ST GEORGES BRICK CHAPEL 300 YEARS OLD

SAINT GEORGES CHAPEL

INDIAN RIVER, SUSSEX COUNTY, DELAWARE

The January 11, 2019 Cape Gazette reports the brick chapel is 300

years old and that beginning Sunday, January 13, 2019, it will kick off

a celebration and each month hold activities of such throughout the year

of 2019.

If I have read the Gazettes article correctly the service on the 13^th will be

Heritage Sunday, with reading of the Holy Communion Service from the

1662 Book of Common Prayer using a leather bound copy of the book

printed in 1718 which the chapel has in it's possession.

Please notice I have located the chapel at Indian River rather than Harbeson as the Gazette does since that is where it sits, Harbeson's a bit

farther to the northwest. I will also call it 'The Brick Chapel' time to time.

Services at St. Georges Church, a chapel of ease, date to 1719 for residents of Indian River Hundred to have a convenient place of worship with out almost a days travel to Lewestown's St. Peters Church.

Located on a branch of the Herring Creek it allowed many Indian River

families to come by boat. Services were afternoon since the minister had

morning service at St. Peter's in Lewestown.

The original 1719 St. Georges Chapel was destroyed by fire in 1792 and

replaced in 1794 on the same land site. The 'new' chapel is brick, the brick

said to be fired on location of construction. The interior is of early Federal

Period with an hourglass pulpit, today, in it's original position, sitting as

high as the gallery. The church windows are bubbled hand blown glass.

St. Georges has it's own grave yard , bound by a small brick wall. The

larger cemetery, All Saints, is connected outside of this wall. All Saint's

is the Rehoboth Episcopal Parish and since 1950 the owner of St. Georges.

Abstract January 11, 2019 by Harrison H., source Cape Gazette January

17^th, 2019, Faith & Spirituality section.