Zion United Methodist Church (cobblestone)

Historic Site #:	13-008 (Exists) Type: D1,E1,E3,F2	Town:	Walworth
Site Name:	Zion United Methodist Church (cobblestone)	GPS Coordinates:	43.146793, -77.345221
Address:	3960 West Walworth Rd., Macedon, NY.
Description:
In 1842 a cobblestone academy was built of stones hauled from shore of Lake Ontario with each man making one trip a day to gather stones. The school closed within a few years for lack of support. Later the building was used as a residence by the village shoemaker. Regarding the map where this church is labeled "Dutch Reformed," Loreen Jorgensen, Church Historian believes it to be mislabeled by the mapmakers. Her comment: "My best guess is that it is mis-labeled. The German Evangelical Association church was organized in 1856. It bought the cobblestone building from a shoemaker in 1865. After fixing it up, they dedicated the church on September 9, 1866. My guess would be that because they were German-speaking, the map makers concluded Dutch Reformed."

Photo by Bavis, 2014

Historic narrative:
Organized in 1857, the congregation purchased the old Women's Academy in 1865. Additions in 1904, 1958, and 2003 have enlarged the church space, but the pews still date to 1887 when they replaced the planks on boards. This property is a significant site related to the Underground Railroad. (see link below). The pages directly associated with the Church and West Walworth are Pages 358-365). Since the document is broken into 6 parts, page numbers on the left side will be Pages 75-82)

References:

Zion West Walworth United Methodist Church

Highlights in the history of Zion United Methodist Church, West Walworth, NY 1856-1976. Edna Jacobs. 1976.

The History of West Walworth. Karen Curnow. 1976. Hoffman Foundation essay.

Cobblestone Society Database

Cobblestone Quest by Rich & Sue Freeman, page 109-110

Underground RR Research Project