QA-178

Dudley's Chapel

Architectural Survey File

This is the architectural survey file for this MIHP record. The survey file is organized reverse-

chronological (that is, with the latest material on top). It contains all MIHP inventory forms, National

Register nomination forms, determinations of eligibility (DOE) forms, and accompanying documentation

such as photographs and maps.

Users should be aware that additional undigitized material about this property may be found in on-site

architectural reports, copies of HABS/HAER or other documentation, drawings, and the “vertical files” at

the MHT Library in Crownsville. The vertical files may include newspaper clippings, field notes, draft

versions of forms and architectural reports, photographs, maps, and drawings. Researchers who need a

thorough understanding of this property should plan to visit the MHT Library as part of their research

project; look at the MHT web site (mht.maryland.gov) for details about how to make an appointment.

All material is property of the Maryland Historical Trust.

Last Updated: 05-14-2004

I

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for,... Ne 10·300 REV. !5 77:

• UNIT!:.DSTATLS Dl:.PARTi\11:.l\l 01-TH!:. INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SERVICE

NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES INVENTORY -- NOMINATION FORM

~OA~-1~78~-~~~~~-9__ FOR NPS USE ONLY -J-

E as e men L RECEIVED

DATE ENTERED -------------SEE INSTRUCTIONS IN HOW TO COMPLETE NATIONAL REGISTER FORMS

TYPE ALL ENTRIES -- COMPLETE APPLICABLE SECTIONS

ffiJNAME HISTORIC

~LOCATION STREET & NUMBER East side of Benton Corners Road, ~ mile south of Maryl and

Route 300 _NoT FOR PUBLICAT10N

CITY. TOWN CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT

Sudlersville ....x VICINITY OF

STATE CODE

Maryland 24

EjCLASSIFICATlON- ·-·

CATEGORY OWNERSHIP STATUS _DISTRICT _PUBLIC _OCCUPIED

X-BUILDING(Sl .X.PRIVATE _UNOCCUPIED

_STRUCTURE _BOTH _WORK IN PROGRESS

_SITE PUBLIC ACQUISITION ACCESSIBLE _OBJECT _IN PROCESS LYES: RESTRICTED

_BEING CONSIDERED _YES: UNRESTRICTED

_NO

Ei}OWNER OF PROPERTY

First COUNTY CODE

ff:ir:\

PRESENT USE

-AGRICULTURE

_COMMERCIAL

_MUSEUM

_PARK

_EDUCATIONAL _PRIVATE RESIDEt

_ENTERTAINMENT .X.RELIGIOUS

_GOVERNMENT _SCIENTIFIC

_INDUSTRIAL _TRANSPORTATIO

_MILITARY _OTHER

NAME Trustees of Dudley's Chapel STREET ~/NcriMBER -bl&a.Ybl~r'flect;t+.t~a........ww·rw.+J::----------------------------

