Summerville in Dorchester County, South Carolina — The American South (South Atlantic)
Murray United Methodist Church
Tradition holds this Methodist congregation organized around the end of the Civil War and initially worshipped under a brush arbor. By the 1910s members built a wood frame church at this site. They also opened Murray School, a public school for local Black children. It was later known as Murray-Branch and located 1 mi. N on Mallard Rd. The school closed in 1953.
Murray United Methodist Church was named after a member of the local Murray family, who provided the congregation's first place of worship. The first church at this site was later brick-veneered and still stands. In the mid-1970s members began building a new church south of the old one. After several years of work, it opened for worship in 1977 and remains in use today.
Erected 2023 by South Carolina Department of Archives and History; sponsored by Murray United Methodist Church and Expressions of Love Productions. (Marker Number 18-32.)
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • Education • Religion & Religious Structures. A significant historical year for this entry is 1953.
Location. 33° 1.959′ N, 80° 14.739′ W. Marker is in Summerville, South Carolina, in Dorchester County. It is at the intersection of Orangeburg
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Regionally, this marker is in the Lowcountry. It is also in the American South and specifically in the Deep 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 4 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Pine Forest Inn (approx. 3½ miles away); Pinehurst Tea Farm (approx. 3.6 miles away); The Old Town Hall (approx. 3.7 miles away); Timrod Library (approx. 3.9 miles away); a different marker also named Timrod Library (approx. 4 miles away); Summerville High School / Coach John McKissick (1926-2019) (approx. 4 miles away); Coach John McKissick and his wife, Joan (approx. 4 miles away); Summerville Memorial Stadium (approx. 4 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Summerville.
Photographed by Devry Becker Jones (CC0), May 22, 2026
4. Murray United Methodist Church Cornerstone
Credits. This page was last revised on May 30, 2026. It was originally submitted on May 30, 2026, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia. This page has been viewed 5 times since then. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4. submitted on May 30, 2026, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia.
