Date of Award
8-1965
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Arts
Department
History
Abstract
Facing northwest in the twenty-four hundred block of East Broad and Grace Streets in Richmond, Virginia is St. John's Church which occupies, with its cemetery and dependent appurtenances, an entire city block or one sixteenth of a square mile. Over the eastern skyline of the city, the building loses its identity; even its spire is hidden by an intricate maze of buildings of less traditional import. The white frame steeple is a nationwide symbol of the active thought and spoken word which led to the American Revolution, for from its chancel to the occupants of its high paneled pews, Patrick Henry made his famous Liberty or Death declaration of war on tyranny, and from its naves walked men with realistic dream for a new country, the potential of which was beyond the insight of most.
At the time of Henry's fiery declaration, St. John's Church was high on a hill, later known as Church Hill, still in the farming area surrounding Richmond. It did not become the center of a residential area until the early eighteen hundreds when Mrs. Richard Adams I moved in with her family of ten.
Recommended Citation
Mason, Ernest H., "Historic Richmond Foundation" (1965). Master's Theses. 728.
https://scholarship.richmond.edu/masters-theses/728