Chapel of the Cross (Mannsdale, Mississippi)
Encyclopedia
The Chapel of the Cross is a historic Episcopal
church in the Mannsdale area of Madison, Mississippi
. The brick structure was built circa 1850–52. It is noted for its Gothic Revival
architecture, which draws heavily from 14th-century English
country churches. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places
on June 13, 1972.
to Madison County, Mississippi
in 1819 and established Annandale. Tradition maintains that Johnstone was descended from the Johnstone family that once held the title Earl of Annandale and Hartfell
in the Peerage
of Scotland
and that he named his plantation in their honor. He had envisioned a chapel for the plantation, but died in 1848. After his death his widow, Margaret, began making plans for the construction of the church.
Almost no primary records for the construction of the church survive, but it is commonly believed by architectural scholars that English-born architect Frank Wills
designed the Chapel of the Cross for Margaret Johnstone. What is certain is that a sketch by Wills of an almost identical church, entitled "Sketch of a First-pointed church," appeared in the October 1849 issue of the New York Ecclesiologist. Practically identical churches by Richard Upjohn
are also known, such as his St. Thomas Episcopal Church
(c.1849) in New York
and St. Mary's Episcopal Church (c.1847) in Rhode Island
. Johnstone had much of the work on the church performed by plantation slaves, all of the bricks were handmade on-site. The rest of the construction was handled by hired artisans, with Johnstone spending a total of $3000. She deeded the church and 10 acres (4 ha) to the Episcopal Diocese of Mississippi
in June 1851. The building was finally consecrated on September 19, 1852, by William Mercer Green
, the first Episcopal bishop of Mississippi.
Margaret Johnstone died in 1880. In the following years the church alternated between being active and abandoned. The parish was declared extinct in 1903. Margaret Britton Parsons, a granddaughter of John and Margaret Johnstone, persuaded the diocese to reactivate the church as an active house of worship in 1911. It was restored to the diocese in 1914. Since that time, priests have taken charge of operations. The grand three-story, 40-room Italianate
-style Annandale mansion, built by Margaret Johnstone in the mid-1850s, burned down on September 9, 1924. A restoration of the chapel was started in 1956 by the diocese. In 1979, a few years after the addition of the church to the National Register of Historic Places
, the United States Department of the Interior
awarded a $50,000 grant to finish the restoration.
associated with it that has been chronicled in two books and one booklet. The Chapel of the Cross and Annandale are featured in the short story, "The Ghosts of Annandale", in Jeffrey introduces 13 more Southern ghosts by Kathryn Tucker Windham
. It details two distinct ghost stories. The first is that of Annie Devlin, a former governess
who died at the Annandale mansion in June 1860 and was purported to haunt it until the night it burned in 1924. The second is that of Helen Johnstone and her fiancé, Henry Grey Vick. Helen, the youngest daughter of John and Margaret, and Henry, descended from the founder of Vicksburg
, met at her sister's home, Ingleside, in December 1855. They became engaged to be married in 1857, with the day set for May 21, 1859. Vick was subsequently killed in a duel
in Mobile, Alabama
on May 17, 1859. His body was brought back to Annandale and buried in the churchyard
to the rear of the church. It is claimed in the story that the ghost of Helen now weeps at his grave. The same folklore is repeated in Norman and Scott's Historic Haunted America and again in Jan Warner's booklet Shadows of a Chapel.
Episcopal Church (United States)
The Episcopal Church is a mainline Anglican Christian church found mainly in the United States , but also in Honduras, Taiwan, Colombia, Ecuador, Haiti, the Dominican Republic, Venezuela, the British Virgin Islands and parts of Europe...
church in the Mannsdale area of Madison, Mississippi
Madison, Mississippi
Madison is a city in Madison County, Mississippi, USA. The population was 14,691 at the 2000 census. The population is currently 16,930. It is part of the Jackson Metropolitan Statistical Area. It is currently the highest income city in the state...
. The brick structure was built circa 1850–52. It is noted for its Gothic Revival
Gothic Revival architecture
The Gothic Revival is an architectural movement that began in the 1740s in England...
architecture, which draws heavily from 14th-century English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
country churches. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
on June 13, 1972.
History
The church was originally conceived as a house of worship for the Johnstone family on their Annandale Plantation. John T. Johnstone migrated from North CarolinaNorth Carolina
North Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
to Madison County, Mississippi
Madison County, Mississippi
-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 74,674 people, 27,219 households, and 19,325 families residing in the county. The population density was 104 people per square mile . There were 28,781 housing units at an average density of 40 per square mile...
in 1819 and established Annandale. Tradition maintains that Johnstone was descended from the Johnstone family that once held the title Earl of Annandale and Hartfell
Earl of Annandale and Hartfell
The title Earl of Annandale and Hartfell was created in the Peerage of Scotland in 1661 for James Johnstone.In 1625, the title of Earl of Annandale had been created for John Murray, but it became extinct when his son James died without heirs....
in the Peerage
Peerage of Scotland
The Peerage of Scotland is the division of the British Peerage for those peers created in the Kingdom of Scotland before 1707. With that year's Act of Union, the Kingdom of Scotland and the Kingdom of England were combined into the Kingdom of Great Britain, and a new Peerage of Great Britain was...
of Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
and that he named his plantation in their honor. He had envisioned a chapel for the plantation, but died in 1848. After his death his widow, Margaret, began making plans for the construction of the church.
