503 Round Hill School Road
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Last updated on November 21, 2024
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The Mt. Bethel Baptist Church was organized in 1869 with a small group of members part of the African American community of New Hope established after the Civil War. The first pastor was Rev. N.P. Hawkers who served for 30 years. In 1952, the church had many additions under Rev. Thomas Cary Allen, including a kitchen, dining room, choir room, a pastor’s study, new steps, and stained-glass windows. A ladies' auxiliary of the church was formed, and improvements were made to the church under their guidance. The church celebrated its 155th anniversary in 2023. The Mt. Bethel Baptist Church cemetery is located right of the church.
The Mt. Tabor United Methodist Church and Cemetery is located northwest of Mt. Bethel Baptist Church. Church records are scarce, but the church organization can be assumed to be after the Civil War. There was a log cabin adjacent to the church building that was built before 1850 by enslaved African Americans and was used in its years as a meeting house, church, school, and hospital for wounded soldiers. It was used as a fellowship hall post-Civil War. The log cabin is now on display at the Frontier Culture Museum in Staunton as one of Augusta County's oldest exposed log structures. Mt. Tabor cemetery is located on the church lot near the tree line.
Mt. Tabor was documented in the Jedediah Hotchkiss Map of the Middle River Magisterial District 1884, and the Round Hill School House No.26 was marked south of Mt. Tabor. The school was built in 1881 as a one-teacher schoolhouse and schooled students in the surrounding area, grades one through seven. By 1924, Round Hill School had two separate one-room school buildings for two teaching staff. In 1951, it was the only surviving two-room elementary school as many rural schools closed due to declining enrollment. Round Hill was stretched thin and experienced overcrowding, and demands for improvements and repairs were not always met. Round Hill remained open after the 1954 Brown v. Board of Education Supreme Court decision struck down public school segregation. In 1957, black parents advocated for the school's needs to the school board, but these were never addressed. In 1959, Round Hill was closed and sold in an auction as the new Oak Grove Elementary School was built.
The Mt. Tabor United Methodist Church and Cemetery is located northwest of Mt. Bethel Baptist Church. Church records are scarce, but the church organization can be assumed to be after the Civil War. There was a log cabin adjacent to the church building that was built before 1850 by enslaved African Americans and was used in its years as a meeting house, church, school, and hospital for wounded soldiers. It was used as a fellowship hall post-Civil War. The log cabin is now on display at the Frontier Culture Museum in Staunton as one of Augusta County's oldest exposed log structures. Mt. Tabor cemetery is located on the church lot near the tree line.
Mt. Tabor was documented in the Jedediah Hotchkiss Map of the Middle River Magisterial District 1884, and the Round Hill School House No.26 was marked south of Mt. Tabor. The school was built in 1881 as a one-teacher schoolhouse and schooled students in the surrounding area, grades one through seven. By 1924, Round Hill School had two separate one-room school buildings for two teaching staff. In 1951, it was the only surviving two-room elementary school as many rural schools closed due to declining enrollment. Round Hill was stretched thin and experienced overcrowding, and demands for improvements and repairs were not always met. Round Hill remained open after the 1954 Brown v. Board of Education Supreme Court decision struck down public school segregation. In 1957, black parents advocated for the school's needs to the school board, but these were never addressed. In 1959, Round Hill was closed and sold in an auction as the new Oak Grove Elementary School was built.
