Welcome to Duke's Chapel UMC! At Duke's Chapel, we strive to exhibit the love of Jesus Christ for all persons, both inside and outside of our community. We believe that Christ is present and active in the whole of life, not just on Sunday mornings. Therefore, it is our mission to share this good news and make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world. We, at Duke's Chapel, invite you to come share in our journey!
Gathering Times
Worship - Sundays, 10:00 am
Sunday School - following worship
History
Duke's Chapel, originally called Mount Hebron, began at a brush-arbor meeting place near the plantation of William J. Duke, its founder. When a $100 30' x 35' log church was built, Washington Duke, William's younger brother, said, "That's a heap of money to put into religion." Our church has grown from a log building in 1842 to a lovely stone edifice in 1927 to a spacious addition for education fellowship in 1968. We are challenged by our remarkable history to fulfill God's calling on our congregation to become messengers of the Kingdom of God. To you who worship here, we extend the challenge to join us in ministry. We are glad you are here!
The below timeline is based on The Story of Duke’s Chapel by Amy Childs Fallow and the records belonging to Ruth Copley and Rosa Belvin. Without these three women, the history of the church would be lost. We are forever grateful for their tireless work.
1825: William J. Duke founds a plantation, where after converting to Methodism as a young man, he would host brush-arbor style services (M.R. Dunnagan in The Durham Morning Herald, Sunday, October 24, 1926).
1840: Mr. Duke established a permanent church called Mt. Hebron, meaning “union.” The first church was a 30’ x 35’ log church, built by community farmers and Billie. It cost $100 to build the first church building.
1865: War ends, and shortly after Mt. Hebron opens a Sunday School led by Levi Cates as superintendent, followed by Captain Roberts. Several accomplished teachers including Miss Mamie Moore and Miss Nannie, Miss Livy, and Miss Laura Breeze were instrumental in the early success of the Duke’s Chapel Sunday School in the late 1800s. The Breeze sisters would go on to become inaugural teachers at the Methodist orphanage of Raleigh, founded by former Duke’s Chapel Reverend J.W. Jenkins.
1878: Discussions of building a new church begin, dividing the congregation into a party that wants to expand and another that wants to remain in the same plot of land close to their homes. William Duke contributes funds for a new church.
1883: William Duke passes away. He is buried near the Eno River with other members of his family.
1885: Church trustees purchase a new tract of land from the Markham family, and John A. Bivins is contracted to build a new church financed by J.E. Lyon (son-in-law to Billie and father of Rosa Lyon Belvin) (Fallaw). The congregation additionally selects the name “Duke’s Chapel,” making it the first institution to carry the Duke name. The church became the site of two daily services and regular, impassioned revivals that were characteristic of the Second Great Awakening.
1925: Rosa J. Belvin writes to her cousin, Benjamin N. Duke, asking him to support the church that his uncle founded in addition to the other rural Methodist churches that the new Duke Endowment had offered financial assistance to. Professor Robert Lee Flowers of Duke University is sent to the church to investigate conditions on behalf of the University and the Duke Endowment, resulting in investment from Benjamin N. Duke and James B. Duke designated a new church building. With his donation, Mr. B.N. Duke professed his intention for the new church to serve as a site of ministerial service for students at the Duke University Divinity School.
1926: The Horace Trumbauer Company and its chief designer, Julian Abele, submit plans for the new chapel and the E.H. Construction Company of Charlotte begins construction. The builders chose native volcanic stone quarried in Hillsborough that today characterizes the university campus. Duke’s Chapel is said to be the first test for what the University campus would look like with the new “Duke stone.”
1927: Duke’s Chapel is completed and opens for celebratory opening services on Sunday, July 24, 1927. The Charlotte Observer called it ““the most elaborate, the most unusual, probably the most historic rural church in North Carolina.”
1936: Throughout the Great Depression, Duke Divinity students rotate through the pulpit at Duke’s Chapel as its pastors work to keep the church afloat. The church itself and its Sunday School rooms served as a parsonage for the Pastor and his family.
1941: Reverend Harold Simpson signs off on the construction of a parsonage to neighbor the church, built of the same Duke stone that was used to build the church and the nearby University campus. Rev. Simpson himself built several parts of the small cottage.
1967: The educational building, known to the church community as “the miracle” is built. Without sufficient space in the church itself, Rev. Ben Wilson petitioned the community to fundraise for a new wing, resulting in a crusade that raised over $67,000, equivalent to over half a million dollars today.
1990: Uncle Billie’s gravestone is moved from his original resting place near the Eno River to the cemetery of Duke’s Chapel, where it now resides.
2003: During a reinternment effort of other graves in the original graveyard, it was discovered that Uncle Billie’s remains did not make the move in 1990. Fragments of bone and cloth found in the plot were reunited with Billie’s headstone in the Duke’s Chapel cemetery.
Circa 2009: The church becomes a community leader in service to the homeless and other marginalized groups around Braggtown, offering free transportation to and meals at services and hosting monthly birthday parties at the Urban Ministries of Durham.
