National Register of Historic Places

Christ Church Episcopal

Lexington, Fayette County, Kentucky
Listed
October 20, 1976
Type
Building
Period
Industrial
Ref No.
76000867

About this property

Christ Church Cathedral is the seat of the Episcopal Diocese of Lexington and is located at 166 Market Street, Lexington, Kentucky. Founded in 1796, Christ Church Cathedral is the oldest Episcopal church in the Commonwealth of Kentucky. Renovations over the years have sought to preserve the original structure, and it remains relatively unchanged. The church created what is now called the Old Episcopal Burying Ground, located nearby. It held many who died during the cholera epidemics of 1833 and 1848, but most of the remains have been moved due to flooding. Working with the Martin Luther King Neighborhood Association and Seedleaf, the cathedral has established a community garden. It is operated primarily to grow vegetables for nearby residents, and encourages their participation in all steps: growing, harvesting, preparing and preserving. Hundreds of pounds of vegetables are given away annually to residents and community associations. In 2009 the garden was enlarged to include fruit trees and berry bushes. In recent outreach, Christ Church Cathedral has supported recognition of London Ferrill, the second preacher of First African Baptist Church. He led his church for 31 years, by 1850 building a congregation of 1,820 members, the largest of any in the state. He was one of the few clergy to stay in the city during the 1833 cholera epidemic, when 500 died of a total of 7,000 people in the city, including nearly one-third of the congregation of Christ Church. At death in 1854, Ferrill was buried in the Old Episcopal Burying Ground, the only African American to be so honored. In 2010, Christ Church supported installation of a monument to Ferrill at the burying ground, celebrating with a joint service with First African Baptist. They also supported approval of a state highway marker for the site. In addition, Christ Church named its community garden in honor of London Ferrill. The Bishop Provisional of the Episcopal Diocese of Lexington is currently Mark Van Koevering.

Location

Lexington, Fayette County, Kentucky
38.04849, -84.49619

Categories

ARCHITECTURERELIGION
National Register nomination ›
Sources

Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).

Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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Nearby Historic Sites

First Presbyterian Church
Colonial
0.1 mi
Ridgely House
Industrial
0.1 mi
Downtown Commercial District
Listed
0.1 mi
Barton, Abraham, House
Industrial
0.1 mi
Warfield, Dr. Walter, Building
Industrial
0.1 mi

Nearby Battles

Morgan's Raid on Lexington, Kentucky (Sep 1862)
1862Civil War
0.7 mi

Questions about this property

When was Christ Church Episcopal listed on the National Register?

Christ Church Episcopal was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on October 20, 1976.

What type of historic resource is Christ Church Episcopal?

Christ Church Episcopal is classified as a building in the National Register of Historic Places.

What is the period of significance for Christ Church Episcopal?

The period of significance for Christ Church Episcopal is recorded as the industrial era.

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