For a quick history lesson, be sure to drive or bike by any one of Hilton Head Island’s historic churches. Most of these churches served as places of worship for abandoned or freed slaves during and after the Civil War.

    Remarkably, most of these century-old houses of worship still open every Sunday for services.

    One of the oldest buildings in Hilton Head is the small, white Queen Chapel, an African Methodist-Episcopal church, located on Beach City Road and founded in 1865 by missionaries.  It served as a praise house for slaves on the Pope Plantation. The original building has been updated, both in 1892 and again in 1952.

    Also founded in 1865 and located on Beach City Road is the First African Baptist Church.  St. James Baptist Church, founded in 1886, is located near the old Mitchelville neighborhood where abandoned slaves lived and farmed the land during the Civil War.

    The Zion Chapel of Ease was small Episcopal Church built in 1788 for plantation owners.  The chapel was later destroyed and all that remains today is the cemetery, located at the corner of Mathews Drive and William Hilton Parkway (Hwy. 278).  The Zion Cemetery is also home to the Baynard family mausoleum.  The site is now owned and maintained by the Heritage Library (843-686-6560).

    One of the most remarkable structures is the Church of the Cross, which is listed in the National Register of Historic Places. This Episcopal Church, built in 1857, sits on the bluff overlooking the expansive May River. Architect E. B. White designed the church and described it as a “handsome cruciform Gothic building.” Rose-colored glass from England graces the windows, and inside, soft-pink, scored plaster enhances the light.

    Gray Line’s Lowcountry Adventures Tours (843-681-8212) offers a fascinating guided tour of the Church of the Cross. This tour also includes visits to the historic Rose Hill Mansion and the Heyward House as well as time to stroll the streets of Old town Bluffton.

    Live Oac (888-254-8362) provides a private guided adventure to the Church of the Cross and historic Bluffton.  Custom programs visiting churches and chapels on Daufuskie Island, Palmetto Bluff and Bluffton are available by special arrangement.

    For further information, see our Ad Directory under Sightseeing Tours. 

    Also see “Things To Do”  #10, #50, #53, #68, #69, and #99.

Photo courtesy of Ed Funk