''Messenger of Peace'' is a

railroad chapel car As Americans moved west aided by the railroads, some Christian religious denominations saw an opportunity to expand to those living in such areas. The Baptist, Episcopal and Roman Catholic faiths used specially fitted railroad cars called Chapel ...

built in 1898, currently housed at the Northwest Railway Museum in

Snoqualmie, Washington Snoqualmie ( ) is a city next to Snoqualmie Falls in King County, Washington, United States. It is east of Seattle. Snoqualmie city is home to the Northwest Railway Museum. The population was 10,670 at the 2010 census and an estimated 13,62 ...

. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2009. With

Construction

''Messenger of Peace'' is a dark green, wooden railroad car made of

yellow pine In ecology and forestry, yellow pine refers to a number of conifer species that tend to grow in similar plant communities and yield similar strong wood. In the Western United States, yellow pine refers to Jeffrey pine or ponderosa pine. In the S ...

. The car is long, wide, and high when sitting on

trucks A truck or lorry is a motor vehicle designed to transport cargo, carry specialized payloads, or perform other utilitarian work. Trucks vary greatly in size, power, and configuration, but the vast majority feature body-on-frame construction ...

. The roof is rounded with an elevated ridge in which are set

clerestory In architecture, a clerestory ( ; , also clearstory, clearstorey, or overstorey) is a high section of wall that contains windows above eye level. Its purpose is to admit light, fresh air, or both. Historically, ''clerestory'' denoted an upper l ...

casement windows for both light and ventilation. With doors located at each end of the car, the front of the car contains a small compartment that served as living quarters for the minister; the remainder of the car provided a large open area for church services. The interior has decorative vertically fluted

wainscoting Panelling (or paneling in the U.S.) is a millwork wall covering constructed from rigid or semi-rigid components. These are traditionally interlocking wood, but could be plastic or other materials. Panelling was developed in antiquity to make roo ...

made of

white oak The genus ''Quercus'' contains about 500 species, some of which are listed here. The genus, as is the case with many large genera, is divided into subgenera and sections. Traditionally, the genus ''Quercus'' was divided into the two subgenera '' ...

. Originally, the car used kerosene lighting, which was later replaced with acetylene lighting which in turn was replaced with electric lighting. When outfitted, it held 17 rows of pews, as well as an organ, a lectern, and a phonograph donated by

Thomas Edison Thomas Alva Edison (February 11, 1847October 18, 1931) was an American inventor and businessman. He developed many devices in fields such as electric power generation, mass communication, sound recording, and motion pictures. These inventio ...

History

MessengerOfPeaceTheAmericanBaptistHomeMissionSociety

Starting in the 1890s, specially fitted railroad cars were built to be used as mobile churches. Missionaries would travel on the cars to remote and rural areas where the cars would be left on a sidetrack to provide religious services for residents in remote communities that lacked churches. ''Messenger of Peace'' was the fifth chapel car built for the

American Baptist Home Mission Society The American Baptist Home Mission Society is a Christian missionary society. Its main predecessor the Home Mission Society was established in New York City in 1832 to operate in the American frontier, with the stated mission "to preach the Gos ...

. The initial funds to build ''Messenger of Peace'' were donated by women of the Baptist church, and so it was nicknamed "the Ladies' car". Rev. Sam Neil was the first missionary to serve on the ''Messenger of Peace''. Later missionaries to serve on "the Ladies' car" included Rev. and Mrs. Joe P. Jacobs, Rev. and Mrs. J. H. Webber, Rev. and Mrs. J. S. Davis, Rev. and Mrs. Thomas R. Gale, and Rev. and Mrs. Robert R. Gray. ''Messenger of Peace'' operated as a chapel car from 1898 to 1948, primarily in

Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...

. Although it spent most of its time in the west, ''Messenger of Peace'' travelled through at least 20 states over its years of operation. It was the last of the Baptist chapel cars to retire, and served the longest. Some of the railroad lines that transported the ''Messenger of Peace'' were the

Great Northern Great Northern may refer to: Transport * One of a number of railways; see Great Northern Railway (disambiguation). * Great Northern Railway (U.S.), a defunct American transcontinental railroad and major predecessor of the BNSF Railway. * Great ...

, the

Northern Pacific Northern Pacific may refer to: * Northern Pacific Airways, an upcoming airline * Northern Pacific Field Hockey Conference The Northern Pacific Field Hockey Conference (NorPac) was an NCAA Division I conference that only sponsored women’s fiel ...

, the

Union Pacific The Union Pacific Railroad , legally Union Pacific Railroad Company and often called simply Union Pacific, is a freight-hauling railroad that operates 8,300 locomotives over routes in 23 U.S. states west of Chicago and New Orleans. Union Paci ...

