The Chapel of the Centurion is the oldest continually used wooden military structure for religious services in the United States. It is located inside Fort Monroe

Fort Monroe

Fort Monroe was a military installation in Hampton, Virginia—at Old Point Comfort, the southern tip of the Virginia Peninsula...

, a military installation located in Hampton, Virginia

Hampton, Virginia

Hampton is an independent city that is not part of any county in Southeast Virginia. Its population is 137,436. As one of the seven major cities that compose the Hampton Roads metropolitan area, it is on the southeastern end of the Virginia Peninsula. Located on the Hampton Roads Beltway, it hosts...

. The Chapel is named for Cornelius the Centurion, who is believed to be the first Gentile

Gentile

The term Gentile refers to non-Israelite peoples or nations in English translations of the Bible....

 to convert to Christianity.

History

Construction of the chapel began in 1856 and it was consecrated on May 3, 1858. It was designed by noted architect, 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...

, in the Carpenter Gothic

Carpenter Gothic

Carpenter Gothic, also sometimes called Carpenter's Gothic, and Rural Gothic, is a North American architectural style-designation for an application of Gothic Revival architectural detailing and picturesque massing applied to wooden structures built by house-carpenters...

style.

Current

Fort Monroe is still an active Army post, but has been selected to be closed by September 2011. The Chapel currently has an active congregation and it is likely that activities will continue relatively unchanged after the Fort's closing.

External links

• Chapel of the Centurion website