Near Mount Ulla in Rowan County, North Carolina — The American South (South Atlantic)
Back Creek Presbyterian Church
Est. September 5, 1805
Photographed by Duane and Tracy Marsteller, November 11, 2023
1. Back Creek Presbyterian Church Marker
National Register of Historic Places
by the United States Dept. of Interior.
built on the foundation of the apostles and
prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as
the chief cornerstone.
Ephesians 2:20
Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Religion & Religious Structures. In addition, it is included in the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) series list. A significant historical date for this entry is September 5, 1805.
Location. 35° 39.053′ N, 80° 42.405′ W. Marker is near Mount Ulla, North Carolina, in Rowan County. It can be reached from Back Creek Church Road (State Road 1763) near Cemetary Church Road, on the left when traveling south. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 2145 Back Creek Church Rd, Mount Ulla NC 28125, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in North Carolina’s Piedmont. It is also in the American South and specifically in the Upper South. 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 5 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Four Houses of Worship (approx. 3.9 miles away); A Short History of Thyatira Presbyterian Church (USA) (approx. 3.9 miles away); Thyatira Presbyterian Church (approx. 3.9 miles away); Thyatira Presbyterian Church Cemetery (approx. 4 miles away); Matthew Locke
this page online
Regarding Back Creek Presbyterian Church. Excerpt from the National Register nomination:
During the great Revival of 1802 schism developed in the congregation of Thyatira Church, then under the pastorate of the Rev. Samuel Eusebius McCorkle (1746-1811), and some twenty families and five elders withdrew and formed a separate congregation which they named for Back Creek, one of the principal streams watering their farms. Recognized in September 1805 by the Concord Presbytery meeting at Rocky River Church in Cabarrus County the new congregation soon thereafter erected a log church which served only until 1811 when they erected their second log church. From 1805 until his death in 1829 the congregation was ministered to by Rev. Joseph Dickey Kilpatrick who split his time with Third Creek Church. In 1832 he was succeeded by the Rev. Andrew Y. Lockridge (1801-1876) who shared his time with Third Creek until 1836 after which he served the Back Creek Congregation exclusively until removing to Georgia in 1845. Both of these men were Presbyterian ministers of note. The present building was erectedduring the pastorate of the Rev. Samuel Caldwell Alexander which began in March 1854 and continued until September 1859. This church, dedicated on 21 March 1857, served as the meeting site of the Concord Presbytery in April 1868 and again in September 1889. The two-story educational building was erected in 1952. The cemetery at Back Creek, northwest of the church, contains the graves of several hundred members of the congregation including members of the Cowan, Knox, Goodman, Graham, Sloop, McLaughlin, Brown, Sherrill, Belk, Miller, Houston, Poston, McNeely, McCorkle, Gillespie and White families. Back Creek Church, still the meeting house of its congregation, is a landmark in Rowan County.Photographed by Duane and Tracy Marsteller, November 11, 20232. Back Creek Presbyterian Church Marker
Also see . . .
1. Back Creek Presbyterian Church and Cemetery (PDF). National Register nomination for the church and its adjacent burial ground, which were listed in 1983. (Prepared by Davyd Foard Hood and Michael Hill, North Carolina Division of Archives and History; via National Archives) (Submitted on December 1, 2023, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee.)
2. Back Creek Presbyterian Church 150th anniversary, 1805-1955. Scan of program (with church history) written for the church's sesquicentennial celebration in 1955. (Back Creek Presbyterian Church; archived via Internet Archive) (Submitted on December 1, 2023, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee.)
Credits. This page was last revised on December 1, 2023. It was originally submitted on December 1, 2023, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. This page has been viewed 388 times since then and 25 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on December 1, 2023, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee.
