Located in what was once considered to be the hub of the Black community in Winston Salem, NC Lloyd Presbyterian Church has a reputation for being the church that refuses to die.  The congregation, which at one time consisted of nearly 200 members, has dwindled to 25 since the full time pastor left in 1968.

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Historian Dr. Adelaide Fries, in her book Forsyth: The History of a County on the March reports that “in the early 1870’s Negro members of First Presbyterian requested letters of dismissal in order to join the Negro Church of Winston, a Northern Presbyterian Church, which was later known as Lloyd Presbyterian Church.”

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Records indicate that on July 27, 1893 the church paid Hanes Company $400 for the lot where the present building now stands.  Sunday school minutes record July 8, 1894 as the first meeting in the Carpenter Gothic Church built by its own members.  Founding members had purchased the wood to build the church gradually, in whatever increments they could afford.  Both male and female members of the congregation contributed time, energy, and financial resources toward the construction of their own house of worship.

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Moderator Catherine Reed knows the struggle Lloyd Presbyterian Church continues to face.  “We feel strongly that we have a mission in this community.  I personally feel that God has kept this church alive for a reason…”

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Current members cling to the memory of former clerk of session E. I. Patterson (now deceased) who said: “the church should continue no matter what” back in 1968 when many expected the church to die without a full time minister.

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The church was designated as a Forsyth County Historic Property by the Historic Property Commission in December of 1981.

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About the Artist

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The Unveiling of Tim Bruce’s painting of Lloyd Presbyterian Church is a testimony to the versatility of the graduate of Ringling School of Art.  A former R. J. Reynolds illustrator, Bruce’s venture into a career in fine arts has resulted in repeated appearances in the distinguished publication, Society of Illustrators, as well as a display of his work at the Art Directors Club in New York.  The realistic watercolors produced by the Winston Salem artist bring to mind the imagery of Andrew Wyeth, yet maintain their own distinct personality.

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Bruce’s 1990 rendition of the Washington National Cathedral for Integon’s Christmas series reflected his sensitivity to the majestic beauty of a massive cathedral which was built to provide “a spiritual home to which men and women of every class, rich and poor, statesman, and tradesman, and laborer, may come without money and 

without price, with the consciousness that it is their common Father’s house.”  Because of this, Mr. Bruce was the logical choice to paint his historic Black church as Integon’s 30th anniversary Christmas card.

 

His painting of Lloyd Presbyterian Church captures the warmth of a small historic Black Presbyterian Church as it presses on toward a time of renewal and a pastor back in the pulpit.  Integon believes it is also appropriate to have this Black church as its 30th anniversary Christmas card as a reminder of what is being lost to the recent increase of church burnings, particularly in the South.