Oldest church in Southwest Michigan offers weddings, funerals and a view back in time

NILES — Whether you are looking for a quaint, historic venue for a wedding or a funeral, or you are simply interested in the history of southwest Michigan, Smith’s Chapel and the adjoining cemetery should not be overlooked.

With a history that goes back almost as far as that of the State of Michigan itself, the chapel located at 29858 Redfield Rd. offers visitors a view back into the days when Methodist Churches were spaced one-week’s horseback-ride apart. That enabled a minister to preach to each of the churches on his circuit at least once a month.

Those days are long past, and now, as Ann Brown, president of the Smith’s Chapel Historical Commis-sion, said, “The chapel is a church of Methodist Heritage.” That means that the Methodist Church is no longer involved with Smith’s Chapel.

Rather, it is owned by Milton Township, and it is listed as both a state and national historical site. In fact, Smith’s Chapel is the oldest church still standing in southwest Michigan.

Having grown up attending the church, Brown has fond memories of the days when her family and their neighbors attended Sunday services there.

“That’s why I got myself to be named the president of the historical preservation group,” Brown explained. “It was all local people, country farmers. It was our church.”

Built in 1840 with materials and on land donated by Cannon Smith, the chapel still bears the Smith name today. Brown’s great-great-great-grandfather, Nicholas Follmer, was one of the men who helped to build the chapel.

“Basically, it was all the people who emigrated from the east and settled in this area. It was called Beardsley Prairie, which covered a lot of territory, because Beardsley owned thousands of acres here,” Brown explained. “Smith emigrated from Delaware. He came out here, and he worked two years for Beardsley, went back, got his family, and they came out here, and they settled here.”

Like Brown’s family, the Smith family continues to have a strong presence in the area around Smith’s Chapel.

“There are a lot of Smiths in this area. In fact, on next Saturday, the 28th, one of the great-great-great-grandkids will be getting married here,” Brown said.

While many of Brown’s family members are buried in the cemetery, as is Cannon Smith himself, none of her family members were ever married in the chapel. However, Brown now facilitates its rental for both weddings and funerals.

While funerals can be scheduled by calling Brown at (269) 932-5242, the cemetery is owned by the Smith’s Chapel Cemetery Board, and they must be contacted for the purchase of plots there.

“On average, we do one to two weddings a month. Generally, our heaviest time for weddings is late August through November,” Brown said. “This year, so far, we’ve had five weddings. We’ve had several vow renewals as well.”

With wedding rentals priced at $200 and funeral rentals priced at $150, the commission is able to cover the cost of the chapel’s upkeep through its facility rentals.

“We manage to rent it enough that it pays its own bills,” Brown said. “We have a very limited budget, and we just keep it going.”

Even if they are not planning a wedding or a funeral, Brown is happy to open the chapel to those visitors who are simply interested in seeing the building that was renovated by Dale Lyman, beginning in 2005.

“They literally gutted the inside here. Dale numbered every one of these pews. He took them out and stored them at the community center. The stage up front—he took it apart board by board, numbered each one, and put them back in order,” Brown recalled. “The guy is a miracle. It was Dale and two guys who worked for him, and I’m just amazed at how he does things.”

After the restoration of the building, many of the original furnishings were returned to the church, which had sat empty for five years after having closed. Thus, visitors can see the original storyboard, clock, pulpit, table and chairs.

Also striking is the age of some of the trees on the grounds of the chapel and the cemetery. According to Brown, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources has identified two white pines in the cemetery as being the oldest in southwest Michigan. In addition, two towering oaks on the grounds are reported to be over 300 years old.

Over the course of the year, the historic commission holds several public events, including open houses and a Christmas program that ends with a visit from Santa. Information about those events can be found on their Facebook page at www.facebook.com/smithschapelnilesmi. More information, including Otis Montgomery’s detailed history of the chapel can be found at www.miltontwp.org/SmithsChapel.aspx.