Allen Chapel African Methodist Episcopal Church is an

African Methodist Episcopal The African Methodist Episcopal Church, usually called the AME Church or AME, is a predominantly African American Methodist denomination. It adheres to Wesleyan-Arminian theology and has a connexional polity. The African Methodist Episcopal ...

(AME) church located at 902 Broadway in

Lincoln Lincoln most commonly refers to: * Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865), the sixteenth president of the United States * Lincoln, England, cathedral city and county town of Lincolnshire, England * Lincoln, Nebraska, the capital of Nebraska, U.S. * Lincoln ...

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. As a

black church The black church (sometimes termed Black Christianity or African American Christianity) is the faith and body of Christian congregations and denominations in the United States that minister predominantly to African Americans, as well as their ...

, Allen Chapel served as a center of Lincoln's small African-American community. The church hosted the community's religious and social events. As an AME church, it provided AME publications to and helped educate its members. As Lincoln was both segregated and predominantly white for much of the church's early history, the church played an important role as one of the few organizations dedicated to improving the lives of the city's black residents. The church is still used for religious services.

Architecture

Allen Chapel is a one-story, brick gable front building with a brick foundation. The church was built in 1880 to house Lincoln's African Methodist Episcopal congregation, which formed in 1868. The building has a vernacular design with

Gothic arch A pointed arch, ogival arch, or Gothic arch is an arch with a pointed crown, whose two curving sides meet at a relatively sharp angle at the top of the arch. This architectural element was particularly important in Gothic architecture. The earlie ...

ed windows and entrances. There was originally a stained glass window in the transom above the door, but was later replaced with lights with coated glass that resembles stained glass. The windows have

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...

sills and their original wood frames are still intact. The interior of the church has had little alteration, with original plaster walls, wood trim windows, wainscoting, and wood paneled ceilings still in place.

History

In 1868, the congregation began meeting in the home of Rev. Spencer Donegan and his wife Elizabeth Lucenda (née Guy) Donegan. The Donegans worked to found the first AME church in Lincoln. Spencer Donegan had also founded an AME church in

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in 1843. Donegan was the

Sangamon County Sangamon County is located in the center of the U.S. state of Illinois. According to the 2010 census, it had a population of 197,465. Its county seat and largest city is Springfield, the state capital. Sangamon County is included in the Spr ...

delegate to the 1853

Colored Convention The Colored Conventions Movement, or Black Conventions Movement, was a series of national, regional, and state conventions held irregularly during the decades preceding and following the American Civil War. The delegates who attended these convent ...

in Chicago. Eight months after the group began meeting, the congregation purchased a local high school for $800. Rev. T. A. Hall was the first pastor. In 1869, the church became a part of the Annual Conference of the Connectional Church and was attached to the Decatur circuit, with assistance from

pastors. Rev. L. M. Davis was then assigned to the church. In the 1870s, the church also functioned as a school and site for political rallies. In 1876, the African Americans of Logan County met at the church to organize a committee in support of President

Ulysses S. Grant Ulysses S. Grant (born Hiram Ulysses Grant ; April 27, 1822July 23, 1885) was an American military officer and politician who served as the 18th president of the United States from 1869 to 1877. As Commanding General, he led the Union Ar ...

. In 1881, the congregation erected a new red brick building for the cost of about $1,000. Artisans from the congregation and Black community built the structure. Harlem Renaissance poet

Langston Hughes James Mercer Langston Hughes (February 1, 1901 – May 22, 1967) was an American poet, social activist, novelist, playwright, and columnist from Joplin, Missouri. One of the earliest innovators of the literary art form called jazz poetry, Hug ...

attended services at Allen Chapel as a child. Dr. William "Billy" Dyer, one of the first black military surgeons during World War I, was a member of the congregation. The church was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

on May 12, 2004. The Friends of Allen Chapel are leading efforts to help restore the church.

References

{{National Register of Historic Places Churches on the National Register of Historic Places in Illinois Churches completed in 1880 Buildings and structures in Logan County, Illinois African Methodist Episcopal churches in Illinois National Register of Historic Places in Logan County, Illinois