~---~B~n .... x A2-. ____ -'-_ CITY.TOWN

Mi J J; ngton - VICINITY OF

lmlLOCATION OF LEGAL DESCRIPTION COURTHOUSE. REGISTRY OF DEEDS,ETC. Queen Anne's County Courthouse STREET & NUMBER

~~~~~~~~~~--"C=o~u!i....>rthouse Square CITY. TOWN

Centreville 0 REPRESENTATION IN EXISTING SURVEYS

. ifTLE

DATE

STATE

Maryland

STATE

Maryland

21651

21617

_FEDERAL --STATE __couNTY _LOCAL

DEPOSITORY FOR

SURVEY RECORDS

CITY.TOWN STATE

.~DESCRIPTION

CONDITION

_EXCELLENT _DETERIORATED

l.-GOOD _RUINS

CHECK ONE

_UNALTERED

-X.ALTEREO

CHECK ONE

l-ORIGINAL SITE

_MOVED DATE __ _

r----F-A-IR----0-ES_C_R-IB_E_T-:-:-E:-:-:s-:-:NT AND ORIGINAL (IF KNOWN) PHYSICAL APPEARANCE

-- '

Old Dudley's Chapel rests on a low hill on the east side of Benton Corners Road, just south of Maryl and Route 300 and approximately two miles west of Sudlersville. There is a small cemetery to the rear of the chapel. Large trees are scattered through­out the churchyard and heavy woods to the north and east extend down to the Red Lyon Branch, a small creek which meanders north to the Chester River.

Built in 1783, Dudley's Chapel is a simple brick structure with a moderately pitched gable roof. The west gable, facing the road, is the principal facade, while the altar and pulpit are located at the east end of the church. This is a very simple and unpretentious building, made even plainer by a series of renovations and repairs: undertaken periodically throughout the nineteenth century. The most significant change to the exterior of the building was the application of a coat of stucco in 1883, covering all of the original brickwork, and also hiding evidence of alterations to the windows and one door. Although the bonding pattern is not known, it seems probable that it was laid in Flemish bond, perhaps with random g]azed headers,

- --but without a watertable or belt course. · · ·· ·

On the west gable, double paneled doors are flanked by a tall six-over-six window on each side. Each of these openings has a recessed relieving arch, the most significar decorative feature of the building. In the upper gable there is a small window concealed by louvered shutters.

The north and south facades _are very plain, .~it.h_ three_ ta.11 six-over-six windows. symmetrically ranged along each wall. An interior brick stove chimney pierces the roof on each side between the east window and the center window.

The east gable is equally plain, with a single six-over-six window at each corner, flanking the pulpit. The north window was originally a door to the vestry, but this was closed in and changed to a window in 1900. There is no window in the upper gable at this end.

Several cast-iron tie plates have been secured through the walls; some of these are 11 511 shaped, others are plain square plates. A box cornice with crown mold and bed mold extends along each facade, returns at the gable and is carried up the eaves. This presumably dates to 1856. when the roof was rebuilt.

The interior of the church is a single large room,· with the pulpit in the center oi the east wall and a gallery at the west end. A small vestibule for the front door and the stair is partitioned off .below the gallery.

The gallery has been closed off and the stair removed, but S!Jfficient evidence remains to trace the original location in the northwest corner of the building. The original landing and part of one carriage remain in the vestibule, and wrought nails used to secure the treads are visible in several places. The gallery has evidently beer rebuilt, as the supporting columns and front railing are Victorian. highlighted ':11th painted and grained paneling. The interior doors, the window trim, and the pulpit and conmunion rail also date to the Victorian period.

SEE CONTINUATION SHEET #1.

• l'orm two 10-300a Ike~ 10-74)

UNITED STATES DEPARTMl.:.NTOf-THEINTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SERVICE

QA-/7f OR NPS USE ONLY

{;__NATIONAL REGISTER OF IDSTORIC PLACES l INVENTORY--NOMINATION FORM

RECEIVED ..

DATE ENTERED

I \

Dudley's Chapel Queen Anne's County

CONTINUATION SHEET Maryl and ITEM NUMBER 7

{DESCRIPTION, continued)

PAGE 1

Simple freestanding pews with boxed ends are arranged to allow two aisles. The pulpit is on a low platform, with the comnunion rail at the front of the platform.

There are two space heaters, one on each side of the church; and these are the only source of heat in cold weather.

The cemetery to th~ rear of tffe church~is beffeved-fo be -the- resting pl~ce of Joshua Dudley, who gave the 1 and for the chape 1 ~_o ___ be built on, and was a prominent member in the early history-of the--church. The stone believed to mark his grave is badly weathered and the inscription is illegible. Other stones mark graves of the Benton and Devenish families, two local families which figured prominently in the early years at Dudley's. Also interred here are three early ministers, the Reverend Wesley Henderson, who was pastor in 1839, the Reverend William Allen, pastor in 1840 and 1841, and the Reverend Robert H. Ray, who was the pastor in 1843.

[! SIGKIFICANCE

AREAS o=sGNIFICANCE -- CHECK AND JUSTIFY BELOW PERIOD

_PRE;-:.5'rOHIC

!~ _1-'00-~.199

_1500·1~99

