• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

SC Picture Project

The purpose of the South Carolina Picture Project is to celebrate the beauty of the Palmetto State while preserving some of its vanishing landscapes.

  • FIND A LANDMARK
    • BY CITY
    • BY COUNTY
    • BY CATEGORY
    • BYGONE LANDMARKS
  • ADD IMAGES
  • VOLUNTEERS
  • SPONSORS
  • DONATE
  • Subscribe!

Rembert Church

SC PICTURE PROJECT 9 Comments

SC Picture Project / Lee County / Rembert Church

Rembert Church serves one of the oldest Methodist congregations in South Carolina. A Methodist society had formed in the Woodrow area of Lee County as early as 1785. By 1797, James Rembert – a wealthy planter who owned Rembert Hall, located about a mile away – had built a chapel for his fellow members. In 1834, one of his descendants, Caleb Rembert, donated eight acres of land for a new meeting house. This meeting house (shown here) was constructed the following year.

Rembert Church in Woodrow SC

Bill Segars of Hartsville, 2009 © Do Not Use Without Written Consent

In its early days, Rembert Church was a popular stop on the Santee Circuit – Methodists established “circuits” in rural areas for traveling ministers – and drew itinerant ministers such as Reverend Francis Asbury, the first Bishop of the Methodist Church of the United States. In the late 1700s, the cemetery was established, and by 1802, camp meetings, or Methodist revivals, were being held nearby.

Rembert Church Alter

Bill Segars of Hartsville, 2009 © Do Not Use Without Written Consent

Rembert Church grew along with the Methodist denomination in South Carolina. During the 1850s, Rembert Church documented 80 white members and over 500 slave members. By law, slaves were not permitted to worship without the oversight of whites.

Rembert Church Pews

Bill Segars of Hartsville, 2009 © Do Not Use Without Written Consent

In 1962, 127 years after this meeting house was built, the congregation moved to another location. Today the structure represents early South Carolina Methodism and is maintained by the Rembert Church Cemetery Association.

Rembert Church Cemetery

Bill Segars of Hartsville, 2009 © Do Not Use Without Written Consent

Rembert Church is listed in the National Register:

(Rembert Methodist Church) One of the earliest Methodist congregations in South Carolina was located in the community around Rembert Church, with a Methodist Society meeting as early as 1785. In its early days it was frequently visited by Francis Asbury, the first Bishop of the Methodist Church of the United States. It was also important for the campmeetings that were held nearby, starting in 1802 and 1803. The cemetery here was established in 1800 and the present meeting house style church was erected ca. 1835.

Structurally a plain rectangular building with clapboard siding, such design affords only the essentials needed for worship. It sits on brick piers and has a gabled, metal roof. The windows are 20/20 with two smaller windows above the main ones on the front façade. The Rembert Church building served the rural Methodist congregation (with an 1850s enrollment of some 80 whites and 500 slaves) for over a century. This structure remains as an example of the small church so important to nearly every aspect of life in the rural south during the growth and development of South Carolina.

Rembert Church – More Pictures


Rembert Church Woodrow

Jacqueline Thomas Dunn of Irmo, 2017 © Do Not Use Without Written Consent

Rembert Church

Bill Fitzpatrick of Taylors © Do Not Use Without Written Consent

Plan Your Trip: Rembert Church

Where is Rembert Church located?
Address: SC 37, Woodrow, SC 29040
GPS Coordinates: 34.097818,-80.352558
What else should I see?
Ashwood 3.2 miles
St. Philip's Episcopal Church 6.8 miles
Bethany Baptist Church 7.8 miles
Mt. Zion Presbyterian Church 11.4 miles
Show me more like this!
  • See other South Carolina Churches
  • See other South Carolina National Register
    Rembert Church Map

    Please Donate

    We’d like thank everyone who generously supports the South Carolina Picture Project. You provide us with the inspiration and financial support we need to keep doing what we do. Every reader contribution, big or small, is so valuable. If you have enjoyed this page or found it helpful, please pitch in. Even donation helps – and it only takes a minute. Thank you!

