Christ Episcopal Church
Why it's listed
Christ Episcopal Church occupies ten acres on the east edge of Cleveland in northwest Rowan County, North Carolina. The congregation began in the late eighteenth century, and its weatherboard chapel was built in 1826 and consecrated in August 1827. The bishop called it plain but convenient. In 1926 the chapel and a new Craftsman-style parish house, given by W. Frank Thompson in memory of his mother, were covered in brick veneer and joined by an arcaded breezeway. Isaac Lyerly and his sons did the masonry. The chapel interior remains largely unpainted and intact, with hand-chamfered posts and beams, Gothic-arched stained-glass windows, and woodwork made around 1900 by Rev. Bruce Owens. An enclosed upper gallery was once used by African American worshipers. The grounds include a cemetery of about 300 graves, an early iron and granite gate, brick entrance walls from 1977, and a deodar cedar-lined entrance lane planted in 1946. Together the buildings show changing architectural tastes over a century.
Significance in brief: The nomination presents the property as a long-lived rural congregation whose chapel interior is largely intact from the early nineteenth century. Its buildings show a sequence of styles: early finishes, a late nineteenth-century Gothic Revival refitting, and a 1926 Craftsman exterior. The cemetery holds the graves of the church founders and early members.
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 11000623, listed December 5, 2011. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | 3430 Old US 70, Cleveland |
|---|---|
| County | Rowan County |
| Listed | December 5, 2011 |
| Reference number | 11000623 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Architect / builder | Isaac Lyerly and his sons (masonry work, 1926); Rev. Bruce Owens (woodwork around 1900); parish house funded by W. F. Thompson |
| Architectural style | Gothic Revival; Craftsman |
| Areas of significance | Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Still used as a religious facility with an active cemetery. |
| Acreage | 10.1 |
| Coordinates | 35.73155, -80.66574 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
Religious properties are listed for their architectural or historical significance, not their religious use. Listing is honorary and does not restrict the congregation's use of the building. The federal rehabilitation credit is generally unavailable unless part of the building is income-producing; some state programmes and preservation grants do cover religious buildings. Federal funding or permits trigger Section 106 review.
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 11000623.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q19864588
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.