History of All Saints - Sharon Chapel

All Saints-Sharon Chapel has a long, significant, and proud history. One hundred thirty-five years ago, a small frame chapel was erected on a parcel of land given by John Froebel, master of Wilton Hall and friend of the Washingtons of Mount Vernon. Miss Froebel established a Saturday school in this building to teach Christian morals and ethics to the young ladies of rural "Happy Valley," as this area was known many years ago. On Sundays, the Dean of the Virginia Theological Seminary graciously provided Seminary students to lead the worship services, which were attended by Christians of all denominations. Sharon Chapel thus has the distinction of being the first mission of the venerable Seminary.

For one hundred ten years, students from the Seminary cared for the needs of this rural mission. Many ministers-to-be received their early training in preaching and other ministries at Sharon Chapel. One such seminarian was Phillips Brooks, who preached his first sermon at Sharon Chapel in 1858. Brooks went on to become a preeminent preacher of the 19th century and has been described as one of the greatest preachers and most impressive personalities of the Episcopal Church. To most of us today, he is best remembered for the Christmas carol "0 Little Town of Bethlehem."

We have maintained our historical association with the Virginia Theological Seminary, and we expect to continue to provide field work experience for seminarians each year. In addition, a number of people from our parish participate regularly in Homiletics at the Seminary.

During the Civil War, Sharon Chapel lost two of its youngest members. Samuel and Thomas Pulman, ages 9 and 13, were killed August 6, when a cannonball with which they were playing exploded. These boys were the first burials in the church cemetery.

That same year the chapel was accidentally burned to the ground by soldiers stationed at Fort Lyon, which was erected on the high ground to the east of Happy Valley to defend the capital city of Washington.

Another chapel was soon built. This building, a picture of which hangs in the office wing, was constructed from scrap lumber salvaged from the barracks of Fort Lyon. It stood until 1903 when it was replaced a third frame chapel. Sharon Chapel was made an aided mission of Diocese of Virginia and was assigned its first full-time minister in 1959. The congregation consisted of just twenty-five communicants. The potential for more existed as Happy Valley and its environs evolved from rural area of small truck farms to suburban homes occupied largely government workers.

As growth continued, other significant events occurred. In 1961, Sharon Chapel was admitted to the Diocese of Virginia as a Mission church. Soon the small chapel was inadequate for the needs of its membership, and in 1963 the church in which we now worship was constructed.

In 1968, the congregation raised $2,000 to pave the parking lot. One year later, the Diocesan Missionary Society came to our aid with a loan to open a much-needed additional access road from Franconia Road. Our major improvement was the construction in 1971 of Gunnell Hall, a multipurpose brick building to meet our educational and social needs. In April, 1974, the Annual Council accepted our petition for parish status. Hereafter our church was known as All Saints Sharon Chapel.

A great strength of Sharon Chapel is its mixture of families some of who have spent generations on this land and some of who have just arrived. We cherish this diversity of people and consider it a major factor in the unity of our lives and the continuing corporate love and fellowship we share on this hilltop.

Parish Profile, All Saints-Sharon Chapel, Alexandria, Virginia, 1974.