Church History
Eastern Shore Chapel has been in continual service for over three centuries!
Our congregations have worshipped in four buildings on three sites during the past three centuries. While the exact construction date of the first Eastern Shore Chapel is not known, court records establish its existence as early as 1689.
The original building was about one mile east of the present site, and was named “Eastern Shore Chapel” for its setting on the East bank of the Lynnhaven River.
About 1724, the church relocated to the south, on land that is now part of Oceana Naval Air Station. The first church on this site was used for worship until 1755, when the second, more elaborate Eastern Shore Chapel was ready for services. This building, shown in several original etchings and photographs, survived for 200 years.
When this church was condemned and disassembled in 1952, the congregation built a new Eastern Shore Chapel on Laskin Road, conforming as much as possible to the blueprints of the old structure. The Baptismal Font, Pews, stained glass windows, doorframes, and the stairway to the choir loft were carried from the original church, along with some of the eighteenth century brick walkways. The cemetery was also moved to its present site.
Over the next five decades, Eastern Shore Chapel grew into a large, lively congregation. Additions to the buildings were made on a regular basis, beginning with the transepts added to the church in 1962 and continuing with the expansion of the education facilities in 1989. Additional work in more recent years has renewed the historic pews, rebuilt the organ, brightened the interior, added a modern HVAC system and provided an expanded welcome area at the front of the church.