    Support the SC Picture Project!

    $1,320 of $7,500 raised
    $ 20.00
    Select Payment Method
    Personal Info

    Donation Total: $20.00

    Related posts:

    Mt. Zion in Bishopville, SCMt. Zion Presbyterian Church St. Philip's Episcopal Lee CountySt. Philip’s Episcopal Church St. Peter's WalterboroSt. Peter’s AME Church Stoney Creek Presbyterian Church FrontStoney Creek Presbyterian Church Indian Field Tents ExteriorIndian Field Campground

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Carroll Price says

      December 8, 2020 at 8:23 PM

      While at the church several years ago, I remember seeing a mass grave and gravestone listing the names of 27, mostly young people who had drowned as a result of a raft capsizing on Boykin Mill Pond in 1860.

      Reply
      • SC Picture Project says

        December 15, 2020 at 10:57 AM

        Hi Carroll, thank you for your comment. Yes, sadly this is true. You can read about the accident on our Boykin Mill page at https://www.scpictureproject.org/kershaw-county/boykin-mill.html.

        Reply
    2. Kassie says

      September 15, 2020 at 4:09 PM

      Does anyone know about Sarah Rembert? I was out there a few weekends ago and noticed her headstone. Does anyone have details on this lady?

      Reply
    3. Janet Francis says

      September 9, 2020 at 10:48 PM

      I visited the Rembert Methodist Church Cemetery today with my mom, Cora Lee Davis Francis, and my uncle, James I. Davis. We were unable to find my great-grandfather’s (Manning Davis) headstone, nor my great-grandmother’s (Florence Davis) headstone/marker while on the property. I found my great-grandfather’s memorial on this site, but haven’t been able to find my great-grandmother’s. Would anyone have an idea how I could locate her? I also have pictures of the church to upload, but am uncertain how to do it. Thank you for your help.

      Reply
    4. Maria Rembert says

      October 5, 2019 at 1:29 PM

      Is the Rembert reunion happening this year?

      Reply
    5. Margaret Fields Rodgers says

      January 19, 2019 at 11:00 AM

      My grandparents George English Rembert and Margaret Eva Trimnal Rembert & many more ancesters are buried there .

      Reply
    6. Judy S McLeod says

      January 19, 2019 at 8:36 AM

      I remember going to church there as a child. My sister was married at Rembert Church.

      Reply
      • SC Picture Project says

        January 19, 2019 at 10:21 PM

        We would love to hear any memories you may have growing up there! If you wanted to share them, our email address is share@scpictureproject.org. Thank you so much!

        Reply
    7. Richardson Dick Sanders says

      November 24, 2015 at 12:48 PM

      I have many family members buried there.

      Reply

    Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Primary Sidebar

    FIND A LANDMARK

    Your Email Here

    Help Keep This Site Online

    We depend on the support of today’s readers to document South Carolina’s historic landmarks for future generations. Please help us continue this important work by making a donation below.

    $1,320 of $7,500 raised
    $ 20.00
    Select Payment Method
    Personal Info

    Donation Total: $20.00

    Recent Posts

    • Strand Theater
    • Camden Depot
    • Charleston City Marina
    • Secession Hill
    • Faris Store

    Our Sponsor

    Footer

    ABOUT US

    We are a federally-recognized 501(c)(3) nonprofit that works to preserve the history of South Carolina’s historic, natural, and cultural landmarks before they are lost to time. This website serves as a permanent digital archive of over 2,300 South Carolina landmarks – and counting. Learn more about our work.

    CONTACT US

    We’d love to hear from you! Send us a quick email at share@scpictureproject.org.

    If you are looking for permission to use a photo, please reach out directly to the photographer listed in the image’s credit. If there is no link, contact us and we will do our best to help.

    SIGN UP

    Subscribe here to receive the “SC Photo of the Week” in your inbox! Each Tuesday, we highlight a different South Carolina landmark. Emails include the landmark’s history, its location and a map, and of course, incredible photos!

    South Carolina Picture Project © 2021 · All Rights Reserved