|
|
|
|
The College (Presbyterian) Church at Hampden-Sydney
|
| |
|
College Church in the 1950's
|
The only decorative features within his auditorium design are: a classical frame outlining the sounding wall behind the pulpit -
again "framing the pulpit and preacher with prominence - and the recurring series of panels that are carved into the balcony. The latter
may possibly represent the tablets of the law, as given to Moses on Mt. Sinai, since Dr. Dabney was big on the law, and somewhat
small on matters of grace. Some belivee that the entry doors with their tripartitite mullions could possibly be taken as symbols of the
Trinity, but if so they were probably unintentional. The left front door, incidentally, still shows the marks of a futile attempt by one of
General Sheridan's troopers to break into the church - possibly to steal the Communion silver - when a large part of the Federal infantry
and cavalry came through Hampden-Sydney on April 6 and 7, 1865.
The exterior front of the church is especially pleasing to the eye, with its neo-classical arched pediment linked to the portico by two
Ionic colums. The hipped roof was originally supposed to have a step-steeple above the Greek Revival arch, but the congregation ran
out of money before that could be built. In later years the church members had grown accustomed to the plain and simple roof lines and
did not want to break them up with a steeple. The set of brick pilasters on either side of the porch are another eye-appealing feature of
the exterior.
Modifications through the years have included the digging out of a church basement for Sunday School rooms in 1955, and in 1992 a very
careful addition of an access ramp was build according to the design of Nathaniel Neblett, a Hampden-Sydney alumnus who was formerly
associated with the National Trust for Historic Preservation, and who is well-known for being an architect especially skilled in designing
appropriate ramps for historic structures. In 2002 the Leila and Graves Thompson educational wing was added, done with painstaking
efforts to blend with the original historic structure.
back to main history page
"In the same way, let your light shine before others,
so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in
heaven."
Matthew 5:16
|
|