Pittmantown in Suffolk, Virginia — The American South (Mid-Atlantic)

Mount Sinai Baptist Church

Photographed by Bernard Fisher, October 28, 2011

1. Mount Sinai Baptist Church Marker

Inscription. In 1868, the formerly enslaved Rev. Israel Cross founded Mount Sinai Baptist Church in a log building here on Benjamin Howell's land. He allegedly never closed a sermon without saying, "Buy some land, build a home, and get some education." In 1871, the congregation replaced the log church with a wood-frame building, later remodeled in 1908 and 1911. The current Gothic Revival building was constructed in 1921. Carter G. Woodson, author of The Rural Negro (1930 Edition), called it "An Unusual Church for the Rural Community." Annexes were added to the church in 1966 and 2000.

Erected 2007 by Department of Historic Resources. (Marker Number U-129.)

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: African Americans • 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 1868.

Location. 36° 38.228′ N, 76° 49.778′ W. Marker is in Suffolk, Virginia. It is in Pittmantown. It is on Holy Neck Road (County Road 616) 0.6 miles south of Old South Quay Road (County Road 686), on the left when traveling south. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 6093 Holy Neck Rd, Suffolk VA 23437, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in Virginia’s Hampton Roads,

specifically in Coastal Virginia,

and in the Hampton Roads Metropolitan Area.

It is also in the American South,

specifically in the Upper South,

and in the Tidewater.

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.

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At least 8 other markers are within 6 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Nansemond County Training School (approx. 1.3 miles away); Ruritan National Monument (approx. 4.1 miles away); First Ruritan Club (approx. 4.1 miles away); South Quay (approx. 4.7 miles away); John Beverley Rose (approx. 5.3 miles away); The Blackwater Line (approx. 5.6 miles away); Battle of Franklin (approx. 5.6 miles away); Confederate Commissary Center (approx. 5.6 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Suffolk.

Also see . . . Mount Sinai Baptist Church. National Register of Historic Places (Submitted on October 29, 2011.)

Photographed by Bernard Fisher, October 28, 2011

2. Mount Sinai Baptist Church Marker

Mount Sinai Baptist Church image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Bernard Fisher, October 28, 2011

3. Mount Sinai Baptist Church

Mount Sinai Baptist Church interior image. Click for full size.

National Register of Historic Places, March 14, 2006

4. Mount Sinai Baptist Church interior

National Register of Historic Places, March 14, 2006

5. Mount Sinai Baptist Church interior

Mount Sinai Baptist Church Cornerstone image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Bernard Fisher, October 28, 2011

6. Mount Sinai Baptist Church Cornerstone

In memory of Rev. I. Cross, D.D. image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Bernard Fisher, October 28, 2011

7. In memory of Rev. I. Cross, D.D.

Born 1839. Ordained 1870. 40 years pastor of Mt. Sinai, Morning Star & Piney Grove Churches. Died May 23, 1911.

Credits. This page was last revised on February 1, 2023. It was originally submitted on October 29, 2011, by Bernard Fisher of Richmond, Virginia. This page has been viewed 1,764 times since then and 42 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7. submitted on October 29, 2011, by Bernard Fisher of Richmond, Virginia.