Streets in Hartwell, Georgia. It rests on a rusticated granite foundation, follows a Greek-cross plan under a steep cross-gable roof, and has a buttressed granite and brick bell tower topped by a slate-roofed spire. Lancet-shaped stained glass windows and doorways define its street facades, and the interior retains exposed ceiling beams, wooden wainscoting and original pews. Atlanta architect Willis F. Denny designed it, with Tiffany-style windows by the W. R. Orr Company. The congregation dates to 1854, the year Hartwell was founded, and worshipped in temporary spaces before building a frame church in 1859. The present building is regarded as an excellent example of late nineteenth-century Gothic Revival design, a representative Denny work, and the only intact historic church building in the Hartwell area. Additions in 1952 and 1963 changed the Sunday School wing and choir area.