Shelbyville in Shelby County, Kentucky — The American South (East South Central)

Centenary Methodist Church

Photographed by Mark Parker, March 28, 2025

1. Centenary Methodist Church Marker

Inscription.
This property has been
Placed on the
National Register
of Historic Places
by the United States
Department of the Interior

Topics. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Religion & Religious Structures.

Location. 38° 12.681′ N, 85° 12.942′ W. Marker is in Shelbyville, Kentucky, in Shelby County. It is at the intersection of Main Street (U.S. 60) and 5th Street, on the left when traveling east on Main Street. The marker is at the SW corner of the building to the left of the sanctuary entrance. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 429 Main Street, Shelbyville KY 40065, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Greater Louisville Area.

It is also in the American South

and specifically in the Upper South.

Globally, it is in 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

and also the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Shelby County, 1792 (within shouting distance of this marker); Squire Boone's Station, 1779 (within shouting distance of this marker); Reconstruction in America / Lynching of Reuben Dennis (within shouting distance of this marker); Lynching in America / Lynching of Sam Pulliam (within shouting distance of this marker); Shelby County Courthouse (within shouting distance of this marker); Soldiers of the American Revolution (within shouting distance of this

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marker); Lynching in Shelbyville (within shouting distance of this marker); Lewis and Clark in Kentucky 1806 Return of Expedition / Death of Meriwether Lewis (within shouting distance of this marker). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Shelbyville.

More about this marker. Centenary Methodist Church is a contributing building to the Main Street Commercial District.

Regarding Centenary Methodist Church. Excerpts from the Main Street Commercial District Nomination Form:

The Centenary United Methodist Church was built in 1897. The Shelby Methodist Circuit was first established in 1797. The first church in Shelbyville was erected by the Methodists in 1814 and was used by all Protestant denominations for several years. In 1857 a second Methodist church was built to replace the first. Forty years later the second church was torn down and the present structure was constructed on the same location.

Recessed approximately fifty feet from Main Street and constructed in 1897, this structure is composed of brick with limestone trim. A square tower crowned with an octagonal spire is at the southwest area. This element is accented with double-tier butresses

Centenary Methodist Church Marker to the left of the sanctuary entrance. image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Mark Parker, March 28, 2025

2. Centenary Methodist Church Marker to the left of the sanctuary entrance.

on its corners and the main entrance is an equilateral arch containing double doors on the tower's south wall. To the tower's east is a gabled wall pierced by a massive stained-glass window with stone tracery. Further east on the south facade is an octagonal extension having equilateral arched windows on its exposed sides. The over-all dimensions of the church were 73 by 95 feet prior to the addition of a wing in the rear. The gables are 50 feet high, the roof 62 feet, and the spire 102 feet.

Full view of Centenary Methodist Church image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Mark Parker, March 28, 2025

3. Full view of Centenary Methodist Church

Centenary Methodist Church Cornerstone at addition image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Mark Parker, March 28, 2025

4. Centenary Methodist Church Cornerstone at addition

Inscription: Centenary United Methodist Church
Destroyed by fire December 28, 1978
Rebuilt 1979-82
Consecrated October 14, 1982

Centenary Methodist Church Sanctuary cornerstone image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Mark Parker, March 28, 2025

5. Centenary Methodist Church Sanctuary cornerstone

Inscription: Centenary M.E. (Methodist Church) South 1897

Centenary United Methodist Church St gn image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Mark Parker, March 28, 2025

6. Centenary United Methodist Church St gn

Credits. This page was last revised on April 8, 2025. It was originally submitted on March 31, 2025, by Mark Parker of Hickory, North Carolina. This page has been viewed 203 times since then and 20 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. submitted on March 31, 2025, by Mark Parker of Hickory, North Carolina. • Andrew Ruppenstein was the editor who published this page.