The Armenian Church of St. Gevorg in the current central Turkish province of Çorum is in danger. Built in the early 1800s by the Armenian Kiryop family in Çorum, it is now used as a warehouse.
Some time ago, the property owners approached the Çorum State Department of Culture and Tourism for funding to redesign this historic building but later withdrew their request.
This was reported to the media by one of the employees of the department. The employee insisted that there is no evidence that this structure is a church and that only a small part of the local population claims that it is a church.
Most of the population of Çorum has no information about this historical building – only a few adults testify to the existence of an Armenian Church.
The source also mentions that in 1915, the Kiryop family was threatened by the Genocide, but some of the family members managed to survive.
According to the Turkish source, after the formation of the Turkish Republic, the Kiryop family “voluntarily” sold the huge property to the Shamla family from Çorum and moved to Istanbul and Ankara.
The Armenian family in Çorum has owned more than 3000 hectares of land and a library. They have been engaged in the production of dairy products. The family, known for their philanthropy, has enjoyed great prestige in the region.
According to the source, the Kiryop family has built the first residential building in Çorum, which has survived to this day.
The church in question, which the Shamla family allegedly bought during the Genocide, was probably nationalized as abandoned property, sold to that family (or acquired by the family as abandoned property), and is now considered the property of the family’s heirs.
Source: Ermenihaber.am
