by Dick Hall-Sizemore

Along Rt. 30 in King William County is the community of Mangohick.   There is not much to see there, except a very old church whose congregation is still very much active.

The Mangohick Baptist Church was built between 1730-1732. It is listed on both the Virginia Historic Landmarks register and the National Register of Historic Places. According to the nomination form submitted to the National Park Service by the Virginia Historic Landmarks Commission, Mangohick Church was begun in 1730 as a “chapel of ease.” Those buildings were meant to serve members who lived in remote areas of the parish. Thus, its “architecture is much plainer than the larger more elaborate parish churches of the era.” It got its name from nearby Mangohick Creek, a tributary of the Pamunkey River.

The church continued to serve the Episcopal parishes in the area until the Revolutionary War. After the Episcopal Church was “disestablished” as the official church of Virginia, the Episcopalians abandoned the Mangohick Church. It then became a “free church” for use by any denomination. After the Civil War, the Union Baptist Church, consisting of both white and Black congregants was organized. By the latter part of the nineteenth century, however, the congregation was made up entirely of Black members, who received legal possession of the property in the 1920’s. At some point, the current name was adopted.

The 1730-1732 original building with its fine Flemish bond brickwork with the glazed header pattern”, along with a modern addition, still serves the community.