Last Wednesday, “Historic Churches of the Northern Neck” concluded its two-screening run at Compass Entertainment Complex with a sold-out theater filled with viewers of all ages.

The film is the latest Northern Neck history documentary created as a joint venture between 26 Street Media and Kilmarnock Museum to serve as a museum fundraiser. In this case, it’s a project that gave then expanded to give some more.

Mark Huffman, the film’s director and the son of a reverend, said the idea began during drives around the Northern Neck that took him past countless churches. “I was curious about how old they were, how they came about,” he said.

When the pandemic hit and shut everything down, Huffman said Kilmarnock Museum President Carroll Ashburn told him the museum had no way to raise money. “I thought, okay, here’s my excuse,” Huffman recalled.

They got to work creating “Historic Churches of Virginia’s Northern Neck,” a half-hour film distributed on DVD and sold for $20 each. The proceeds helped the museum keep the lights on, Huffman said.

But given the limitations during the pandemic, that first version was shorter than Huffman had envisioned, and he carried a lingering desire to finish the story. That opportunity finally came this year.

The new version runs just over an hour and highlights 36 churches, including Yeocomico in Westmoreland and St. Mary’s White Chapel Episcopal in Lancaster—both dating to the 17th century.

The film unpacks the deeper stories these houses of worship hold about the Northern Neck, exploring topics such as what the architecture of Christ Church reveals about local history, the birth of religious diversity in a society once limited to Anglican worship, and why no one will ever be buried in Yeocomico’s churchyard.

From the rise of Black churches after slavery and the enduring role of worship in the Black community today to why one Lancaster church features a nautical-inspired design, the documentary tells the stories not only of places but also of people.

“It’s amazing that we still have so many of these church buildings after all these years,” Ashburn said. “In the case of Yeocomico Church, the building was constructed in 1706 and is still an active church today.”

Even with three dozen churches included, Huffman noted there are many more that could have been added—a testament to how prolific churches are in the Northern Neck and how central they are to the region’s identity.

The support for this joint-venture film is evidence of the community’s interest and pride in its religious heritage, as it has already brought in approximately $1,000 for the museum between ticket sales and donations as of last Friday, with the raffle of Yeocomico Church art by Richard Schurtz still underway.