Macedonia Church community gathers for Homecoming

From submitted and staff reports
Published: July 30, 2008

Members of the Macedonia Church families, who have been lovingly tending the tiny mountain church with its arched windows and chestnut interior, gathered there Sunday for their annual Homecoming.

About 100 people attended the homecoming at the church on Coffeytown Road, nestled near the Amherst, Nelson and Rockbridge county borders in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Amherst County.

It was built in the little community of Vesuvius in 1896. The pews are hand-carved American chestnut. The interior walls, ceilings and doors are also chestnut.

By 1981, the population of the area had dwindled to the point where the church closed.

But in 1990, a group of families associated with the church formed an association for its upkeep.

Now, it is used not only for the annual Homecoming but also for weddings, christenings, funerals, revivals, gospel sings, picnics and reunions.

On Aug. 14, 1882, Charles E. and Sarah Jane Coffey donated the Macedonia Church property to the Methodist Episcopal Church South.

In 1896, the original log building was demolished and a new one was constructed. All the lumber for the new church was cut from the neighboring forest and dressed by hand.

The walls, ceilings, doors and pews are made of American chestnut; the floor is wide pine board.

In its day, the church served a small community of worshipers. The population diminished, and the church closed on Dec. 31, 1981.

It was merged into the other four churches of the Mount Pleasant charge: Ivy Hill, Bethel, Mount Horeb and Mount Pleasant. Macedonia Church members were transferred to the Mount Horeb United Methodist Church.

In 1990, ownership of the property was transferred to the Macedonia Community Association, formed from the families in the church community for preservation of the building and its use as a community center.

Projects completed by the Macedonia Community Association include refinishing the chestnut pews, pulpit and pine floor; installing a new roof; re-pointing the stone foundation; and adding a new wood stove, a new chimney, landscaping and a new double privy. The association also maintains the Bridge Hill Cemetery, and the Christmas in Coffeytown Celebration is held there the first Sunday every December.

The church interior

The walls of the church are in 6-foot sections, with 1-inch chestnut paneling positioned in a zigzag pattern. The 30-foot-tall arched ceilings are also paneled with chestnut strips.

The doors and pews are also made of the same hand-hewn chestnut.

Typical Gothic pointed arches characterize the church, and can be seen in the windows, doorways and pulpit. Four arched windows, each about 6 feet tall, are positioned on both sides of the church. On each side of the vestibule are small arched windows. The front door and the 16-foot door to the church are both arched. Above the pulpit a wider arch curves, and below on both sides are two more small arched windows.

Two ornately carved arched chairs, also made of chestnut, were on either side of the altar until they were stolen while the church was closed.

Three columns of pews fill the church, with wider ones in the middle and smaller ones on each side. The pews are all hand-carved chestnut and were built around the time the church was constructed.

The floors are made of 3-inch wide pine boards.

The original church was built in 1875 by J.W. Campbell. The small building was made of pine logs hauled from Irish Creek by mules.

It was named “Macedonia” on the suggestion of the mother of the Rev. J.W. Parrish, one of the church’s first ministers. Macedonia was a country that rose to worldwide power around 350 B.C.

In 1896, while the Rev. A.C. Jordan was minister, the original church was torn down and a new one was constructed nearby.

F.E. Coleman was the contractor for the new church, and he was assisted by Fletcher Massie, Timothy Christian, Sam Anderson and Palmer Proffitt. The cost of construction totaled $488.

Electricity and an oil heater were added in the 1940s, replacing kerosene lamps and an old wood stove, which was positioned in the middle of the church between the pews.

Macedonia School

The Macedonia Schoolhouse was built behind the church on land also donated by Charles E. and Sarah Jane Coffey. It was also built by community members with material from the nearby forest.

Many of the Coffeytown residents were educated in this small school. The school had two large rooms, one for classes and one for coats, supplies and wood for the stove. The desks were large enough for two people. There were seven grades in one room. The teacher sometimes boarded with the Hiter Coffey family.

In the 1940s, the Macedonia schoolhouse was closed, and the students were bussed to the Pleasant View Elementary School.

— From a submitted story