St. Paul's College
Also known as: St. Paul's Normal and Industrial School
Why it's listed
Three early buildings on the St. Paul's College campus in Lawrenceville, Virginia, mark the beginnings of a school for the region's Black community. The Rev. James Solomon Russell, born into slavery in 1857 and educated at Hampton Institute, arrived in Lawrenceville as a newly ordained Episcopal deacon and organized a congregation and a parochial school. The three-room frame Saul Building, funded by a Philadelphia clergyman, housed the St. Paul's Normal and Industrial School, founded in 1888. Russell's former residence, now the Fine Arts Building, dates from 1900. The Gothic Revival Memorial Chapel followed in 1904 as the first brick building on campus, raised mostly by student labor during a period of technical training. The school later added teacher training, a four-year liberal arts curriculum in 1941, and the name St. Paul's College in 1957. These surviving buildings are the remaining 19th and early 20th century structures of the campus.
Significance in brief: The three buildings form the early core of a school founded by the Rev. James Solomon Russell, born into slavery, to serve the region's Black community. They show the institution's growth from a one-room parochial school to a four-year liberal arts college. The chapel was the first brick building on campus and was built largely with student labor.
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 79003032, listed June 27, 1979. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | St. Paul's College campus, Lawrenceville |
|---|---|
| County | Brunswick County |
| Listed | June 27, 1979 |
| Reference number | 79003032 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1800-1899, 1900-1904 (specific dates 1883; 1900; 1904) |
| Architectural style | Gothic Revival (Memorial Chapel); Colonial Revival mantels in the Fine Arts Building |
| Areas of significance | Education, Religion |
| Level of significance | State |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Condition is checked as excellent and good; the buildings are occupied and used as offices, classrooms and a chapel, with some interior alterations. |
| Acreage | 2 |
| Within district | Lawrenceville Historic District (Additional Documentation) |
| Coordinates | 36.76100, -77.84972 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
For a publicly owned building or structure, listing mainly matters when federal funds, permits or licences are involved: projects then go through Section 106 review so effects on the property are considered. Listing also strengthens applications for preservation grants and, for leased income-producing uses, can enable the federal rehabilitation tax credit.
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 79003032.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q7402014
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.