Near Madison in Madison County, Virginia — The American South (Mid-Atlantic)

Oak Grove Baptist Church

Photographed by J. J. Prats, October 31, 2009

1. Oak Grove Baptist Church Marker

Inscription. Joe Thoms, Sr., a slave harness-maker, founded Oak Grove Baptist Church during the Civil War at his nearby log cabin, which burned in 1869. The congregation then met here, on land owned by John J. Robinson, a white farmer, in a grove of oaks they called the “bush arbor.” In 1870, Joe Thorns, with Deacons Ambrose Tolliver, Frank Walker, Ed Redd, John Williams, Charles Brock, Spot Mallory, and Ambrose Thoms, built a small frame church here. The third church replaced it in 1894, when Robinson donated the land. A great-great-grandson of Joe Thoms became pastor in 1982.

Erected 1995 by Department of Historic Resources. (Marker Number G-13.)

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 1869.

Location. 38° 22.107′ N, 78° 10.806′ W. Marker is near Madison, Virginia, in Madison County. It is on Oak Park Rd (County Route 634) west of Lillards Ford Road (County Route 607), on the left when traveling east. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Culpeper VA 22701, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Northern Virginia

and in the 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

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the crow flies: Jackson’s Crossing (approx. 3.7 miles away); Madison County / Culpeper County (approx. 3.8 miles away); Crooked Run Baptist Church (approx. 4 miles away); Oliver Dinwiddie Tucker (approx. 4.1 miles away); Jackson’s March to Fredericksburg (approx. 4.1 miles away); James L. Kemper Residence (approx. 4.1 miles away); Madison County Confederate Dead (approx. 4.3 miles away); The Fallen Warriors Monument (approx. 4.3 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Madison.

Oak Grove Baptist Church and Marker image. Click for full size.

Photographed by J. J. Prats, October 31, 2009

2. Oak Grove Baptist Church and Marker

Credits. This page was last revised on June 16, 2016. It was originally submitted on November 1, 2009, by J. J. Prats of Powell, Ohio. This page has been viewed 2,419 times since then and 54 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on November 1, 2009, by J. J. Prats of Powell, Ohio.