Shofner's Lutheran Chapel

Shofners' Lutheran Church and Cemetery
Nearest city Shelbyville, Tennessee
Coordinates 35°26′48″N 86°19′46″W / 35.44667°N 86.32944°W / 35.44667; -86.32944Coordinates: 35°26′48″N 86°19′46″W / 35.44667°N 86.32944°W / 35.44667; -86.32944
Area 2.4 acres (0.97 ha)
Architect Congregation
Architectural style Greek Revival influences
NRHP Reference # 97001232[1]
Added to NRHP July 10, 1998

Shofner's Lutheran Chapel is a historic church on Thompson's Creek near Shelbyville, Tennessee. The church and adjacent cemetery are listed on the National Register of Historic Places as Shofners' Lutheran Church and Cemetery.

History

The church was established by Martin Shofner in 1808. A log church was built on a portion of the land grant that Shofner had received for Revolutionary War service.[2] The church is said to be the first Lutheran congregation in Tennessee or anywhere west of the Allegheny Mountains.[3]

The current church building is a clapboard Greek Revival-influenced building built around 1870.[2][4][5][6] The benches in its interior came from an earlier log church building and are made from solid walnut. The congregation is no longer active, but the descendants of Martin Shofner continue to use the church for special occasions.[2][7]

The church building and cemetery were added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1998.[1] In 2008, the Tennessee Preservation Trust placed the church on the organization's annual list of the state's "Most Endangered Historic Places" because of concerns that the planned widening of U.S. Route 41A would adversely affect the church's historic landscape and viewshed.[3] The Tennessee Department of Transportation later revised its construction plans for the highway project to avoid adverse impacts.[5][8] On June 9, 2014, a storm damaged the church roof and knocked down some trees in the churchyard.[6]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 National Park Service (2009-03-13). "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service.
  2. 1 2 3 Doochin, Dianne Shofner. "The Shofner Lutheran Chapel Fund" (letter; downloadable in PDF format). Shofner Lutheran Chapel. Retrieved June 15, 2014.
  3. 1 2 "Old City Cemetery listed as most endangered site". Murfreesboro Post. 2008.
  4. ↑ The Shofner Lutheran Chapel Fund gives a construction date of 1871; the Shelbyville Times-Gazette (June 11, 2014) states that Michael Shofner gave the date as 1867.
  5. 1 2 "Shofners Chapel Lutheran Church (Bedford County)". Ten in Tennessee: 2008 Ten in Tenn. Tennessee Preservation Trust.
  6. 1 2 "Winds damage historic church". Shelbyville Times-Gazette. June 11, 2014.
  7. ↑ Reeves, Mary (May 30, 2008). "Shofner's Chapel celebrates bicentennial". Shelbyville Times-Gazette.
  8. ↑ "Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI): Land Use Approval for Proposed TDOT SR 16 (US 41A) Improvements" (PDF). Tennessee Valley Authority. August 10, 2009.

Further reading

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