“But trailing clouds of glory do we come”
William Wordsworth, from Ode: Intimations of Immortality

Village landmark churches are a unique legacy of the settlement of Ohio's Western Reserve. This legacy represents a portrait of faith of settlers, the congregations they formed, and the houses of worship they created in villages and country sides. This Portrait is sketched here through images of these early churches and their histories. The 19th Century churches presented in the pages that follow are still found today in villages, small towns, and rural areas of Northeast Ohio, although some now serve as solitary sentinels in disappearing villages and communities.

The churches in this portrait of faith were selected as exemplary landmark churches because they have significance along one or more of the following dimensions: architecture, history, or their dominant position in their setting. Some have received recognition by inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places. Clearly, there are many more distinctive village landmark churches in Northeast Ohio that have great meaning to their communities than are included here, but these are a fair representation of the rest. The churches presented here are grouped by counties. The architectural style and date of construction for each church is identified.

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