-ARCH EULOGY-PRE HISTORIC _COl.'l.'_:NITY PLANNING

_cor.s:;:;v A TION

_ECO•~-vilCS

_EO:.J:.-iON

_ENG'l;:;"!ING

-LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE

l. _1600-1£99

,X..1700-1799

.x-, 800·, 699

.x. 1900-

-ARCHEOLOGY-HISTORIC

-AGRICULTURE

WRCHITECTURE

-ART

-COMMERCE

-COMMUNICATIONS

SPECIFIC DATES 1783

STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE

_EXP_:::~ Tl ON/SETTLEMENT

_INO...:=--:;y

_IN\r:--ON

-LAW

-LITERATURE

-MILITARY

_MUSIC

_PHILOSOPHY

_POLITICS/GOVERNMENT

BUILDER/ARCHITECT

(JA-1'7~

.!.RELIGION

-SCIENCE

_SCULPTURE

_SOCIAUHUMANITARIAN

_THEATER

_TRANSPORTATION

_OTHER !SPECIFY)

Dudley's Chapel is primari~ significant for its prominent place in the early history of the Methodist Church :n Maryland. The society which built Dudley's was organized by 1774, only eight ye!rs after Francis Asbury first preached in New York City. The church, built nine ye!rs later, is one of the earliest surviving Methodist churches in Maryland, and.was tt.e first Methodist church built in Queen Anne's County.1

-Architecturally,. Dudley's Chapel is significant as one -of only two 18th century. churches remaining in the county. It represents a simple yet graceful example of the small, brick parish churches built throughout the Tidewater region during the 18th century. Of particular interest are the three recessed brick relieving arches on the front gable, reminiscent and perhaps anticipati.ng the work of the nee-classical movement popularized in the ea1ry 19th century.

Many· of the prominent early leaders of the Methodjst Church are known to have . preached both at Dudley's and in the Sudlersville area. Among the more notable figures were Francis Asbury; Thomas Coke, Richard Whatcoat, Jesse Lee and freeborn Garrettson. Asbury, Coke and Whatcoat were the first three Bishops of the American Methodist Church, Lee became a noted historian of the church and a missionary to New England, and Garrettson was the first native American Methodist minister.Z

The Methodist movement reached America in the mid-1760 1 s, and the first services are believed to have been held in New York City in 1766. About the same time, Robert Strawbridge organized a Methodist society in Maryland·. In July, 1773, the first

. Methodist Conference was held at Old St. George's Church in Philadelphia. There were 1 more than 1500 people present, approximately one-fourth of them from Maryland. In

that year, Francis Asbury was appointed to the Maryland Circuit. ·

In November of 1773, William Watters was transferred from a station in New Jersey to Kent County. Watters is known to have preached in Queen Anne's County as well, and by 1774 a Methodist society had been fonned in the area of Sadlers Cross Roads, now known as Sudlersville.3

In 1783, a movement was undertaken to build a proper meeting house in the Sudlersvi area. A site was selected near Red Lyon Branch, about two miles west of town. The land was donated by Joshua Dudley, on a tract called Sarah's Portion.4

~- i~ The church was begun the same year, but apparently a board of trustees was not

appointed until 1794. At that time the formal record of the church was begun. The first vestry minutes record that: ~,,--.,

;.......

f::"'t, .=.,..:__ - SEE CONTINUATION SHEET #2 •

• Form No 10-300a (ttev. 10' 741

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SERVICE

4Jfl-11<? OR NPS USE ONLY

(~ RECEIVED

l NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES INVENTORY -- NOMINATION FORM

DATE ENTERED

I

(

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~,~ Si ;;-,,,;_ ~~T:,,.":"_ !".,;::..: : .. ---·-- •

Dudley's Chapel Queen Anne's County

CONTINUATION SHEET Maryland . ITEM NUMBER 8

(SIGNIFICANCE, continued)

PAGE 2

••. the house was raised in 1783, covered with cypress shingles in 1784. glased in August 1784, floored and seated in 1786, and since that the windows have been broken by hai1 .•• 5

There is no record of who the earliest preachers were, but in 1786 Jesse lee and Richard Whatcoat were pastors on this circuit. Other promin nt figures associated with the early history of Dudley's include Joseph Hartley, Freeborn Garrettson, and Tnomas Coke. Francis Asbury is also known to have preached here at least half a dozen times between 1783 and 1811.

In 1796 the Society initiated a drive to raise money to finish the gallery at the .westdend e>f the church. In 1803 lumber was n11rchi'\sed, but the gallery was not complete unt1 1812.~

In the meantime, a vestry was constructed to the rear of the church. This has been described as a small building, about 16 x 20, heated by an open fireplace.7

In 1810, Wi_lliam Price asked to use the vestry building as a school. This request was granted, and Price contributed ten dollars toward the necessary repairs.8

In g812 two stoves were purchased for the church at a cost of fifty-five dollars. These were placed on each side of the building, with metal flues running up through the roof. The first major repairs to the church were undertaken in 1840. An iron rod was run through the building to tie the side walls together, the brick ai.sles and the floor of the vestibule were replaced, and the present benches were installed. In 1856 a new roof was put on.11

