St. Paul Methodist Episcopal Church, South

St. Paul Methodist Episcopal Church, South, was probably the first brick building constructed in Randolph County. Serving as a home for the congregation for over fifty years, the church was built in 1879 on a tract of land donated by James Dicks for the first church and the cemetery. (The original church was built in 1755 and was of wood.) John Ferree, a member of the church, commissioned Peter Clark, aided by Allen Redding, to build the church. The cost of the completed building was approximately four thousand dollars. John H. Ferree St. Paul M.E. Church About one hundred yards behind the church, near the small stream, clay, dug from the property, was hand pressed and fired in a kiln nearby for bricks for the church. The hand-made bricks were placed on a native rock foundation, cemented with lime, sand, and hickory ashes. Timber was cut in view of the church. Beams of immense size were hand hewn and sized to roof level, to form the peaked top and bell tower.

Jule Gilmer Körner (Ruben Rink)

Hand split shingles covered upright walls of the obelisk-like steeple. The large double doors opened into the vestibule of the church with stairs on each side leading to the balcony. Originally planned for servants, benches were place there. Later, Mr. Ferree built Ferree’s Methodist Chapel and gave the Negro congregation their own church. Then the balcony was divided into partitions and made into Sunday School rooms. Two doors opening from the vestibule led into the sanctuary. Jule Gilmer Körner (Ruben Rink), a well-known North Carolina artist of the day, painted the entire walls of the balcony and sanctuary with airy designs of draperies, columns, and stained glass windows. The pulpit sat on a slightly raised platform with a curved pulpit rail. Directly behind the pulpit, a stained glass window, a memorial to John H. Ferree, softly gave a benediction to the services. Learn more about Jule Gilmer Korner by visiting the the website for Körner's Folly - "The Strangest House in the World."