First Church of Christ Scientist

Karpeles Manuscript Library, Jacksonville, Florida

Today this building is one of the eleven Karpeles Museum locations in the U.S., but when built in 1921, it was the First Church of Christ Scientist in Jacksonville, Florida.  It’s a large Greek Revival building with doric columns designed by local architects.  The church membership organized in 1897 and met in a variety of locations before building at this location.  The group dissolved in 1993 and sold the building to David Karpeles.

Karpeles Manuscript Library, Jacksonville, Florida

Karpeles Manuscript Library, Jacksonville, Florida

Karpeles Manuscript Library, Jacksonville, Florida

Karpeles Manuscript Library, Jacksonville, Florida

Karpeles Manuscript Library, Jacksonville, Florida

Advertisements

St. George Episcopal

St. George Episcopal Church, Fort George Island, Duval County, Florida

St. George Episcopal Church is on Fort George Island, just north of Jacksonville, Florida.  The Carpenter-gothic building was finished in 1882 as the Episcopal church was expanding missions in the southeast.  A good summary of the history of this particular church is on the church’s website here.

Eustis Church

Church, Eustis, Florida (Lake County)

This one is a mystery.  It was a church at one time, but information is lacking.  It’s located in Eustis, Florida on Citrus Avenue, but may be serving as a wedding venue today.

The church below was nearby and named Mt. Pleasant A.M.E.  It didn’t look very old, but it caught my eye coming back from Trinity Episcopal so I took a quick photo.

Mt. Pleasant A.M.E., Fruitland Park, Florida (Lake County)

Fernandina Beach Churches

First Missionary Baptist Church, Fernandina Beach, Florida

Fernandina Beach is a small coastal town in the northeast corner of Florida.  The area was founded by the Spanish as a military outpost and a mission not long after they established St. Augustine to the south.  The small center of town has several old churches including the three shown here.  First Missionary Baptist Church (above) was organized in 1860 and later built a gothic-style church in 1874.  It’s the oldest Black Missionary Baptist church still in service in the state.  The church was last renovated in 2007.

Trinity United Methodist Church, Fernandina Beach, Florida

Trinity Church has history back to 1822 when a missionary came to Amelia Island to establish a congregation.  Their first church was eventually built in 1869 and was replaced by this masonry brick building in 1891.

First Presbyterian Church, Fernandina Beach, Florida

First Presbyterian Church is a simple frame building with a small entrance porch.  It’s the oldest church standing in town, built in 1859.

Waldo Methodist

First United Methodist Church, Waldo, Florida (Alachua County)

When I typically drove through Waldo, Florida, its main claim to fame was notoriety as a Florida speed trap for drivers on Highway 301 through the center of the state.  That practice recently ended with a law change and the eventual elimination of the small police force in town.  I did pull over when passing through town for a better reason, to take a few photos of the First United Methodist Church, built in 1910.  It’s part of the town’s National Register of Historic Places entry.  The town peaked in the late 1800s as a railroad town and has been fairly stagnant since World War II.  The church above was no longer in use at the time of the photo.

Bronson Methodist

Bronson United Methodist Church, Bronson, Florida

Bronson, Florida is southwest of Gainesville in a less developed part of Florida.  The Methodist church above was built in 1886 and was moved to the current site near the town’s courthouse in 1920.

St. Paul A.M.E.

St. Paul African Methodist Episcopal Church, Greene County, Georgia

It’s believed that St. Paul A.M.E. was built around the turn of the twentieth century, but nobody seems to know for sure.  It’s located near Siloam, Georgia and seems to be abandoned now.