A group of Sterling citizens and business people calling themselves “SOS,” or “Save Old Sterling” have been working for much of the past two years to preserve what little remains of the old town of Sterling, once known as Guilford.
So when the demolition of the Old Sterling United Methodist Church appeared imminent, SOS focused on salvaging valuable and architecturally significant elements of the church as the only way to preserve any remnant of it. The goal is to incorporate these elements in new building construction in the Old Sterling neighborhood, possibly as pieces of art, in an attempt to memorialize the heritage that is now being lost forever.
The materials are now stored in a well-protected container in Sterling until a reuse can be found that is worthy of the integrity that the items represent. The organization is actively working to achieve that goal.
SOS strongly urges anyone who is interested in Old Sterling’s fading past to take a drive down West Church Road, either from Route 28 or Sterling Boulevard, to Ruritan Circle. There you can visit the revived Guilford Baptist Church (now the Ethiopian Orthodox Church), see the remnants of the Old Sterling Methodist Church, the timeworn homes and other remaining historic buildings that reside near the bike path that once was the railway that first brought prosperity to this Eastern Loudoun town.
A group of Sterling citizens and business people calling themselves “SOS,” or “Save Old Sterling” have been working for much of the past two years to preserve what little remains of the old town of Sterling, once known as Guilford.
ReplyDeleteSo when the demolition of the Old Sterling United Methodist Church appeared imminent, SOS focused on salvaging valuable and architecturally significant elements of the church as the only way to preserve any remnant of it. The goal is to incorporate these elements in new building construction in the Old Sterling neighborhood, possibly as pieces of art, in an attempt to memorialize the heritage that is now being lost forever.
The materials are now stored in a well-protected container in Sterling until a reuse can be found that is worthy of the integrity that the items represent. The organization is actively working to achieve that goal.
SOS strongly urges anyone who is interested in Old Sterling’s fading past to take a drive down West Church Road, either from Route 28 or Sterling Boulevard, to Ruritan Circle. There you can visit the revived Guilford Baptist Church (now the Ethiopian Orthodox Church), see the remnants of the Old Sterling Methodist Church, the timeworn homes and other remaining historic buildings that reside near the bike path that once was the railway that first brought prosperity to this Eastern Loudoun town.