|
 |
Northern Methodist Episcopal Church
Bellevue Road and Route 329
Royal Oak, Maryland
Talbot County |
 |
|
|
| The Northern Methodist Episcopal Church sits
on the southwest corner of Bellevue Road and Route 329 in the
town of Royal Oak
in Talbot County. The church is surrounded by a new deli store
to its north at the intersection of Bellevue and Rt. 329, and
to the west of the building is the church parsonage, which faces
Bellevue Road. The property that the church sits on at one time
belonged to General Benson in the late 1700s and it is believed
that the church was constructed by local African-Americans. The
church represents a simple construction style. |
Although the history of the building is incomplete,
the very name of the church reflects the sectional crisis that
penetrated
this area before the Civil War. As the nation entered the bloody
war, the congregation divided into the “Northern” or “Abolition
Methodist Church,” and “The Southern Methodist
Episcopal Church..” (Hagood 1970, 116) The congregation
of this particular church viewed slavery as a social evil,
a commonly
held belief
(as early as
1796) of the greater Methodist Episcopal Church. As a result,
the Methodist Episcopal Church “had been practically
excluded from the South, and only ventured to plant outposts
along the
border States…” (Hagood 1970, 118) Southern Methodist
Episcopal Church, also located on Bellevue Road, is a local
example of
one of
those far and in-between “outposts” in Maryland.
No records allude to the names of members of the Northern
congregation, but it is very possible that both whites and
blacks worshipped together in the same church. According to
Rev. L.M. Hagood, who studied the role blacks played in the
Methodist Episcopal Church in 1890, blacks were “organized
them into [c]hurches, took their own men and made them pastors,…received
them [blacks] into conferences with their white brethren, and
gave them all the rights and privileges of members and ministers
of the Methodist Episcopal Church.” (Hagood 1970, 13)
These assurances for black members (plus separate black conferences)
were voted
upon in the Delaware Conference on July 28, 1864. (Hagood1970,
142)
The Methodist Episcopal Church was quite strong in Maryland,
particularly in Baltimore, which “may be considered one
of the principal cradles of Methodism, and has all along been
in the van of Methodist movements; that some of the most influential,
eloquent, and popular men in the Methodist Episcopal Church ‘were
born her[e]’.” (Hagood 1970, 120) Baltimore was
home of the Centenary Biblical Institute (later renamed Morgan
State
University),
which produced many later leaders of the church in the nineteenth
century. The Freedmen’s Aid Society funded the creation
of this institute in 1867. |
 |
| The gable-roofed church measures 50 feet deep
by 34 feet wide and is composed of a central block, with a steeple
vestibule
located on the northeast elevation, and a rear vestibule on the
southwest end. Both massive in size, with the bell tower,
and ornate in detail, particularly with elaborate stained glass
windows, the church was quite an extraordinary creation for the
times. |
 |
The steeple vestibule measures 4 feet deep by 10 feet wide
and the southwest elevation vestibule measures 6 feet deep
by 11 feet wide. The southwest vestibule has two openings,
a door on the northwest side and a window on the south side. |
 |
|
 |
The exterior of the building is sheathed in
horizontal board siding. The northeast elevation of the steeple
vestibule contains double leaf doors. The northwest and southeast
elevations of this vestibule each contain one stained glass
window. |
|
| The northeast elevation of the center block contains one
stained glass window on each side of the steeple vestibule. |
 |
|
 |
The northwest and southeast elevations of the central blocks
each contain three stained glass windows |
|
 |
| The interior of the church has been greatly altered and
is now used for storage, obscuring most traces of the original
floor plan. There are a few details still visible, such as
the wall coverings. Wainscoting stretches from the floor
to a height of approximately four feet, where it meets with
a pressed tin wall treatment. The ceiling covering is no
longer in place and in many spots the ceiling is completely
gone. The eastern portion of the central block is set apart
from the main sanctuary by a set of arches, which were added
to the sanctuary, along with the bell tower, vestibule, and
stained glass windows, during turn of the century renovations.
These archways create two alcove areas, measuring 4 feet
deep by 11 feet wide, on either side of the steeple vestibule |
 |
|
| Northern Methodist Episcopal Church most closely
resembles St. Stephens Church, in terms of style and layout,
but it still
has its own unique differences, such as a rear vestibule, pressed
tin wall treatments, and alcove areas. While both St. Stephens
and Northern Methodist Episcopal have pointed arch windows, the
latter has very elaborate stained glass, while the former has
colored
glass.
Currently,
Northern Methodist Episcopal only has one chimney stack, while
both St. Johns and St. Stephens have two for heating purposes.
Because
the interior
of Northern Methodist Episcopal is mostly gone, it is hard to
make a fair comparison between it and the other two church buildings. |
| Currently the Northern Methodist Episcopal Church serves as
a storage facility for its owners. The building is slowly deteriorating,
but the owners plan to begin the preservation process. |
| There is no contact information available. |
| Hagood, Rev. L. M. The Colored Man in the Methodist Episcopal
Church, Westport, Connecticut: Negro Universities Press,
1970. |
|
|
