BEAUFORT, S.C. — A 158-year-old South Carolina church has been given a $250,000 grant through a national program aimed at preserving historic houses of worship.
The Island-Packet reports that Tabernacle Baptist Church in Beaufort was among 15 churches that secured grants through The National Fund for Sacred Places.
Tabernacle Baptist was officially organized in 1863 as the first Baptist church for African Americans in Beaufort, but the building actually dates to 1811.
The Rev. Kenneth Hodges said the money will be used to pay for building repairs at the church. The church is in the separate process of raising $500,000 for a Harriet Tubman sculpture.
