Episcopal Cemetery
Why it's listed
Located south of Elizabeth City's historic center, this cemetery holds roughly 410 gravestones, with the oldest inscription dating to 1724 and the oldest stone original to the site dating to 1825. Its family plots are enclosed by cast iron, wrought iron and wire fences, many installed from the mid-nineteenth century through the 1920s. The nomination regards the cast iron group, including an 1857 enclosure for the Thomas D. Knox plot, as the finest of its kind in eastern North Carolina. Gravestones carry funerary symbols such as weeping willows, draped urns, upturned torches, and Masonic and Odd Fellows emblems, and some were cut by stonecutters working in Norfolk and Baltimore. Among those buried here are physicians, merchants, politicians and Civil War veterans, and the cemetery holds the grave of Governor John Christopher Blucher Ehringhaus, who served from 1933 to 1937. Burials have been rare since 1960, with twenty-one recorded.
Significance in brief: The nomination argues that the cemetery's gravestones and fences illustrate nineteenth- and early-twentieth-century funerary traditions, and that its fence group is the finest such group in eastern North Carolina. It also cites the burial of Governor John Christopher Blucher Ehringhaus and other prominent local figures as reasons for significance.
Machine-generated summary. This summary was generated by a language model from the official nomination document and has not been reviewed line by line by an editor. It may contain errors. Check the source document before relying on any detail. Source: nomination document (PDF) · National Archives catalog entry. NRHP reference 94000386, listed April 21, 1994. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-haiku-5-5, prompt v1.1-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | 505 E. Ehringhaus St., Elizabeth City |
|---|---|
| County | Pasquotank County |
| Listed | April 21, 1994 |
| Reference number | 94000386 |
| Resource type | District |
| Period of significance | ca. 1825-1943 |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Community Planning and Development, Other, Politics/Government |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | The cemetery is maintained by the City of Elizabeth City, with burials limited to spouses of interees; the form notes a gradual decline in plot fences and storm damage to trees in 1992 and 1993. |
| Acreage | 1.5 |
| Within district | Shepard Street-South Road Street Historic District |
| Coordinates | 36.29634, -76.22023 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
This is a historic district. Buildings within its boundary are either contributing (they add to the district's significance) or non-contributing. Owners of contributing income-producing buildings can claim the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit; homeowners should look at state credits. National Register districts impose no design review by themselves; a local historic district ordinance, if one exists, does (the difference explained).
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places database (snapshot May 2026), reference 94000386.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q5383289
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.