The Civil War was a difficult time for the members of Dudley's and controversy sirrmered even after the war ended. In 1865 a corrmittee was appointed to notify the colored people that they would not be pennitted to occupy the vestry as a place of worship after September 1, 1865. The same corrmittee was asked to D~tify the school trustees that they would not be able to use the vestry as a schooll , and in 1869 the vestry was torn down.

The schism within the church widened, and in 1868 one group split away from Dudley's, fanning the Methodist Episcopal Church South. They settled in nearby Sudlersville, and built a small frame church known as Asbury Methodist Church. Although no longer used as a church, this builidng still stands, and has been adapted for use as a public library.

In 1869, more repairs to Dudley's Chapel were undertaken, despite a small member· ship and a shortage of money. Brick flues were built on either side of the church,

SEE CONTINUATION SHEET 13 •

Form No 10·300a (kev 10·74)

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT Of THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SERVICE

OR NPS USE ONLY

r NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES INVENTORY -- NOMINATION FORM

RECEtVEO . ..

DATE ENTERED

j

Dudley's Chapel Queen Anne's County

CONTINUATION SHEET Maryl and ITEM NUMBER 8

{SIGNIFICANCE, continued)

PAGE 3

and the old windows were torn out and replaced with new sash that were not as wide. The door was also replaced, and the interior was painted. The total cost was $650.00.

In 1883 the centennial of the church was celebrated. Part of the preparations for this event included more repairs, and at this time the exterior of the church was covered with stucco.

_More work was under.:takenj_n 1900. The r:C>Q.f was repaired, the high arched ceiling was lowered and sflftened in pitch, the old door thil.t once led to the vestry was closed and replaced by a window, the gallery was closed off, and the interior painted.14

In 1917 the Reverend Arthur S. Walls published a brief history of Dudley's Chapel. Included in that account is a lengthy description of how the church looked before the interior was renovated:

... On the side of the main building the ceiling was arched and about eight feet higher than now, the gallery was open, the pulpit about four feet higher than now with about 10 steps leading to it, over the pulpit was a window and a hat rack. The hat rack also ran above the pulpit stairs and along nearly the entire length of the men's side of the church; it consisted of a strip with wooden pegs projecting about five inches. A door to the ministe~s right entered the vestry; long brick aisles ran about the church to the brick floor of the vestibule; the floor was. bare, and the benches plain with a narrow strip for a back; there were no flues, and stove pipes ran from wood stoves to the.ceiling on either side of the church to flues yet seen above the roof; a stairway ran from the vestibule to the gallery and from under the stairway there opened a door into the church which admitted the sexton to a dark closet sometimes filled with fire wood. There were no chandeliers and the big rod which runs through the center of the church was not there. To either side of the Sacred desk on the outer corners of the pulpit gallery stood square paneled posts about four feet high with flat tops upon which rested lamps. Two similar lamp posts stood and one near each end of the chancel.15

Despite the repairs undertaken in 1900, and the 135th anniversary celebration which prompted Reverend Walls' history, declining membership continued to plcgue the church, and in 1919 regular services were ended. Dudley's Chapel is now under the Sudlersville charge, and is maintained by a Board of Trustees. It is opened several times each year for special services, including ap Homecoming Service in early October and a sunrise service at Easter. •

SEE CONTINUATION SHEET 14.

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• Fo1m No 10-300a IHev 10· 741

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SERVICE

NATIONAL REGISTER OF I-IlSTORIC PLACES INVENTORY -- NOI\1INA TI ON FORM

Dudley 1 s Chapel Queen Anne's County

CONTINUATION SHEET Maryland ITEM NUMBER 8

(SIGNIFICANCE, continued)

'f/-1~~ -oR NPS USE ONLY

-. . ~

RECEIVED

DATE ENTERED

PAGE 4

1Bridgetown Methodist Church on Tuckahoe Creek was built circa 1773 by the Church of England, and was taken over by the Methodists in 1778. The present building dates . to 1887, when the church was rebuilt. Fragments of the 18th century walls remain on the front and rear gables, and the early bricks were reused, extending up to within

- two feet· of the cornice. ·. - .. --· ... - ...

2Rev. Arthur S. Walls, Dudlev's Chapel, Centreville, 1917. p. 6-7.

3Ibid, p. 5.

4s~e Queen Anne~s County Deeds, Liber Sl1J#3, folio 524.

5vestry Minutes for Dudley 1 s Chapel, p. 6. ·

61bid, p. 6-14

7walls, p. 7-8.

Bvestry Minutes, p. 14.

9Ibid, p.33.

10wa11s, p. 8-10.

11 vestry Minutes, p.52. Also see Walls, several entries:

. 12Ibid, p. 63.

13Ibid, p. 68.

14Ibid, p. 69.

15wa11s, P~ 8-10.

· Form No 10-300a lkev 10:741

