Virginia Department of Historic Resources
(dhr.virginia.gov)
For Immediate Release
May 2025
Contact:
Ivy Tan
Department of Historic Resources
Marketing & Communications Manager
ivy.tan@dhr.virginia.gov
804-482-6445
—The church’s founders helped defend religious liberty in Virginia during the American Revolution—
—Text of marker reproduced below—
PLEASE NOTE: DHR creates markers not to “honor” their subjects but rather to educate and inform the public about a person, place, or event of regional, state, or national importance. In this regard, erected markers are not memorials.
RICHMOND – The Virginia Department of Historic Resources (DHR) has announced that a historical marker approved by the Commonwealth’s Board of Historic Resources was dedicated next weekend for North Pamunkey Baptist Church, which was established in the 18th century by two ministers who championed religious freedom and American independence from British rule during the Revolutionary War.
The dedication ceremony for the marker was held Saturday, June 7, starting at 10 a.m., at North Pamunkey Baptist Church, located on 15109 Pamunkey Lane in Orange, Virginia (22960).
The dedication ceremony featured the following speakers: Jennifer Conley, a North Pamunkey Baptist Church member and a history teacher; Tim Jarrell, pastor at the church; Larissa Smith, Ph.D., a member of the Virginia State Review Board; and State Senator Bryce Reeves of Virginia’s 28th District. A cookout was held on the church’s grounds and inside its fellowship hall following the ceremony and unveiling.
In 1774, Baptist ministers Elijah Craig and Aaron Bledsoe organized the North Pamunkey congregation in present-day Orange County as their denomination grew. Craig and Bledsoe had previously been imprisoned for preaching without permission from the Church of England, the established church in the colony of Virginia. Both men as well as others in the community petitioned for religious freedom during the Revolutionary War while also providing support for the patriot cause. James Madison won the political support of several prominent local Baptists, including that of Bledsoe, by promising to secure religious liberty in the 1780s. Bledsoe served as a pastor at North Pamunkey Baptist Church for 32 years. The present church building was completed in the 1850s. Many enslaved people were members of the church before the Civil War but left after Emancipation.
The Virginia Board of Historic Resources, which is authorized to designate new state historical markers, approved the manufacture and installation of the North Pamunkey Baptist Church marker in September 2024. The marker’s manufacturing cost was covered by its sponsors, North Pamunkey Baptist Church, Orange County Tourism, and the EverBless Foundation. The dedication event was organized by the church.
Virginia’s historical highway marker program began in 1927 with installation of the first markers along U.S. Route 1. It is considered the oldest such program in the nation. Currently there are more than 2,600 state markers, mostly maintained by the Virginia Department of Transportation, except in those localities outside of VDOT’s authority.
Full Text of Marker:
North Pamunkey Baptist Church
Baptist ministers Elijah Craig and Aaron Bledsoe organized this congregation in 1774 as their denomination grew in VA. Both men had earlier been imprisoned for preaching without permission from the established Church of England. They and others in the community petitioned for religious freedom during the Revolutionary War while also providing support for the patriot cause. Bledsoe, pastor here for 32 years, was one of several prominent local Baptists whose political support James Madison won in the 1780s by promising to secure religious liberty. The present sanctuary was completed in the 1850s. Many enslaved people were members of the church before the Civil War but departed after Emancipation.
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