LAUREL HILL BAPTIST CHURCH

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1851

Laurel Hill has the distinction of being the oldest Baptist church in Augusta County and in the central Shenandoah Valley.

In 1835, the attention of the Baptist General Association of Virginia was directed to Augusta County to locate a pennanent Baptist church. After the church organized at Waynesooro in the late 1830's had disbanded, some of the members

from the New Hope community formed what would later be the nucleus of the Laurel Hill church and requested help from Baptists east of the mountains in the struggling work. Elder Thomas W. Roberts was sent as a missionary, and he began to preach regularly. In the spring of 1849, he baptized 12 converts, after which time construction of a building was completed. On July 28, 1851, Laurel Hill Baptist Church was organized, with 34 charter members.

From 1851 until 1876, the church was a member of the Albemarle Association, which held its annual meeting there in 1853. The newly formed Augusta Association held its first meeting there in 1877. And in 1976, the Association returned for its

Centennial Celebration.

Many well-known names have been associated with the Laurel Hill Baptist Church, one of whom was John Taylor. Baptized into the church in 1852,

he served as pastor at four different times: 1869-1870, 1873-1893, 1900-1905, and 1915-1916. In 1905, Annie Armstrong visited the church. And in the church cemetery is a tombstone with the inscription "Moses Babies," marking the graves of

five children of Grandma Moses, who lived in the community before she became famous as an artist. Laurel Hill Baptist Church has continued to be a strong church through its 144 years. Membership has steadily increased, reaching 200 in 1944,

and 300 in 1966, when a record 24 baptisms were reported that year. In 1993, membership was 365.