Tolson's Chapel and School is a historic African American church located at Sharpsburg,

Washington County, Maryland Washington County is located in the western part of the U.S. state of Maryland. As of the 2020 census, the population was 154,705. Its county seat is Hagerstown. Washington County was the first county in the United States to be named for the ...

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. It was built in 1866 and served as a church and a

Freedmen's Bureau The Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands, usually referred to as simply the Freedmen's Bureau, was an agency of early Reconstruction, assisting freedmen in the South. It was established on March 3, 1865, and operated briefly as a ...

school for black residents of Sharpsburg in the years following the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

. It was listed on 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 ...

in 2008, and was designated a

National Historic Landmark A National Historic Landmark (NHL) is a building, district, object, site, or structure that is officially recognized by the United States government for its outstanding historical significance. Only some 2,500 (~3%) of over 90,000 places listed ...

in 2021.

Description and history

Tolson's Chapel is located on the south side of Sharpsburg village, on the north side of East High Street midway between South Mechanic Street and South Church Street. It is a single-story log structure, its exterior finished in board-and-batten siding, with a gabled roof that is crowned by a square belfry. The main facade is unadorned except for the main entrance, which is topped by a four-light transom window, and a small sash window set in the end gable. There are sash windows on each of the sides. The interior consists of a single chamber, with pews arranged around a single aisle occupying most of the space. A raised dais and pulpit are set at the far end, and there is a balcony providing additional seating at the near end. Some of the side walls still sport blackboards, a relic of the building's use as a district school. The chapel was built in 1866 by local African Americans on land given by Samuel Craig, a local free Black. Its first minister was John Tolson, a Methodist minister whose circuit included Sharpsburg. The chapel was named in Tolson's honor after his death at the age of 30 in 1870. The chapel remained in active use into the 20th century, closing due to declining enrollments in 1994. It was formally deconsecrated in 1998, and was taken over by a local non-profit organization in 2000. In addition to its role as a church, the building saw a variety of community uses. Most significant among these were periods of use when it served as a schoolhouse for local African-Americans. In 1868, the

was convinced to provide funding for teachers, which only lasted a relatively short time. After the state passed an education law in 1872 requiring school districts to have schools for local African-Americans, it was again used as a school until 1899.

References

External links

* at Maryland Historical Trust * {{National Register of Historic Places in Maryland Churches on the National Register of Historic Places in Maryland Churches in Washington County, Maryland Churches completed in 1866 African-American history of Maryland Sharpsburg, Maryland Historic American Buildings Survey in Maryland 1866 establishments in Maryland National Register of Historic Places in Washington County, Maryland Freedmen's Bureau

Description and history

See also

References

External links