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT O~ THE INTERIOR NATIONAL PARK SERVICE t NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES

INVENTORY -- NOMINATION FORM

Dudley• s Chapel Queen Anne's County

CONTINUATION SHEET Maryl and ITEM NUMBER 9

MAJOR BIBLIOGRAPHICAL REFERENCES

OR NPS USE ONLY

RECEIVED

OATE ENTERED

PAGE 5

Edwin Brown Papers, Centreville Public Library, Vol. 2 and Vol. 78.

Emory, Frederick, Queen Anne's County, Maryland. Baltimore, 1950.

Hallman, E. C. The Garden of Methodism (no date).

- fJ-1 '7?

Lee, Charlotte Ware, Dudley's Chapel: 1794-1900 (unpublished manuscript).

Phillips, Paul W. Sudlersville, Queen Anne's County, Maryland (no dater----­Tipple, Ezra Squier, The Heart of Asbury's Journal, Eaton and Mains, 1904.

Vestry Minutes of Dudley's Chapel: 1794-1900 (stored in the vault of the Sud1ersville Bank).

Walls, Reverend Arthur S. One Hundred and Thirty-Fifth Anniversary of Dudley's Chapel: 1782-1917, Centreville; 1917.

..

fr­(_

~MAJOR BIBLIOGRAPHICAL REFERENCES

SEE CONTINUATION SHEET #5.

iilJGEOGRAPHICAL DATA ACREAGE OF NOMINATED PROPERTY J 59 acres QUADRANGLENAME CHURCH HILL QUAD

UTM REFERENCES QUADRANGLE SCALE 1: 24000

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LIST All STATES AND COUNTIES FOR PROPERTIES OVERLAPPING STATE OR COUNTY BOUNDARIES

STATE CODE. COUNTY

STATE CODE COUNTY CODE

mFORM PREPARED BY NAME/TITLE

Orlando Ridout y, History compiled by Mrs. Lauretta Walls and Mrs. Marjorif Clements.

ORGANIZATION

Queen Anne 1 s Co1mty. H; stori cal Sod e+y STREET & NUMBER

CITY OR TOWN

DATE·

TELEPHONE

STATE

Centreville Maryland 21617

!ESTATE HISTORICP~ESERVATION OFFICER CERTIFICATION THE EVALUATED SIGNIFICANCE OF THIS PROPERTY WITHIN THE SIATE IS:

NATIONAL_ STAT EL LOCAL __

As the designated State Historic Preservation Officer for the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 (Public Law 89-665). I

hereby nominate this property for inclusion in the National Register and certify that it has been evaluated according to the

DATE

· .. :tliEREBY ctRTIFYTI:IATTHIS PROPERTY!S INCLUDED IN THE NATJONALREGlSTER .·.

KEEPER Of THE NATIONAL REGISTER A"{TEST:

CHIEF Of REGISTRATION

·-DATE

·DATE

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QA-178 Dudley's Chapel Sudlersville vicinity

ta s-eMent

1783

Dudley's Chapel is primarily significant for its prominent place in the early history of the Methodist Church in MClryland. The society which built Dudley's was organized by 1774, only eight years after Francis Asbury first preached in New York City. The church, built nine years later, is one of the earliest surviving Methodist churches in Maryland, and was the first Methodist church built in Queen Anne's County.

Architecturally, Dudley's Chapel is significant as one of only two 18th century churches remaining in the county. It represents a simple yet graceful example of the small, brick parish churches built throughout the Tidewater region during the 18th century. Of particular interest are the three recessed brick relieving arches on the front gable, reminiscent and perhaps anticipating the work of the neo-classical movement popularized in the early 19th century.

I

"

\

,,-t:: q s e IYl e. n ·1::- QA-178

MARYLAN D HISTORICAL TRUST

INVENTORY FORM FOR STATE HISTORIC SITES SURVEY

6NAME HISTORIC

Dudley's Chapel AND/OR COMMON

flLOCATION STREET & NUMBER

East side of Benton Corners Road, 1/4 mile south of Maryland Route 300 CITY. TOWN

Sudlersville STATE

Maryland

IJCLASSIFICATION

CATEGORY _DISTRICT

OWNERSHIP _PUBLIC

~PRIVATE

..X.. VICINITY OF

STATUS _OCCUPIED

_UNOCCUPIED X BUILDING(S)

_STRUCTURE

_SITE

_OBJECT

_BOTH _WORK IN PROGRESS

PUBLIC ACQUISITION ACCESSIBLE _IN PROCESS

_BEING CONSIDERED

DOWNER OF PROPERTY

:X.YES: RESTRICTED

_YES: UNRESTRICTED

_NO

NAME Trustees of Dudley's Chapel c/o Lauretta Walls

STREET & NUMBER

Box 47 CITY. TOWN

Millington _ VICINITY OF

llLOCATION OF LEGAL DESCRIPTION

CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT

First COUNTY

Queen Anne's

PRESENT USE _AGRICULTURE

_COMMERCIAL

-MUSEUM

_PARK

_EDUCATIONAL _PRIVATE RESIDENCE

_ENTERTAINMENT x_RELIGIOUS

_GOVERNMENT

_INDUSTRIAL

_MILITARY

Telephone #:

_SCIENTIFIC

_TRANSPORTATION

_OTHER:

STATE , zip code Maryland 21651

Liber #: couRrnousE. Folio #: REGISTRY oF DEEDs,Erc. Queen Anne• s County Courthouse STREET & NUMBER

Courthouse Square CITY. TOWN

Centreville STATE

Maryland 21617

l!I REPRESENTATION IN EXISTING SURVEYS TITLE

DATE

DEPOSITORY FOR

SURVEY RECORDS

_FEDERAL _STATE _COUNTY _LOCAL

/'"""'·--~:-:-:::::-:-:-::-:-~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ CITY.TOWN STATE

II DESCRIPTION

_EXCELLENT

_GOOD

_FAIR

CONDITION CHECK ONE CHECK ONE

_DETERIORATED

_RUINS

_UNALTERED

_ALTERED

_ORIGrNAL SITE

_MOVED DATE. __ _

_ UNEXPOSED

DESCRIBE THE PRESENT AND ORIGINAL (IF KNOWN) PHYSICAL APPEARANCE

Old Dudley's Chapel rests on a low hill on

the east side of Benton Corners Road, just south

of Maryland Route 300 and approximately two miles

west of Sudlersville. There is a small cemetery

to the rear of the chapel. Large trees are scattered

throughout the churchyard and heavy woods to the

