Railroad chapel car
The front of the car is designed to act as a "church on wheels" with an altar, pew, and in some cases, stained glass windows.
William David Walker was appointed Episcopal Bishop of North Dakota in 1883 and was faced with overseeing an enormous territory with few settlers and the fact that Western towns often were born or died as a result of the fortunes of those living in them.
[1][2] The discovery of gold or silver could mean that a town would spring up almost overnight as others sought to become part of the newly found riches; merchants established businesses to cater to those connected with the mining.
Conversely, the news that the ore vein was spent meant people would move on to the next opportunity, merchants needed to close their doors due to lack of business, and the town was in danger of becoming deserted.
The Episcopal Church was inspired by Walker's concept and held many fund-raising events for the chapel car throughout their Eastern dioceses.
[1][5][6] The car, measuring 60 feet in length, had two sections, one for worship services, complete with an organ, and the other for living quarters and an office for Walker.
He did not have the same financial opportunities, so his choice was to purchase two retired rail coaches and have them converted into chapel cars, which served this diocese from 1891 to 1898.
The Chapel Car of Northern Michigan provided a temporary home for services to all faiths whose churches had been destroyed.
[9] Hoyt, whose brother, Wayland, was the pastor of the First Baptist Church of Minneapolis, was a vice-president and board member of many American railroads.
Hoyt also organized other wealthy businessmen into what was known as the "Baptist Chapel Car Syndicate"; one of these members was oil magnate John D.
The car was dedicated May 23, 1891, at Cincinnati's Grand Central Depot and it made its way to St. Paul, Minnesota, where local church members provided linens, rugs, silver and dishes.
The Baptist young peoples' societies raised money to have the car's windows screened, which sent it back to the shop for a time while they were fitted.
[2][6] Boston Smith, who was initially aboard Evangel, had been provided with a letter from William Mellen, the general manager of the Northern Pacific Railway, which granted him and the chapel car free passage throughout the railroad's system.
However, just as Smith was to set out on his first trip, railroad officials inquired whether the chapel car had been fitted with special wheels designed to prevent accidents.
As a memorial to him, a stained glass window was created and mounted in the door leading to the living quarters section of the car.
In 1942, a decision was reached to move the aging chapel car to a Baptist camp at Swan Lake, South Dakota, where it sat for thirteen years before being sold for scrap.
Hills placed one condition on his gift: that matching funds to build a fourth chapel car be raised before the end of the year.
It was discovered on private property being used for storage in 1997; ten years later, it was donated to the Northwest Railway Museum, where it was under restoration by master craftsman Kevin Palo until December 2012.
In 1911, it was reconditioned at the Barney & Smith factory at Dayton, Ohio, and in 1915, embarked on a new mission to West Virginia, serving there until its last missionary, William Newton, died in 1931.
Donated by the Conaway family in memory of their daughter, Grace, it was also built by the Barney & Smith factory in 1915, at a cost of over five times the price paid for the first chapel car, Evangel.
The car was dedicated in Los Angeles in 1915 and was on display at the Panama–Pacific International Exposition in San Francisco before beginning work in California.
Grace also served in Nevada, Utah, Wyoming and Colorado before being placed on permanent display at the American Baptist Assembly at Green Lake, Wisconsin, in 1946.
Kelley visited the 1904 Louisiana Purchase Exposition and toured the Baptist chapel car, Messenger of Peace.
Since the mission of the Extension Society was to bring the Catholic faith to those in remote areas, he believed the use of chapel cars would be an effective way to accomplish this.
[6][19][2][23] In April of 1953, after being stripped of all metal by young members of the Oxford Parish, about 1,000 pounds of copper, removed from the top of the car, had been sold for $169.
