WARREN COUNTY, TENN.
More than 100 people braved the cold weather permeating the beautiful hilltops of Tennessee to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Northcutt Cove Chapel on Saturday, Oct. 17.
The little wooden-frame building with its bell tower and spire stands as a monument to Southern pioneers of the Church. "Our Southern LDS heritage is rich here in the hills of Tennessee," said Keith Fults, former bishop of the Altamont Ward, McMinnville Tennessee Stake.
Erected in 1909, the building is one of the oldest standing meetinghouses of the Church in the southeastern United States. The chapel was dedicated Oct. 24, 1909, by Charles A. Callis, president of the Southern States Mission and later a member of the Quorum of the Twelve. The chapel was placed on the National Register of Historic Places on April 18, 1979.
The chapel is no longer a property of the Mormon Church and is cared for by local family members Joyce and Edwin Barrett. "We love this little church and are honored to be able to take care of it," said Mrs. Barrett.
The 100th anniversary celebration included a potluck dinner and a special commemorative program. President Alvin Meredith III, of the McMinnville Tennessee Stake, presided while Bishop Aaron Barrett, of the Altamont Ward in Grundy County, conducted. Bishop Michael Weeter of the McMinnville Ward, McMinnville Tennessee Stake, made a special presentation to the Barrett family and also revealed the commemorative stone placed outside the chapel to honor the Southern pioneers.
"Years ago I took my father to Utah. As I turned the corner in the Church History Museum in Salt Lake City, there was a huge mural of the Northcutt Cove Chapel," related Brother Fults in his address at the service. "I realized then that I had traveled many miles just to find out how important our Southern pioneers were to the Church … when I had a lot of Church history right at my back door."
The building retains much of its historicity. The sturdy, hand-made pulpit and benches as well as the potbelly stove are original to the structure. Exact replicas of the original porcelain coal oil lamps, chandeliers and front doors were also in place for the centennial service.
The chapel is a landmark for members and non-members of the Church in Warren and Grundy counties. It is also the site of a three-day debate between President Callis and a Campbellite preacher. Latter-day Saints considered the unbiased newspaper reports of the debate to be a fair representation of the Church as a positive, growing Christian religion.
At the time of the building's completion, Northcutt Cove was a headquarters for the Mormon Church's East Tennessee Conference. It became a center for disseminating LDS teaching in the state.
