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词条 Hedges Chapel
释义

  1. Hedges Chapel Story

  2. References

{{Infobox NRHP
| name = Hedges Chapel
| nrhp_type =
| image = File:HEDGES CHAPEL, BERKELEY COUNTY, WV.jpg
| caption =
| location= 668 Mountain Lake Rd., Hedgesville, West Virginia
| coordinates = {{coord|39|33|27|N|78|5|31|W|display=inline,title}}
| locmapin = West Virginia#USA
| built = 1850
| architect =
| architecture = Greek Revival
| added = December 12, 2002
| area = {{convert|1|acre}}
| governing_body = Private
| refnum = 02001520[1]
}}Hedges Chapel is a historic non-denominational chapel located at 668 Mountain Lake Road in Hedgesville, Berkeley County, West Virginia. It was built in 1850 and is a 1-story, three-by-two-bay, gable-roofed log building on a fieldstone foundation. It is sheathed in German siding, added in 1885 and topped by a corrugated metal roof. Also on the property is the church cemetery, with approximately 100 burials dating to 1872.[2]

It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2002.[1]

Hedges Chapel Story

In western Berkeley County, West Virginia stands

Hedges Chapel. For more than 160 years this one-room wooden structure of

simple architecture has been a focus of Christian spirit, faith and

comfort. It stands on a small hill overlooking the two-lane country road

that leads the congregation to its doors, while its green-shuttered

windows keep watch over the cemetery where some of its faithful rest.

In the 1840s, the nearest church was six miles away, a

difficult trip on dirt roads, especially in rain or snow. Church was a

central focus for the community, and local residents began to feel the

need for a nearby church of their own. In 1849 several members of the

community decided to build a church, and. Mr. John Hedges donated land

for the chapel and cemetery. It is for him that the chapel is named.

Neighbors cut the trees, donated timber and other materials, and

provided their labor. A neighbor who operated a nearby sawmill

volunteered to saw and plane the timber for the structure and the pews.

Local horses hauled the materials to the building site. Only nails and

window glass were purchased; everything else was locally made.

Construction began in the winter of 1849, and in 1850, the Hedges Chapel

opened. In the chapel's early days worshipers came to services on foot

and on horseback. Later, as the community became more established, the

faithful began to arrive in buggies.

Hedges Chapel was built as a log structure, although

its logs are no longer visible. In 1885 its exterior was covered with

white-painted, German-style, wood plank, and its 15-foot-high interior

walls were clad in plaster. The original logs remain between the two

façades silently supporting the chapel, as they have for over 160 years.

Originally the chapel had a simple shingle roof, replaced by a slate

roof in 1905 and the current metal roof in 1939. Inside the building the

congregation worships on the original pews that were built from planks

sawn from local trees in 1850.

Hedges Chapel was first established as a Methodist church, the Hedges Stony Lick Run Church. As years passed, chapel

membership waxed and waned. In the 1960s and 1970s the chapel was

closed, reopened and closed again. Finally, in 1977 Hedges Chapel had

fewer than ten active members, and closed its doors seemingly for good.

In the 1980s the virtually abandoned building was vandalized and

stripped of much of its contents. It seemed less and less likely that

the chapel would ever open its doors again. However, faith prevailed

over adversity, and, toward the end of the decade the spiritual needs of

the area were renewed. In a fortunate coupling, local residents were

again in search of a local church, and a number of part-time residents

of the new Woods community were in search of a church away from home.

In 1988, Reverend Charles Long, then assistant pastor

at the Hedgesville United Methodist Church, attempted to revive the old

church. Not wanting to see the old chapel waste away, he approached

several members of the expanding local community and asked if they would

be interested in restarting the old church. He received a very

enthusiastic response. Local residents, with the assistance of Reverend

Long, received permission from the Methodist Conference to take over

the church, under the agreement that it would remain

interdenominational.

Armed with $3,000 in loans and donations, volunteers

began their work with the same spirit that the original founders had

shown 160 years earlier. Some rewired the vandalized electrical system,

while others completely renovated the chapel's interior and exterior.

Their hard work, dedication, faith and several thousand dollars more in

donations infused new life into the old structure. Their efforts came to

fruition on September 10, 1988 when Hedges Chapel, with 26 worshipers,

was reborn.

Today, when you enter the chapel you will find a

stark, elegant interior not much altered in over a century. The original

kerosene lanterns that illuminated the chapel have been replaced by

electric lights, and overhead fans have been added to circulate air. One

of the last of the pioneer vestiges to go was the 1905 wood-burning

stove, making way for today's baseboard electric heat and heat pumps

that also provide air conditioning.

As has been the case since the chapel's very

beginning, a cadre of ministers and lay preachers take turns providing

the message to the faithful at Hedges Chapel. We are an

interdenominational congregation and do not have a permanent pastor.

Membership is open to anyone, and guests are always warmly welcomed.

This wonderful little chapel building is now a Berkeley County historical

landmark, and welcomes an average of 40 to 50 worshippers each Sunday.

References

1. ^{{NRISref|2009a}}
2. ^{{cite web|url=http://www.wvculture.org/shpo/nr/pdf/berkeley/02001520.pdf|title=National Register of Historic Places Inventory Nomination Form: Hedges Chapel|date=June 2002|accessdate=2011-06-02 |author=Geoffrey B. Henry and Jared N. Tuk|publisher=State of West Virginia, West Virginia Division of Culture and History, Historic Preservation}}
{{National Register of Historic Places in West Virginia}}

5 : Churches on the National Register of Historic Places in West Virginia|Churches in Berkeley County, West Virginia|Churches completed in 1850|19th-century churches in the United States|National Register of Historic Places in Berkeley County, West Virginia

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