north and east extend down to the Red Lyon Branch,

a small creek which meanders north to the Chester

River.

Built in 1783, Dudley's Chapel is a simple

brick structure with a moderately pitched gable

roof. The west gable, facing the road, is the

principal facade, while the altar and pulpit are

located at the east end of the church. This is a

very simple and unpretentious building, made even

plainer by a series of renovations and repairs

undertaken periodically throughout the nineteenth

century. The most significant change to the

exterior of the building was the application of a

coat of stucco in 1883, covering all of the original

brickwork, and also hiding evidence of alterations

to the windows and one door. Although the bonding

pattern is not known, it seems probable that it was

CONTINUE ON SEPARATE SHEET IF NECESSARY

CONTINUATION SHEET

7.1.DESCRIPTION

QA"'.""178

laid in Flemis~ bond, perhaps with random glazed headers,

but without a watertable or belt course.

On the west gable~ double paneled doors are flanked

by a tall six-over-six window on each' side. Each of

these openings has a recessed relieving arch, the most

significant decorative feature of the building. In

the upper gable there is a small window concealed by

louvered shutters •

. The north and south facades are very plain, with

three tall six-over-six windows symmetrically ranged

along each walls An interior brick stove chimney

pierces the roof on each side between the east window

and the center window.

The east gable is eaually plain, with a single

six-over-six window at each corner, flanking the

pulpit. The north window was originally a door to the

vestry, but this was closed in and changed to. a window

in 1900. There is no window in the upper gable at

.this end.

Sever~l cast-iron tic plates have been secured

through the walls; some of these are "S 11 shaped; others

are plain square plates. A box cornice with crown

mold and bed mold extends along each facade, returns

CONTINUATION SHEET

7.2 DESCRIPTION

QA-178

at the gable and is carried up the eaves. This

presumably dates to 1856, when the roof was rebuilt.·

The interior of the church is a single large

room, with the pulpit in the center of the east wall

and a_ gallery at the west end. A smal~ vestib~le for

the front door and the stair is partitioned of£ below

the gallery.

The gallery has been closed off and the stair

removed, but sufficient evidence remains to trace the

original l~cation in the northwest corner of the

.building~ The original landing and part of one carriage

remain in the vestibule, and w~ought nails used to secure

the treads are visible in several places. The gallery

·has evidently been rebuilt, as the supporting columns

arrd front railing are Victorian, highlighted with

painted and grained paneling. The interior doors,

the window trim, and the pulpit and communion rail

al~o da~e to the Victorian period.

Simple freestanding pews with boxed ends are

arranged to allow two aisles. The pulpit is on a

low platform, with the coMmunion rail at the front

of the platform.

CONTINUATION SHEET

7. 3 DESCRIP1'ION

QA-178

There are two space heaters, one on each side of

the church; and these are the only source of heat in

cold weather.

The cemetery to the rear of the church is believed

to be the resting place of Joshua Dudley, who gave

the land for the chapel to be built on, and was a

prominent member in the early history of the church.

The stone believed to mark his grave is badly weathered

and the inscription is illegible. Other stones mark

graves of the Benton and Devenish families, two local

families which figured prominently in the early years

at Dudl~y 1 s. Also interred here are three early

mi~isters, the Reverend Wesley Henderson, who was

pastor in 1839, the Reverend William Allen, pastor

in 1840 and 1841, and the Reverend Robert H. Ray, who

was the pastor in 1843

II SIGNIFICANCE

PERIOD AREAS OF SIGNIFICANCE -- CHECK AND JUSTIFY BELOW

,-~ PREHISTORIC --ARCHEOLOGY-PREHISTORIC _COMMUNITY PLANNING _LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE

_ 1400-1499 __ARCHEOLOGY-HISTORIC _CONSERVATION _LAW

-1500-1599 --AGRICULTURI;: _ECONOMICS _LITERATURE

-1600-1699 __ARCHITECTURE _EDUCATION _MILITARY

-1700-1799 __ART _ENGINEERING _MUSIC

_ 1800-1899 _COMMERCE _EXPLORATION/SETTLEMENT _PHILOSOPHY

_1900- _COMMUNICATIONS _INDUSTRY _POLITICS/GOVERNMENT

_INVENTION

SPECIFIC DATES BUILDER/ARCHITECT

STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE

Dudley's Chapel is primarily significant for

its prominent place in the early history of the

Methodist Church in Maryland. The society which

built Dudley's was organized by 1774, only eight

years after Francis Asbury first preached in New

York City. The church, built nine years later,

is one of the earliest surviving Methodist

tJli-11~

_RELIGION

_SCIENCE

_SCULPTURE

_SOCIAUHUMANITARIAN

_THEATER

_TRANSPORTATION

_OTHER (SPECIFY)

churches in Maryland, and was the first Methodist

church built in Queen Anne's County.(l)

Architecturally, Dudley•s Chapel is significant

as one of only two 18th century churches remaining

in the county. It represents a simple yet graceful

