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Beaufort County

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In 1747, Elizabeth Bellinger, widow of the second Landgrave Edmund Bellinger, gave fifty acres of the Tomotley Barony for the purpose of erecting the Anglican parish church. It was located right next to William Bull’s Sheldon Plantation settlement. Trustees for building the church were William Bull, Stephen Bull, Robert Troup, John Green, and James DeVeaux. In 1751, the cornerstone of the Prince William Parish Church was laid, and the structure began largely at the expense of the Bull family. In 1752, the Commons House of Assembly allocated six hundred pounds currency towards the construction of the church, and by 1757 the church interior was completed and the first services were conducted.  “The man most responsible for building the Prince William Parish Church was William Bull I, who did not live to see it completed. He was buried in the place of highest honor—inside the church before the altar. Prince William Parish
Church was a grand edifice symbolic of the wealth that was being produced from the rivers and swamps which surrounded it. When it was completed, contemporary observers called the Prince William Parish Church the finest country church in America.

The Greek Revival style developed around 1820 and continued for decades. American interest in the culture of ancient Greece grew from sympathy for the Greek War of Independence (1821-1830) and emerging archaeological finds showing Greece as the earliest democracy. Also, Roman inspired architecture was associated with England, and after the War of 1812, there was a strong desire to shake off English influence and define a new national style. The Greek Revival style has much in common with the Roman Classical Revival style in its reliance on the temple form, front pediment, and classical order columns. There is considerable variation in the public and private buildings designed in this style. Some buildings appear to be Greek temple replicas and others simply use the temple shape and form with distinctive details. There are many more surviving examples of the Greek Revival style than the Roman Classical Revival style, because the later Greek Revival style was far more popular and wide spread. Courtesy of the Penn. Arch. Field Guide – Website

Indeed, recent scholarship has revealed that Prince William Parish Church was the first temple-form neoclassical building in America, and as such, it was the prototype of the Greek Revival architecture so characteristic of the antebellum south. The church was built from, or adapted from, the work of English architect James Gibb’s unused plans for St. Mary-le-Strand Church in London. The plans were probably brought to South Carolina by William Bull II, who had many mutual acquaintances with the architect during the years of Bull’s education in Europe.”

(Information from: A History of Beaufort County, Vol. I, Rowland, Moore and G.C. Rogers, Jr. – Un. of S.C. Press, 1996)
Courtesy of the S.C. Dept. of Archives and History

Courtesy of the S.C. Dept. of Archives and History

 Courtesy of photographer Bill Segars - 2005

Courtesy of photographer Bill Segars - 2005

 Image courtesy of Karen Esberger - 2016

Image courtesy of Karen Esberger - 2016

Sheldon Church Ruins – Beaufort County, S.C.

Get Directions Latitude: 32.659636     Longitude: -80.818276

300 Old Sheldon Church Road

City Directories and History: (Prince William’s Parish Church) Sheldon Church is said to be the first conscious attempt in America to imitate a Greek temple. Built between 1745-1753, the ruins of the church still retain their classic simplicity. Surrounded by moss-draped live oaks, the original three-and-one-half foot thick colonnaded walls of Flemish bond and the four all-header bond portico columns remain, attesting to the solid construction and master craftsmanship which enabled it to withstand two conflagrations and over two hundred fifty

Prince William Parish [Sheldon] (Ruins)

years of existence. Complete by 1753, Sheldon Church was built along a row of seven Tuscan columns (six engaged, one outstanding). The western façade had an elegant portico, crowned by a triangular pediment with bulls-eye window and cornice with dentils. The large front doorway had a fanlight above and two round-headed windows, symmetrically spaced, on either side. On the north, five bays between the engaged columns were filled with a single tier of tall, round-headed windows; the other bay was left open for a portico. At the eastern end, above the alter, was a Palladian window, with a round-headed window to each side. Sheldon Church was burned by General Augustine Prevost’s British troops in May 1779. General Sherman’s 15th Corps under General John Logan burned Sheldon Church on January 14, 1865 and it was never rebuilt. Marble sarcophagi in the churchyard bear the names of South Carolina leaders. Listed in the National Register October 22, 1970. [Courtesy of the SC Dept. of Archives and History]

“Prince William’s Parish Church (Sheldon) was built between 1745 and 1755 on land donated from the original holdings of the first Landgrave, Edmund Bellinger. The name Sheldon was used in honor of the Bull family, whose nearby plantation and ancestral home in Warwickshire, England, were both called Sheldon Hall.

Arms and ammunition were hidden in the Bull family vault during the American Revolution, and Continental troops drilled on the church grounds. Sheldon Church was burned by General Augustine Provost’s British troops in May 1779. The church was rebuilt in 1826 and formally given the name of Sheldon Church of Prince William’s Parish. Sherman’s 15th Corps under General John Logan burned Sheldon Church on January 14, 1865. The church was never rebuilt. The colonnaded walls are three-and-a-half feet thick in the Flemish bond, and the four portico columns are in the all-header bond. Sheldon Church was built along a row of seven Tuscan columns (six engaged and one outstanding).

Sheldon Church is said to be the first conscious attempt in America to imitate a Greek temple.”

Information from: Historic Resources of the Lowcountry, The Lowcountry Council of Government, Cynthia C. Jenkins, Preservation Planner – Published, 1979

“Perhaps the handsome Church would not have been burned by British troops in 1779, if Prince William on his steed had been riding guard above the portal. Bishop Thomas said in a sermon preached at the Sheldon Church ruins in 1952, that the bronze statue of Prince William and his horse lay for years in an outhouse on Sheldon Plantation. In 1826, Sheldon was rebuilt within the same massive walls, though not so handsomely or so well. Sherman’s Army in 1865 burned the rebuilt Sheldon. It remains today a beautiful and pathetic ruins, where an annual service is held each spring. Some handsome tombs remain in the moss-draped, live-oak shaded churchyard.” (Information from: Names in South Carolina by C.H. Neuffer, Published by the S.C. Dept. of English, USC)

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R&R HISTORY LINK: A SCHS Mag. Article; “Union Troops and the Destruction of S.C. Religious Places” by Chesebrough

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IMAGE GALLERY via photographer Bill Segars – 2005

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Please enjoy this structure and all those listed in Roots and Recall. But remember each is private property. So view them from a distance or from a public area such as the sidewalk or public road. Do you have information to share and preserve? Family, school, church, or other older photos and stories are welcome. Send them digitally through the “Share Your Story” link, so they too might be posted on Roots and Recall.

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