Pastor: ‘I Don’t Have to Tell You Anything’

City of Refuge Holiness Church sanctuary and grounds in Round Top are up for sale.

The 1.66 acres of prime real estate lies within the City of Round Top just across SH 237 from Round Top Mercantile. The property is listed for $2.2 million.

According to local historian David Collins, the historic African-American congregation dates back to 1867 when it was founded by 184 members. It was established as Round Top Missionary Baptist Concord Church.

In recent years, under the direction of Pastor Dorothy Shelby, the church changed its name to City of Refuge Holiness Church. The congregation rebuilt the sanctuary in 2016.

The Record reached out to Pastor Shelby this week to ask about the status of the congregation and whether a new church will be built. We also inquired about the sale and what will happen to the proceeds. She declined to answer any specific questions, although she indicated that the church had been struggling financially.

“I don’t have to tell you anything,” Pastor Shelby said. “You should have come to that church when we were struggling. I just got through paying the insurance on the church, $1,200 out of my own pocket.”

The original hand-written deed for the property on file at the Fayette County Clerk’s Office stated that J. C. Benford, Thomas Shelby, and Jerry Crawford, trustees for Round Top Missionary Baptist Concord Church, paid $100 for the property in December 1892.

The Record could find no later documents at the Clerk’s office mentioning the church until January of this year. A special warranty deed filed in January 2024 listed Dorothy Shelby as “successor Trustee and successor administrator and coordinator of Round Top Missionary Baptist Concord Church.”

The new deed stated that the property was “granted, sold and conveyed” to Dorothy Shelby “as successor Trustee and successor administrator and coordinator of City of Refuge Holiness Church,” signed on Jan. 9, 2024.