example of the small, brick parish churches built

throughout the Tidewater region during the 18th

century. Of particular interest are the three

recessed brick relieving arches on the front gable,

reminiscent and perhaps anticipating the work of

the nee-classical movement popularized in the early

19th century.

CONTINUE ON SEPARATE SHEET IF NECESSARY

QA·-178

CONTINUA'l'ION SHEET

8.1 STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE

Many of the prominent early leaders of the Methodist

Church are known to. have preached both at Dudley's and

in the Sudlersville area. Among the more notable

figures were F~ancis Asbury, Thomas Coke, Richard

Whatcoat, Jesse Lee and Freeborn Garre~tson. Asbury,

Coke and Whatcoat were the first three Bishops of the

American Methodist Church, Lee became a noted historian

of the church and a missionary to New England, and

Garrettson was the first native American Methodist

minister.< 2 )

The Methodist movement reached America in the mid-

1760 's, and the first services are believed to have

been held in New York City in 1766.· About the same

time, Robert Strawbridge organized a Methodist society

in Marylapd. In July, 1773, the first Methodist

Conference was held at Old St. George's Church in

Philadelphia. There were more than 1500 people present,

approximately one-fourth of them from Maryland. In

that year, Francis Asbury was appointed to the

Maryland Circuit.

In November of 1773, William Watters was trarisferred

from a station in New Jersey to Kent County. Watters

is known to hav0 preached in QuPen Anne's County as

QA-178

CONTINUl\TION SHEET

8 .. 2 STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE

well, and by 177~ a Methodist sociAty had been formed

in the area of Sadlers Cross Roads, now known as

Sudlersville.< 3 )

In 1783, a movement was undertaken to build a

proper meeting house in the Sudlersville area. A site

was selected near Red Lyon Branch, about two miles

we~t of town. The land was donated by Joshua Dudley,

on a tract called Sarah's Portion.( 4 )

The church was begun the same year, but apparently

a board of trustees was not appointed until 1794. At

that time the for~al record of the church was begun.

The first vestry minutes record that:

••• the house was raised in 1783, covered

with cypress shingles in 1784, glased in

August 1784, floored and seated in 1786,

and since that the windows have been

b J b . 'l (5) ro cen y nC'll. •••

~ There is no record of who the earliest preachers

were, but in 1786 Jesse Lee and Richard Whatcoat were

pastors on this circuit. Other prominent figures

associated with the early history of Dudley's include

Joseph Hartley, Freeborn Garrettson, and Thomas Coke.

QA-178

CONTINUATION SHEET

8.3 STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE

francis Asbury is also known to have preached here at

least half a dozen times between 1783 and 1811.

In 1796 the Society initiated a drive to raise

money to finish the gallery at the west end of the

church. In 1803 lumber was purchased, but the gallery

was not completed until 1812.( 6 )

In the meantime, a vestry was constructed to the

rear of the church. .This has been described as a small

building, about 16 x 20, heated by an open fireplace.(?)

In 1810, William Price asked to use the vestry

building as a school. This request was granted, and

Price contributed ten dollars toward the necessary

repairs.CB)

In 1812 two stoves were purchased for the church

at a cost of fifty-five dollars.< 9 > These were placed

on each side of the building, with metal flues running

up through the roof. The first major repairs to the

church were undertaken in 1840. An iron rod was run

through the building to tie th~~ side walls together,

the brick aisles and the floor of the vestibule were

replaced, and the present benches were installed.

In 1856 a new roof was put on.(11)

The Civil War was a difficult time for the members

QA-178

8.4 STATEMENT O:F' SIGNIFICANCE

of Dudley's and controversy simmered even after the

war ended. In 1865 a committee was appointed to

notify the colored people that they would not be

permitted to occupy the vestry as a pl~ce of worship

after September 1, 1865. 'l'he same committee was

asked to notify the school trustees that they would

not be able to use the vestry as a schoo1< 12 >, ~nd in

1869 'the vestry was torn down.

The schism within the church widened, and ~n 1868

one group split away from Dudley's, forming the

Methodist Episcopal Church South. They settled in

nearby Sudlersville, and built a small frame church

known as Asbury Methodist Church. Although no longer

used as a church, this building still stands, and has

been adapted for use as a publi~ library.

In 1869, more repairs to Dudley's Chapel were

undertaken, despite a small menbership and a shortage

of money. Brick flues were built on either side of

the church, and the old windows wer~ torn out and

replaced with new sash that were not as wide. The

door was also replaced, and the interior was painted.

The total cost was $650.00.

Ql\--1 78

CONTINUATION SHEET

8.5 STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE

