E. Main St. between St. John and Luzader Sts., Grafton, West Virginia. County/parish: Taylor.
Added to the National Register of Historic Places December 18, 1970. NRIS 70000667.
1 contributing building.Also known as:
Andrews Methodist Episcopal Church, the "mother church" of Mother's Day, was incorporated as the International Mother's Day Shrine on May 15, 1962, as a shrine to all mothers. It is best known for being the place that Anna Jarvis conceived of the idea of Mother's Day. The church is located along Main Street in downtown Grafton in Taylor County, West Virginia.
The church building is dedicated to Edward Gayer Andrews, a bishop of the Methodist Episcopal Church, who presided over the dedication service on 16 March 1873. The International Mother's Day Shrine was designated a National Historic Landmark October 5, 1992. Its location is approximately one mile south of the junction of U.S. Route 50 and U.S. Route 119. The shrine holds a Mother's Day liturgy annually and is open by appointment, as well as being available for wedding services and tour groups.
(read more...)National Park Service documentation: https://catalog.archives.gov/id/86536161