Union Church and Burial Ground
Also known as: Old Mud Church607 E. Presqueisle St., Philipsburg, PA
Photos
Photo taken by Brian Manville on April 24, 2018
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Map
Coordinates:
+40.89794, -78.2172440°53'53" N, 78°13'02" W
Quadrangle map:Philipsburg
Description
A log meetinghouse was built in 1820 by the residents of Philipsburg. The building was used both as a school and as the community's first church, open to all Protestant ministers.
In 1842 the building was extensively rebuilt as a Gothic style Anglican church with a three-story entrance tower added to the front, a chancel added to the rear and the log walls of the meetinghouse incorporated into the main sanctuary. A rough mixture of plaster and clay stucco covers the church giving it its common name of the "Old Mud Church."
The last regular religious use was by Free Methodists in the early 1920s. The building has also been used as a local museum.
The cemetery is surrounded by a three-foot stone wall and contains a 330-year-old white oak known as the "Founder's Oak." The oldest grave is dated 1819.
National Register information
- Status
- Posted to the National Register of Historic Places on May 23, 1978
- Reference number
- 78002365
- Architectural style
- Other architectural type; Gothic Revival vernacular
- Areas of significance
- Exploration/Settlement; Architecture
- Level of significance
- Local
- Evaluation criteria
- C - Design/Construction; B - Person
- Property type
- Building
- Historic functions
- Religious structure; Cemetery
- Current functions
- Religious structure; Cemetery
- Periods of significance
- 1800-1824; 1825-1849
- Significant years
- 1820; 1842
- Number of properties
- Contributing buildings: 1
Contributing sites: 1
Update Log
- April 24, 2018: Updated by Brian Manville: Updated address & added photos
- April 2, 2018: New Street View added by Brian Manville