Woodville Baptist Church

The Woodville Baptist Church congregation dates to 1921. it is a prime example of the Akron design, an architectural plan that congregations made use of in the first part of the twentieth century featuring symmetrical design with the steeple centrally placed on the gable end, in a style that was usually Gothic or Greek Revival. The church marks a transitional phase in Baptist church architecture around the turn of the twentieth century from a symmetrical design, usually in the Gothic Revival style, with a centrally placed steeple on the gable end, to an asymmetrical design with the steeple place usually on the side of the structure. Many of these churches with an asymmetrical design are also based on a modified “Akron Plan,” so named because it was first used in Akron, Ohio in 1867.  This design abandoned the traditional long, straight, and narrow sanctuary with a central aisle in favor of a shallower and wider sanctuary with a sloping floor and pews which sweep in a half-circle and are broken into three sections. The purpose of these features was to enable everyone to see and hear clearly in a time when sound and projection systems were nonexistent.

Other characteristics typical of the Akron style are sliding walls which allow the gallery to be closed off when not needed, and doors on the Sunday School rooms which completely open the front wall of the classroom. In a true Akron style Sunday School, the classes would open these doors completely so that the superintendent would be in full view to address the whole Sunday school. Doors were then closed for the class time. The sliding door could also be opened to enlarge the seating capacity of the sanctuary. The exterior of the church is now covered with white vinyl siding and black asphalt shingles, not original to the building. When the building was first constructed it was covered with wooden clad boards or shingles and wooden shingles on the roof. One of the most eye-catching features on the exterior of the building is the four-sided open cage belfry with the main entrance positioned in the base of the tower.

The interior of the church still maintains many of its original features, included stained woodwork, and its folding doors that divide the sanctuary from the gathering room. Blocking one set of these doors is the piano, original to the building in 1921. The church has opted to replace its original wooden pews with modern individual seating, making the sanctuary more multipurpose.

Information provided by the church.

Is the same information given here twice? [GU1]