005-5439 Scott Zion Baptist Church

For additional information, read the Nomination Form PDF

VLR Listing Date 12/09/2021

NRHP Listing Date 03/23/2022

NRHP Reference Number SG100007568

Scott Zion Baptist Church and Cemetery’s assembly is among the largest and oldest African American congregations in Amherst County. Located about six miles northwest of Lynchburg, the Scott Zion community emerged after the Civil War and was composed of African Americans and some Native American people who migrated away from agrarian communities along the James River. Seeking better jobs and higher pay, the people settled in Scott Zion and the surrounding area. Since 1872, Scott Zion Baptist Church property has functioned as the community’s place of worship, education, and social center. The church drew congregants as well from another Black community, San Domingo, situated about two miles southeast of Scott Zion. While San Domingo had its own school, it never had a church, and many of the community members were related to people in the Scott Zion community. The first known burial in the sprawling Scott Zion Baptist Church cemetery occurred around 1890. In 1942, the congregation erected the current church building and in the late 1960s the frame structure’s original stucco exterior finish was covered in a brick veneer.

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Abbreviations:
VLR: Virginia Landmarks Register
NPS: National Park Service
NRHP: National Register of Historic Places
NHL: National Historic Landmark

Updated: April 12, 2022