Almost no primary records for the construction of the church survive, but it is commonly believed by architectural scholars that English-born architect Frank Wills
Frank Wills (architect)
Frank Wills was a British-born architect who is associated with the design of early Gothic Revival churches in North America.-Biography:Frank Wills was born in Exeter, Devon England in 1822, where he started working under John Hayward, he was a member of the Exeter Architectural Society, and his...
designed the Chapel of the Cross for Margaret Johnstone. What is certain is that a sketch by Wills of an almost identical church, entitled "Sketch of a First-pointed church," appeared in the October 1849 issue of the New York Ecclesiologist. Practically identical churches by Richard Upjohn
Richard Upjohn
Richard Upjohn was an English-born architect who emigrated to the United States and became most famous for his Gothic Revival churches. He was partially responsible for launching the movement to such popularity in the United States. Upjohn also did extensive work in and helped to popularize the...
are also known, such as his St. Thomas Episcopal Church
St. Thomas Episcopal Church (Amenia Union, New York)
St. Thomas' Episcopal Church is located on Leedsville Road in Amenia Union, New York, United States. It is a mid-19th century brick church designed by Richard Upjohn in the Gothic Revival architectural style, built for a congregation organized shortly before.It is considered one of the finest...
(c.1849) in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
and St. Mary's Episcopal Church (c.1847) in Rhode Island
Rhode Island
The state of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, more commonly referred to as Rhode Island , is a state in the New England region of the United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area...
. Johnstone had much of the work on the church performed by plantation slaves, all of the bricks were handmade on-site. The rest of the construction was handled by hired artisans, with Johnstone spending a total of $3000. She deeded the church and 10 acres (4 ha) to the Episcopal Diocese of Mississippi
Episcopal Diocese of Mississippi
The Episcopal Diocese of Mississippi, created in 1850, is the diocese of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America with jurisdiction over the entire state of Mississippi. It is in Province 4 and its cathedral, St...
in June 1851. The building was finally consecrated on September 19, 1852, by William Mercer Green
William Mercer Green
William Mercer Green was the first Episcopal bishop of Mississippi.-Early life:Green was born in Wilmington, North Carolina in 1798. He was the son of William Green, a North Carolina rice planter, and Mary Green, a woman of Quaker extraction...
, the first Episcopal bishop of Mississippi.
Margaret Johnstone died in 1880. In the following years the church alternated between being active and abandoned. The parish was declared extinct in 1903. Margaret Britton Parsons, a granddaughter of John and Margaret Johnstone, persuaded the diocese to reactivate the church as an active house of worship in 1911. It was restored to the diocese in 1914. Since that time, priests have taken charge of operations. The grand three-story, 40-room Italianate
Italianate architecture
The Italianate style of architecture was a distinct 19th-century phase in the history of Classical architecture. In the Italianate style, the models and architectural vocabulary of 16th-century Italian Renaissance architecture, which had served as inspiration for both Palladianism and...
-style Annandale mansion, built by Margaret Johnstone in the mid-1850s, burned down on September 9, 1924. A restoration of the chapel was started in 1956 by the diocese. In 1979, a few years after the addition of the church to the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
, the United States Department of the Interior
United States Department of the Interior
The United States Department of the Interior is the United States federal executive department of the U.S. government responsible for the management and conservation of most federal land and natural resources, and the administration of programs relating to Native Americans, Alaska Natives, Native...
awarded a $50,000 grant to finish the restoration.
Folklore
The church has a ghost storyGhost story
A ghost story may be any piece of fiction, or drama, or an account of an experience, that includes a ghost, or simply takes as a premise the possibility of ghosts or characters' belief in them. Colloquially, the term can refer to any kind of scary story. In a narrower sense, the ghost story has...
associated with it that has been chronicled in two books and one booklet. The Chapel of the Cross and Annandale are featured in the short story, "The Ghosts of Annandale", in Jeffrey introduces 13 more Southern ghosts by Kathryn Tucker Windham
Kathryn Tucker Windham
Kathryn Tucker Windham was an American storyteller, author, photographer, and journalist. She was born in Selma, Alabama and grew up in nearby Thomasville....
. It details two distinct ghost stories. The first is that of Annie Devlin, a former governess
Governess
A governess is a girl or woman employed to teach and train children in a private household. In contrast to a nanny or a babysitter, she concentrates on teaching children, not on meeting their physical needs...
who died at the Annandale mansion in June 1860 and was purported to haunt it until the night it burned in 1924. The second is that of Helen Johnstone and her fiancé, Henry Grey Vick. Helen, the youngest daughter of John and Margaret, and Henry, descended from the founder of Vicksburg
Vicksburg, Mississippi
Vicksburg is a city in Warren County, Mississippi, United States. It is the only city in Warren County. It is located northwest of New Orleans on the Mississippi and Yazoo rivers, and due west of Jackson, the state capital. In 1900, 14,834 people lived in Vicksburg; in 1910, 20,814; in 1920,...
, met at her sister's home, Ingleside, in December 1855. They became engaged to be married in 1857, with the day set for May 21, 1859. Vick was subsequently killed in a duel
Duel
A duel is an arranged engagement in combat between two individuals, with matched weapons in accordance with agreed-upon rules.Duels in this form were chiefly practised in Early Modern Europe, with precedents in the medieval code of chivalry, and continued into the modern period especially among...
in Mobile, Alabama
Mobile, Alabama
Mobile is the third most populous city in the Southern US state of Alabama and is the county seat of Mobile County. It is located on the Mobile River and the central Gulf Coast of the United States. The population within the city limits was 195,111 during the 2010 census. It is the largest...
on May 17, 1859. His body was brought back to Annandale and buried in the churchyard
Churchyard
A churchyard is a patch of land adjoining or surrounding a church which is usually owned by the relevant church or local parish itself. In the Scots language or Northern English language this can also be known as a kirkyard or kirkyaird....
to the rear of the church. It is claimed in the story that the ghost of Helen now weeps at his grave. The same folklore is repeated in Norman and Scott's Historic Haunted America and again in Jan Warner's booklet Shadows of a Chapel.