This page gives information on the activities of the Churches and houses of
worship in Richmond during the Civil War
Richmond Dispatch |
10/30/1860; Political parties are meeting at
various places, including Metropolitan Hall, First African Church, and
Springfield Hall |
Richmond Dispatch |
11/1/1860; description of the danger posed to
men slating the steeple of the Broad Street Church. |
Richmond Dispatch |
11/1/1860; Chapel of St. Paul’s on 5th, between
Canal and Byrd Streets was consecrated yesterday |
Richmond Dispatch |
11/7/1860; Smith’s Armory Band plays at all the different political parties’
headquarters, including the African Church |
Richmond Dispatch |
11/12/1860; British account of the Prince of Wales’ trip to Richmond - notes
on the ill-taste of the "ruffianly" Richmond crowds, the Prince’s visit to
the state Capitol (important anecdote about the Houdon statue), St. Paul’s
Church, the fair grounds, Hollywood Cemetery, Governor’s Mansion, Ballard
House |
Richmond
Dispatch |
5/4/1861; Rev. Francis Boggs, the
Chaplain at Camp Lee, has been elected Captain in the 1st VA Inf. |
Richmond
Dispatch |
5/29/1861; ladies of the Monumental
Church are doing work for the soldiers in the Mechanics' Institute |
Richmond Enquirer |
6/19/1861; Notes that the St. Francis de Sales
Hospital has been recently established, and is treating Confederate soldiers
- laudatory of the Catholic Church |
Richmond Dispatch |
7/10/1861; Dr. Hoge, chaplain at
Camp Lee, has set up collection place for donations next to the R. F. & P.
depot |
Richmond
Dispatch |
7/27/1861; brief description of the
hospital at Mason Hall Church; also description of the "Springfield
Temperance" hospital (future GH#26), in the same neighborhood; notes
they are both filling up |
Richmond Enquirer |
8/5/1861; ladies of St. James Church have
established a hospital at the corner of Main and 3rd (probably Robertson
Hospital) |
Richmond
Whig |
8/6/1861; ladies of St. James Episcopal Church
have obtained Judge Robertson's house, corner of 3rd and Main, for use as
a hospital (later Robertson Hospital) |
Richmond
Enquirer |
8/20/1861; Centenary Methodist Church Hospital
established |
Richmond Enquirer |
8/20/1861; Two hospitals have been established
by the Centenary Methodist Church |
Richmond
Whig |
8/20/1861; Sycamore Church establishes
hospital in their lecture-room |
Richmond
Dispatch |
8/31/1861; good description of
Sycamore Church Hospital; opened 8/21 |
Richmond Enquirer |
8/31/1861; notice that Sycamore Church Hospital
has been established |
Richmond Dispatch |
9/11/1861; ladies of the First Baptist Church
have procured a house on Fourth street beyond Leigh to use as a hospital |
Richmond
Enquirer |
9/27/1861; description of the Bethel Church
Sunday school (20th and Cary streets) |
Richmond
Dispatch |
11/1/1861;
Rev. John C.
McCabe appointed chaplain of area military posts |
Richmond
Dispatch |
11/2/1861; more details on Rev. Dr. McCabe -
came from the 32VA |
Richmond
Dispatch |
11/22/1861;
Dr. McCabe, post
Chaplain, overwhelmed with work |
Richmond
Dispatch |
12/7/1861; excellent
directory of churches in Richmond, pastors, and times of worship |
Richmond
Whig |
1/22/1862; Description of the
funeral of Pres. John Tyler. Body taken from the "Hall of Congress" to St.
Paul's, where the funeral sermon was delivered, and thence to Hollywood
Cemetery. Notes that the weather was exceedingly bad. |
Richmond
Whig |
2/17/1862; description of the
funeral of Capt. O. J. Wise at St. James' Church and Hollywood Cemetery. A
large number of people came to see the body while it was lying in state, in
a metallic coffin, in the Confederate Senate Room at the Capitol. |
Richmond Dispatch |
2/25/1862; Wind storm: slate blown off steeple of Broad Street M. E. Church,
also adjacent scaffolding; 100 yards of Petersburg RR bridge track and
flooring blown into the river; 50 old pines at Howard’s Grove fall – smash
into half dozen houses formerly used by 57 VA; tin roof at Greanor’s Factory
(future Castle Thunder), 18th St., blown off. |
Richmond Dispatch |
3/6/1862; list of recent arrests of Unionists including Rev. Bosserman of 1st
Independent Christian Church, Mayo St. |
Richmond Dispatch |
4/1/1862; 2nd
Baptist Church melts bell for “2nd Baptist Church Battery;” John
Tanner, of Tredegar, involved |
Richmond Dispatch |
4/12/1862; old cannon on street corners should be recycled – bell in steeple
of Dr. Reed’s Church sent to the Armory to be recycled |
Richmond Dispatch |
4/14/1862; Shakespearian reading at African Church |
Richmond Dispatch |
4/28/1862; soldier of the 21st MI loitering about the "C. S.
