| A vernacular wood-frame temple-form Greek Revival church with an intergral tetrastyle portico, the Carmel Presbyterian Church is one of Mississippi's most significant essay in the vernacular Greek Revival style, based on its high degree of architectural finish, its outstanding integrity, and its picturesque pastoral setting. Probably constructed in the 1850s, the church is an echo of the Federal style First Presbyterian Church in downtown Natchez. The architectural integrity of the Carmel Church is outstanding with the only alteration occurring on the portico where the box columns have been cut at the bottom and placed on high brick piers that extend above the level of the floor. Although Carmel Church has no active congregation and is used only a few times a year for religious services, the church is carefully maintained by local residents and former members. This building was listed on the National Register on 31 October 1985. It was designated a Mississippi Landmark on 21 March 1996. It is included in "Look to the Rock: One Hundred Ante-bellum Presbyterian Churches of the South" (1961), "Shrines to Tomorrow" (1971), and "Historic Churches of Mississippi" (2007) (p. 110). |