Blackwater Presbyterian Church, Presbyterian church ruins in Sussex County, Delaware
Blackwater Presbyterian Church is a wooden chapel located in Sussex County, Delaware, with a gray exterior, white trim, and green shutters. The structure measured about 35 feet long and 30 feet wide with a front porch decorated with Victorian-style brackets.
The Presbyterian congregation was founded in 1763 by Reverend Charles Tennent, whose father established Princeton University. The building was constructed in 1767 and stood for more than 250 years until it was demolished in 2018.
The church served as a gathering place for Presbyterian settlers who otherwise traveled considerable distances for worship. It became a social center where the community could come together regularly.
The building no longer stands and can only be experienced through its historical location and the adjacent cemetery. The cemetery remains accessible to visitors and tells the story of those buried there.
The cemetery holds the grave of James M. Tunnell Sr., a United States Senator, linking local politics with religious history. The Tunnell family managed the site as a trust from 1949 onward.
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