Trinity Methodist Episcopal Church

Trinity Methodist Episcopal Church is an important historic landmark for the African American community in Orangeburg. Built in 1944 after many years of construction, it is a fine example of Gothic Revival architecture. In the 1950s and 1960s it was the headquarters of the city's civil rights movement, which was known as the Orangeburg Movement. The church hosted many civil rights meetings rallies, some of which were attended by national leaders such as Martin Luther King, Jr. and Thurgood Marshall. In terms of design, the church is built of brick and features a large Tudor arched stained glass window above the main entrance, buttresses, smaller stained glass windows, and decorative cast stone. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1995.

Rev. T. Willard Lewis and Rev. Thomas Phillips established Trinity Methodist in January 1866. It became part of the Orangeburg Circuit of the South Carolina Conference of the Southern Methodist Church. Services were first held in a Freedmen's Bureau (the federal agency tasked with integrating former slaves into society) school until 1870 when the first sanctuary was built. The second church, a larger building designed in the Romanesque Revival style, was erected in 1891. The congregation occupied it until 1926 when it acquired the property where the present church now stands.

Construction of the current church began in 1928 but the work continued very slowly. The congregation didn't hire a contractor; church members, some of whom were skilled craftsmen, built the church. The Great Depression also hampered the work. By 1933, the basement, exterior walls, and the roof were the only parts of the church that were finished. The congregation began holding mass in the basement, however. Work continued sporadically in the coming years but the church was finally completed in 1944.

As noted above, Trinity Methodist has been an important focal point for the African American community and Orangeburg as as whole for many years. This was particularly true during the Civil Rights movement. Many students from Claflin University and South Carolina State University attended Trinity Methodist. They formed an organization called the Orangeburg Student Movement Association to coordinate civil rights protests, including sit-ins of local businesses that discriminated against Blacks. One of these protests became occurred at the South Carolina State University campus on February 8, 1968. The students were there to protest a local bowling alley that refused to desegregate. Tragically, state highway patrol officers fired into the crowd, killing three and injuring 27. This incident became known as the Orangeburg Massacre (the officers who were charged were later acquitted).

Power, J. Tracy et al. "Trinity Methodist Episcopal Church." National Park Service - National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form. August 26, 1994. https://npgallery.nps.gov/GetAsset/58fbc8ac-3e9f-40b8-bb55-58612d293bc1.

"Sit-ins, Protests and the Persistence of Students in the Fight for Desegregation." Civil Rights Trail. Accessed May 31, 2021. https://civilrightstrail.com/destination/orangeburg.

"Trinity Methodist Episcopal Church." The Historical Marker Database. Accessed May 31, 2021. https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=24799.