Near Williamsburg in James City County, Virginia — The American South (Mid-Atlantic)

Church on the Main

Photographed by Laura Troy, September 8, 2007

1. Church on the Main Marker

Inscription. Less than one mile to the east is the site of the Church on the Main, a brick Anglican church built by the 1750s to serve James City Parish as replacement for the church on Jamestown Island, which had become difficult for communicants to reach. The Rev. James Madison (1749–1812) was its best-known rector, serving the church from about 1777 until it fell into disuse after the American Revolution and the disestablishment of the Anglican Church. Madison became president of the College of William and Mary (1777–1812) and Virginia’s first Episcopal Bishop in 1790. By 1857 all aboveground traces of the church were gone.

Erected 2004 by Department of Historic Resources. (Marker Number V-46.)

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Religion & Religious Structures. In addition, it is included in the Virginia Department of Historic Resources (DHR) series list. A significant historical year for this entry is 1777.

Location. 37° 14.105′ N, 76° 47.108′ W. Marker is near Williamsburg, Virginia, in James City County. It is on Greensprings Road (County Route 614) north of 4H Club Road, on the right when

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traveling north. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Williamsburg VA 23185, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is on Virginia’s Peninsula,

in Coastal Virginia,

and in the Hampton Roads Metropolitan Area.

It is also in the American South,

specifically in the Upper South,

in the Tidewater,

and on the Eastern Seaboard. Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region,

North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

one of the original Thirteen Colonies,

one of the Confederate States of America,

and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Governor’s Land (here, next to this marker); Green Spring Road (here, next to this marker); Battle of Green Spring (here, next to this marker); a different marker also named Battle of Green Spring (within shouting distance of this marker); Samuel H. Yonge, Civil Engineer (1843-1935) (approx. 0.4 miles away); Pocahontas (approx. 0.4 miles away);

Photographed by Bernard Fisher, May 12, 2010

2. Church on the Main Marker

Jamestown Road (approx. half a mile away); First Germans at Jamestown (approx. half a mile away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Williamsburg.

More about this marker. This marker sits with 3 others V41,V39,V42.

Credits. This page was last revised on April 4, 2022. It was originally submitted on September 11, 2007, by Laura Troy of Burke, Virginia. This page has been viewed 2,114 times since then and 36 times this year. Last updated on April 1, 2022, by Carl Gordon Moore Jr. of North East, Maryland. Photos: 1. submitted on September 11, 2007, by Laura Troy of Burke, Virginia. 2. submitted on May 12, 2010, by Bernard Fisher of Richmond, Virginia. • Bernard Fisher was the editor who published this page.