, and the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul, typically for little or no charge, although that would change during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. ''Messenger of Peace'' was on display at the

Trans-Mississippi Exposition The Trans-Mississippi and International Exposition was a world's fair held in Omaha, Nebraska from June 1 to November 1 of 1898. Its goal was to showcase the development of the entire West, stretching from the Mississippi River to the Pacific Coa ...

of 1898, and again at the

Louisiana Purchase Exposition The Louisiana Purchase Exposition, informally known as the St. Louis World's Fair, was an World's fair, international exposition held in St. Louis, Missouri, United States, from April 30 to December 1, 1904. Local, state, and federal funds tota ...

in 1904. In ''A Church on Wheels'', Charles Herbert Rust states that the judges at the 1904 Exposition awarded ''Messenger of Peace'' a silver medal despite the car not being entered in competition. Father

Francis Kelley Francis Clement Kelley (October 23, 1870 – February 1, 1948) was a Canadian-born Catholic bishop. He was the second Bishop of Oklahoma City, as well as an author and diplomat. He was a Catholic priest for 54 years, and bishop for 23 years ...

determined to build chapel cars for his

Catholic Church Extension Society Catholic Extension (also known as the Catholic Church Extension Society) is a national fundraising 501(c)(3) organization which supports and strengthens poor mission dioceses across the United States. They provide funding and resources to diocese ...

after touring ''Messenger of Peace'' at the 1904 Exposition. At one stop, noted evangelist

Dwight L. Moody Dwight Lyman Moody (February 5, 1837 – December 26, 1899), also known as D. L. Moody, was an American evangelist and publisher connected with Keswickianism, who founded the Moody Church, Northfield School and Mount Hermon School in Massa ...

gave a sermon from ''Messenger of Peace'', even though he wasn't a Baptist. The following year, while preaching in Kansas City, Moody fell seriously ill and wanted to return to his home of

Northfield, Massachusetts Northfield is a New England town, town in Franklin County, Massachusetts, Franklin County, Massachusetts, United States. Northfield was first settled in 1673. The population was 2,866 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Springfield, Massachusetts ...

to die. ''Messenger of Peace'' carried him to St. Louis to transfer to another train headed east. Beginning in 1910, ''Messenger of Peace'' partnered with the International Railroad

YMCA YMCA, sometimes regionally called the Y, is a worldwide youth organization based in Geneva, Switzerland, with more than 64 million beneficiaries in 120 countries. It was founded on 6 June 1844 by George Williams in London, originally ...

to minister to railroad workers. In 1942, ''Messenger of Peace'' was barged to the

Olympic Peninsula The Olympic Peninsula is a large arm of land in western Washington that lies across Puget Sound from Seattle, and contains Olympic National Park. It is bounded on the west by the Pacific Ocean, the north by the Strait of Juan de Fuca, and the ...

where Rev. and Mrs. C. W. Cutler served the community, including local military personnel. The car and missionaries were relocated near

Everett, Washington Everett is the county seat and largest city of Snohomish County, Washington, United States. It is north of Seattle and is one of the main cities in the metropolitan area and the Puget Sound region. Everett is the seventh-largest city in the ...

in 1946, where they continued their work until 1948, when the ''Messenger of Peace'' was retired.

After retirement

In 1949, ''Messenger of Peace'' was converted into a roadside diner in

Snohomish, Washington Snohomish is a city in Snohomish County, Washington, United States. The population was 9,098 at the 2010 census. It is located on the Snohomish River, southeast of Everett and northwest of Monroe. Snohomish lies at the intersection of U.S. Rou ...

, the Ritz-Limited Cafe. In the 1970s, the car was scheduled for destruction, but was instead purchased by Art Hodgins, a local man, for $1 and moved to his property. After his death, his family donated the car to the Northwest Railway Museum. ''Messenger of Peace'' was moved to the Northwest Railway Museum's restoration shop in September, 2007. In 2009, the city of Snoqualmie was awarded a $180,000 grant from

Save America's Treasures Save America's Treasures is a United States federal government initiative to preserve and protect historic buildings, arts, and published works. It is a public–private partnership between the U.S. National Park Service and the National Trust fo ...

for the refurbishment of ''Messenger of Peace''. The car is being restored to its appearance circa 1917.

References

External link

Chapel Car 5 Messenger of Peace
{{National Register of Historic Places National Register of Historic Places in King County, Washington Religious buildings and structures completed in 1898 Rail transportation on the National Register of Historic Places in Washington (state) Baptist Christianity in Washington (state) Railway vehicles on the National Register of Historic Places Chapels in the United States Transportation in King County, Washington Barney and Smith Car Company Properties of religious function on the National Register of Historic Places in Washington (state)

Construction

History

After retirement

See also

References

External link