In 1883 the centennial of the church was celebrated.

Part of the preparations for, this event included more

repairs, and at this time the exterior of the church was

covered with stucco.

More work was undertaken in 1900. 0The ro~f was

repaired, the high arched ceiling was lowered and

softened in pitch, the old door that once led to the

vestry was closed and replaced by a window, the gallery

was closed off, and the interior paintea.Cl4 )

In 1917 ~he Reverend Arthur s. Walls published a

brief history of Dudley's Chapel. Included in that

account is a lengthy description of how the church

looked before the interior was renov,ated:

••• on the side of the main building the ceiling

was arched and about eight feet higher than

now, the gallery was open, the pulpit about

four feet higher than now with about 10

steps leading to it, over the pulpit was a

window and a hat rack. The hat rack also

ran above the pulpit stairs and along

nearly the entire l~ngth of the men's

side ~f the church; it consisted of a strip

QA-178

CONTINUATION SHEET

8.6 STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE

with wooden pegs projecting about five

inches. A door to the minister 1 s right

entered the vestry; long brick aisles ran

about the.church to the brick floor of the

vestibule; the floor was bare, anq, the benches

plain with a narrow strip for a back; there

were no flues, and stove pipes r~n from wood

stoves to the ceiling on either side of the

church to flues yet seen above the roof; a

stairway ran from the vestibule to the

gallery and from under the stairway there

opened a door into the church which admitted

the sexton to a dark closet sometimes filled

with fire wood. There were no chandeliers

and the big rod which runs through the center

of the church was not there. To either side

of the Sacred desk on the outer corners of

the pulpit gallery stood square paneled posts

about four feet high with flat tons upon which

rested lamos. Two similar lamp posts stood

d h ~ r. th . . ] ( 15 ) an one near eac ena o~ e cnance ..

Despite the repairs undertakPn in 1900,

and the 135th anniversary celebration which

QA-178

CONTINUATION SHEET

8.7 STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE

prompted Reverend Walls' history, declining membership

continued to plague the church, and in 1919 regular

services were ended~ Dudley's Chapel is now under the

Sudlersville charge, and is maintained by a Board of

Trustees. It is opened several times each year for

special services, including an Homecoming Service in

early October and a sunrise service at Easter.

QA-178

Footnotes

(1) Bridgetown Methodist Church on Tuckahoe Creek was built circa 1773 by the Church of England, and was taken over by the Methodists in 1778. The present building date~ to 1887, when the church.was rebuilt. Frag~ents of the 18th century walls remain on the front and rear gables, and the early bricks were reused, extending up to within two feet of the cornice.

(2) Rev. Arthur S. Walls, Dudlev's Chapel, Centreville, 1917. p. 6-7.

(3) Ibid, p. S.

(4) See Queen Anne's County Deeds, Liber STW#3, folio 524e

(5) Vestry Minutes for Dudley's Chapel, p. 6.

(6) Ibid, p. 6-14.

(7) Walls, p. 7-8.

(8) Vestry Minutes, p. 14.

(9) Ibid, p. 33.

(10) Walls, p. 8-10.

{11) Vestry Minutes, several entires:

(12) Ibid, p. 63.

( 13) Ibid, p. 68.

(14) Ibid, p. 69.

( 15) Walls, p. 8-10.

p. 52. Also see Halls,

IJMAJOR BIBLIOGRAPHICAL REFERENCES

See Continuation Sheet #9.1

CONTINUE ON SEJ?AMTE SHEET If NECESSMY

II!]GEOGRAPHICAL DATA ACREAGE OF NOMINATED PROPERTY--------

VERBAL BOUNDARY DESCRIPTION

LIST ALL STATES AND COUNTIES FOR PROPERTIES OVERLAPPING STATE OR COUNTY BOUNDARIES

STATE COUNTY

STATE COUNTY

DIFORM PREPARED BY NAME/TITLE

Orlando Ridout V

History compiled by Mrs. Lauretta Walls and Mrs. Marjorie Clements

ORGANIZATION

Queen Anne's County Historical Society STREET & NUMBER

CITY OR TOWN

Centreville

DATE

TELEPHONE

STATE

Maryland 21617

The Maryland Historic Sites Inventory was officially created by an Act of the Maryland Legislature, to be found in the Annotated Code of Maryland, Article 41, Section 181 KA, 1974 Supplement.

The Survey and Inventory are being prepared for information and record purposes only and do not constitute any infringe­ment of individual property rights.

RETURN TO: Maryland Historical Trust The Shaw House, 21 State Circle Annapolis, Maryland 21401 ( 301) 267-1438

PS· 1108

0.1\-178

CONTINUATION SHEET

9 .1 HhJOR BIBLIOGR1\.PHIChL REFERENCES

Edwin Brown Papers, Centreville Public Library, Vol. 2 and Vol. 7B.

Emory, Frederick, Queen Anne's County, M~ryland.

Baltimore, 1950.

Lee, Charlotte Ware, Dudley's Chanel: (unpublished manuscript).

1794-1900

Philli9s, Paul W. Sudlersville Queen Anne's County, Marvland (no date}. __ __._ __ _

Tirple, Ezra Souier,.The Heart Eaton and Mains, 1904.

of Asburv•s ---'

Journ;;l,

Vestrv Minutes of in the vauit

Dudley's Char)Pl: 1704-1900 of the Sucflen·-3,-1-i_l_l_e B?nk) •

(stored

Halls, RPverend Arthur S. One Hundred __ ar!._~Th.i rtv-F'ifth Anniversary of DucJ~s Chanel: l7Cl2-1C)17, Centreville: 1917.

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