In the early 20s a group of farmers from Mississippi moved to Bon Secour and bought land. They settled in a square mile. It was, roughly, from Highways 12 to 16 and 65 to 49. This area became known as the Mississippi settlement. Among those families were the Princes, Odoms, Walters, Beeches, Nalls, Longs, Parkers and Shows. This group had primarily been Methodist Protestants in Mississippi and they wanted to establish a church in the Bon Secour community. They acquired land from the Swift family, at the present location, and began meeting in an old building that had previously been a school for the Swift children.
A pastor, India Morgan, was sent from Mississippi. Bon Secour became a part of her circuit and she preached here once a month. The church was named Morgan's Chapel. Two children, born during her tenure, were named after her. They are Morgan Odom, a present member and India Prince McKeown.
By the end of the 20s they had outgrown the old building. It was sold and moved to the lower part of the property, next to Schoolhouse Creek. The present building was completed in 1931. The cypress timber, from the farm of Joe Odom, was donated. It was hauled to a sawmill about one mile north of this location where it was made into lumber. Other families helped provide the pine materials. The men of the church built this chapel. The interior is tongue and groove pine and the floors are pine.
The chapel was heated with a wood heater fired with pine knots. The lighting was provided by kerosene lamps and there was an outhouse out back. One of the original lamp brackets now hangs next to the brick chimney. The kerosene lamp in the bracket belonged to Mr. and Mrs. T.J. Prince, two of the founders of the church.
The Methodist Episcopal Church and the Methodist Protestant Church united in 1938 or 39. The group of farmers, along with some fishermen, found the new denomination to formal for them. They were accustomed to shaped note songbooks and did not like the new hymnal. The congregation decided to pull out of the denomination that had now become The Methodist Church. For the next 25 years they affiliated with first one denomination and then another, however, the property remained in the hands of The Methodist Church. As the old original members of Morgan's Chapel passed away, so did the church. It closed in the late 60s.
The church was abandoned for 30 or 35 years and suffered from neglect and vandalism. The front doors were torn from the hinges and the glass was broken from the windows. Hurricane Fredric landed a tree across the back corner. The roof leaked and damaged the interior. The cemetery was overgrown with weeds, had fallen trees and huge cotton mouth mocassins.
In 1999, Mable Anderson, the granddaughter of T.J. and Frazier Prince, approached the church council of Orange Beach United Methodist Church, where she was a member, and asked them if the would sponsor the re-opening of Morgan's Chapel as a mission project. They agreed, as long as there was not cost involved.
Anderson and Orange Beach pastor, Richard Brooks, began seeking approval, to reopen the church, from the Pensacola District and the AL-West FL Conference of the United Methodist. They received approval along with several grants for repair and renovation of the building.
Most of the work was done by volunteers in the community and volunteers with Habitat for Humanity. Grover Parker, a local resident whose mother had attended the original Morgan's Chapel, cut cypress from his pond and built the pulpit, altar table and baptismal fount. Clay Grant, a local Nazarene pastor, built the crosses that are on the back wall and the front exterior. They were built from the wood in the original front doors. The cemetery was cleared and the known graves were marked with wooden crosses.
The original pulpit Bible, cared for through the years by the Odom family, is on display in the front of the chapel. Also displayed are some original "shaped note" song books, a charge conference roll and photographs. The one remaining pane of original glass is in the kitchen window.
The renovation was completed and the first preaching service was held October 24, 1999. The goal of the newly organized congregation was to be chartered as the "First Church of the New Millenium". This goal was reached and the chartering service was held at 6:01 P.M. on December 31, 1999. This time coincided with 12:01 A.M., Greenich Mean Time, 2000. The church was recognized by several national publications as the first church of the new millenium.
Dr. Floyd Enfinger was appointed the first pastor in January, 2000. Under his leadership, an educational/fellowship building was completed and paid for. The current pastor, Rev. Norman Brown, was appointed in June, 2003. There are currently slightly over 100 members with an average attendance of 60. Services are held each Sunday morning with Sunday school at 8:30, worship at 9:30 and fellowship time at 10:30.
(This history was written by Mable Anderson, 9577 Bay Rd., So., Foley, AL 36535. For more information call 251-965-3849 or e-mail themable@gulftel.com)