Military Prisons" [Libby Prison] is taken into custody, assaults "Mr. Ross,
clerk of the prison" and Lieut. Turner "who has charge of the prison" sends
him to the Provost Marshal. Man attempts to escape, shot at 19th & Cary,
rear of Quaker Meeting House, taken to Libby Prison, where he dies |
Richmond
Enquirer |
5/7/1862; congregation of the Disciples church
makes a donation to Winder Hospital |
Richmond Dispatch |
5/13/1862; Peterfield Trent asks City Council to set aside Clay St Chapel as
hospital - request denied; quarter ending 4/30: 114 white interments at
Shockoe, 16 of them POW |
Richmond Dispatch |
5/15/1862; Editorial regret that Clay St Chapel not used as hospital |
Richmond Dispatch |
5/20/1862; little boy hurt by falling from wall at St. John’s Churchyard |
Richmond Dispatch |
5/29/1862; Ladies making hospital bedding at St. Paul’s church |
Richmond Dispatch |
5/30/1862; Monumental Church ladies sewing beds for hospitals |
Richmond
Enquirer |
5/31/1862; ladies of the various churches are
requested to make bedding for the hospitals |
Richmond
Dispatch |
6/4/1862; New hospital established at Ridge
Church (in the west end) |
Richmond Dispatch |
6/4/1862; Many
churches sent pew cushions to Med. Dir |
Richmond Dispatch |
6/5/1862;
Sycamore Church ladies making bed sacks |
Richmond Dispatch |
6/24/1862;
Josephine Rupert, lady making “equipments for the soldiers” at St. Paul’s
Church falls through trap door in belfry - not badly injured |
Richmond
Dispatch |
7/1/1862; Seaman's Bethel church, 20th street,
has been taken as a hospital |
Richmond Dispatch |
7/9/1862; Walter
Coles in charge of Bosher & Spotswood Hotel hospital. Thanks donors by name.
Rev. Hoge is among the contributors. |
Richmond Dispatch |
7/12/1862;
details on funeral of a man who accidentally drowned at Drewry’s Bluff -
funeral at Trinity M. E. Church |
Richmond Dispatch |
7/14/1862; Daily
prayer meetings at 2nd Presbyterian Church |
Richmond Dispatch |
7/22/1862; Ladies
at First Baptist Church Hospital thank a Mecklenburg lady for provisions |
Richmond Dispatch |
7/30/1862;
special meeting for members of 2nd Presbyterian Church |
Richmond Dispatch |
8/2/1862; special
preaching at Trinity Methodist Episcopal, 20th & Broad |
Richmond Dispatch |
8/8/1862; Sallie
Tompkins thanks St. Paul’s Church, Hanover County, for money donated to
hospital |
Richmond Dispatch |
8/18/1862; daily
prayer meeting at Centenary Church |
Richmond Dispatch |
8/19/1862; Money
and a prayer book found in “gallery” of St. John’s Church |
Richmond Dispatch |
8/25/1862; daily
prayer meeting at 2nd Presbyterian Church |
Richmond Dispatch |
9/23/1862;
Someone stole one of the old silver communion goblets from St. Paul’s |
Richmond Dispatch |
9/27/1862;
Russell’s starch factory “in Rocketts old field” burned to the ground. Was
lately in use as a hospital and formerly known as the Second Baptist Church
Chapel. |
Richmond Dispatch |
10/7/1862; death
notice, R. N. Holstead, ex-Parker’s Battery, died 10/5, typhoid, age 22 yrs,
1 month, 2 days. Druggist at Royster Hospital at the time of his death.
Funeral at Union Station Methodist Church |
Richmond Dispatch |
10/27/1862;
Summary of synod of Presbyterian Church; Rev. J. D. Thomas holds regular
services at Battery #8 |
Richmond Dispatch |
11/11/1862;
report on meeting of city citizens for shoes – J. L. Burrows, 1st Baptist
Church, chairman. $4-5 thousand raised on the spot. List of committee
members for various wards including Luther Libby, Wm. Greanor, Jno. R.
Ballard, T. W. Hoeniger, James H. Grant, Joel B. Watkins, General J. R.
Anderson & many more. One group to meet at J. R. Anderson’s home. |
Richmond Dispatch |
12/18/1862; an
organist needed at St. John’s Church |
Richmond Dispatch |
12/20/1862; L. L. Lee
“uneducated orator” to speak at African Church |
Richmond
Sentinel |
1/6/1864; Ladies of Union Station Methodist Church furnished
New Year's meal at Howard's Grove. |
Richmond
Whig |
5/2/1864; description of the death
of little Joseph Davis, son of Pres. Jefferson Davis, in a fall from a
balcony at the Confederate White House. |
Richmond
Whig |
5/14/1864; description of the
funeral of Gen. J. E. B. Stuart and interment in Hollywood Cemetery; gives
list of pall-bearers, including Pres. Davis, many generals, and members of
Congress |
Richmond
Whig |
9/17/1864; Rev. George Patterson of
the Episcopal Church, officiated at Gen. Morgan's funeral |
New York
Times |
4/11/1865; Article
describing the White House of the Confederacy, the military governance of
the city, the destruction done by the fire (particularly to the mills), the
newspapers in Richmond and what has become of the editors, and an extremely
detailed account of the jubilee meeting at First African Baptist Church.
|
New York Times |
4/30/1865;
Episcopal Churches are still closed. Author met Mathew Brady in Richmond
4/22/1865 and remarks on his photographs of Robert E. Lee. |
Richmond
Dispatch |
12/31/1870; Memorial services for
Erasmus Ross, former clerk of Libby, held in Monumental Church; Ross
killed in the Spottswood fire |
National
Tribune |
7/27/1899; "A Union Man in
Richmond;" description of sentiment in Richmond leading up to secession;
John Minor Botts' speech at the African Church, and the Secession Convention
in the Mechanics' Institute. |