The church and parish hall

The church constructed on this site in 1746-47 was originally called Middle Church, and subsequently Walker's Church and Belvoir Church. Foundation stones of the original frame building may be seen today in the lawn fronting the church.  It is described as a square framed, wooden building, plastered and whitewashed inside, ceiled inside the rafters, with a gallery.  There is a large stone where the front door of the colonial church was located.  Built by Mr. Francis Smith for a fee of £80, this wooden building measured 32 feet by 24 feet. The Fredericksville Parish included the original church and two other churches in Albemarle and Louisa Counties.

 

The Rev. James Maury became Rector of the Parish in 1751 and conducted a classical school at his home. Thomas Jefferson attended this school in 1757 and 1758 and later served as a member of the Vestry of the Fredericksville Parish from 1767 to 1770. Vestry members selected ministers, cared for the poor and mentally deficient, set land boundaries, and required residents to pay a levy of tobacco or cash to support the church.  ​

 

In 1827, this old Walkers Church needed extensive repairs and a public appeal for funds was made.  Ten years later, the Vestry decided to build a new church.  But nineteen years elapsed and the frame building was in poor condition by 1845, when Judith Page Rives requested that prominent architect William Strickland design a new building. ​ The present building was named Grace, designed and built in the Gothic Revival style at a cost of $20,000. and consecrated in 1855. 

 

In February 1895, this church burned to the ground, leaving only the tower and the four wals standing.  Hand-carved oak pews, a beautiful marble font, and plaques of marble were destroyed.   Almost at once after the fire, the work of repair was started.  The four walls were found to be sound and strong, and with one exception (the rear wall being pulled down amd the chancel langthened several feed) the work was continued along the exact old lines.  Grace Church was re-consecrated in 1896. A 1,575-pound bell was salvaged from the ashes and is still in use.

 

In 2015, a violent storm took down several trees causing water damage to the pipe organ, as well as gravestones in the cemetery.  Damage to the organ led the congregation to replace the organ with "Opus 77", an organ made by Taylor and Boody Organbuilders in Staunton, Virginia.  At the same time, interior renovations to improve acoustics caused the church to be closed for roughly a year.  Michael Latsko, Music Director at the time, wrote about the organ project in Keswick Life.  During this time, services were held in the Parish Hall.  The church reopened in late 2019.

 

The Parish House was constructed in 1933, and an expansion in 1971 was named in memory of the Rev. Frank Leslie Robinson who served as Rector from 1910 to 1942. A further expansion in begun in 2002 included a great room for use by the over 200 church members and for community functions.

 

All Saints Chapel was built in 1929 as a mission to Stony Point. A parish hall was added there in 2016. Grace Church and All Saints Chapel worship according to The Book of Common Prayer which has a long history of use, dating back to ancient Christian sources and the English Reformation of the 16th century. ​

 

The first annual Blessing of the Hounds service was held at the church in 1929. Each Thanksgiving Day this colorful ceremony brings together fox hunters and their horses and hounds in the church yard for prayers and thanksgiving. The annual Grace Church Historic Farm Tour, “Beyond the Gates”, was established in 2010, inviting people from near and far to visit some of the beautiful farms in our area, as well as the Keswick Hunt Club and Grace Church. Proceeds from this event provide personal and financial support for the Church’s outreach efforts, including the monthly food closet, Habitat for Humanity, the Salvation Army, Meals on Wheels, the Boys and Girls Club, the Stony Point Elementary Food Project, and many others.

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