Virginia Department of Historic Resources Virginia Department of Historic Resources
For additional information, read the Nomination Form PDF
VLR Listing Date 02/20/1973
NRHP Listing Date 05/09/1973
NRHP Reference Number 73001994
Built in 1749 under the supervision of its pastor John Craig, Augusta Stone Church is the oldest standing Virginia church west of the Blue Ridge Mountains and the oldest Presbyterian church in continuous use in the Commonwealth. Craig was Virginia’s first settled Presbyterian pastor and organized the Presbyterian church in Augusta County to serve its Scotch-Irish settlers. In addition to being pastor of Augusta Stone Church, Craig helped found many other churches in the area. His building at Fort Defiance was a very simple rectangular meetinghouse with limestone rubble walls and a clipped-gable roof. The building was enlarged in 1921-22, receiving transepts, a lengthened sanctuary, and an entrance porch, all in compatible character. The original walls and roof form of the Augusta Stone Church remain discernible amid the later additions.
Many properties listed in the registers are private dwellings and are not open to the public, however many are visible from the public right-of-way. Please be respectful of owner privacy.
Abbreviations:
VLR: Virginia Landmarks Register
NPS: National Park Service
NRHP: National Register of Historic Places
NHL: National Historic Landmark
Updated: May 26, 2022
