2025 Sanctuary Rededication Service

Liberty Corner Presbyterian Church rededicated its historic Sanctuary on Sunday, March 30 at 10 am following twelve months of preservation and safety repairs.

In November 2023, the Board of Trustees, responsible for the maintenance of the church campus, proposed the first phase of a comprehensive plan for the preservation of the Sanctuary which included refurbishing the steeple and entry doors, replacing the roof, gutters, and downspouts, repairing and painting the trim, siding, and windows. The plan also included regrading and rebuilding the entry steps, railings, and ramp, and replacing all exterior lighting to improve safety.

This newly renovated facility will continue to be the focal point of Liberty Corner Presbyterian’s outreach to the community and the world for future generations.

Liberty Corner Presbyterian Church was formally established on June 10, 1837, by a group of twenty-one men and women and the cornerstone for the first Sanctuary was laid on September 5, of the same year. This Sanctuary was completed the following summer and dedicated on July 21, 1838. The brick building was located on the site of the current Sanctuary and remained in use until 1868 when the deterioration of the building and the growth of the congregation required new space.

The current white-steepled Sanctuary was built in 1869 by local resident and church member James Goltra who agreed to construct the building at a cost of $8,000 and within six months. Materials from the previous church building were salvaged and used to build a structure nearby, now known as the Amos Room.

The dedication of the Sanctuary on June 8, 1869, featured a hymn written for the occasion by an author now known only by the initials P.P.V. The Rededication Service on March 30 featured the same hymn.

Trustee President Dick Carr remarked, “Imagine the faith and optimism of those who built this church at the end of the Civil War—650,000 Americans had just lost their lives in a country that was torn and divided. We need to look up at the newly renovated steeple with the same sense of confidence and hope.”