Tiny Churches

Tiny Churches: Get Out Your Magnifying Glasses

Yuma, Arizona: Built by a farmer on the edge of his fields, in honor of his wife. It measures roughly 7 ft. X 12 ft. Inside. A sign on the dirt road that leads to the church reads: "Stop, Rest, Worship."
South Newport, Georgia: The still active Memory Park Christ Chapel is called the "Smallest Church in America." Built in 1950, it measures 10 ft. X 15 ft., has space for 13 people, a shrimpy pulpit, pews and a stained glass window with just enough space for Jesus. Grocer Agnes Harper built the church, and wrote the deed in the name of Jesus Christ. It is open 24/7 to all denominations.
Nashville, Illinois: A Lincoln Log version of a church, the Traveler's Chapel stands next to a convenience store parking lot. The inside walls are covered with Bible verses scrawled on bits of plywood. No pews -- just a padded piece of wood for kneeling in front of a floor-to-ceiling cross.

Festina, Iowa: Dedicated in 1886, St. Anthony of Padua Chapel claims in old postcards and signage to be the "Smallest Church in the World." Though the claim may have had fleeting validity, later breakthroughs in ministry miniaturization leave this Roman Catholic church among the giants. With its 12 ft. X 16 ft. Interior, normal sized doorway and pews, 40 ft. Steeple, and room for eight people, it is nonetheless a charming spot to seek solace. Before you screech off in search of a smaller church...

Crestview Hills, Kentucky: There's a tiny chapel called Monte Casino at Thomas More College. The chapel measures six by nine feet -- the ceiling inside is eight feet high. It was built in 1878 at a nearby monastery by a couple of Benedictine monks, and named in 1922 by Ripley's Believe It of Not as "Smallest Church in the World." The monks subsequently left the area, the chapel was abandoned and vandalized, then rescued and moved in 1965 to the college campus. After a restoration, the Monte Casino Chapel was dedicated in 1971.

Bayou Goula - Plaquemine, Louisiana: Signs for Madonna Chapel along River Road proclaim it as "Smallest Church in the World." At 8 ft. X 8 ft., with five chairs, it was once illustrated in Ripley's Believe It of Not. It was built in 1903 by Anthony Gullo, a poor sugar farmer, after he successfully prayed to the Virgin Mary for the recovery of his eldest son. Mass is held once a year on August 15 to celebrate the Assumption of the Blessed Mother.

Atwood, Michigan: The Wayside Chapel, owned by the Christian Reformed Church in Atwood, was built in 1968. It measures 12 ft x 8 ft and is occasionally used for weddings, etc. But is mainly intended as a rest spot for travelers. It is lit and open to the public 24/7.

Luverne, Minnesota: The Blue Mound Wayside Chapel seats six to eight people, plus a minister. A small herd of buffalo reportedly loiters in its postage stamp-sized shadow.

Winslow, New Jersey: On the front lawn of a devout Catholic lawn landscaper. Not an official church. Dummies dressed for an infant-Jesus- in-the-manger scene populate it; its interior is sealed by a floor-to-ceiling sheet of Plexiglas. It seats eight.

Oneida, New York: We think it just might be the One. Cross Island Chapel, "The World's Smallest Church," sits on a wooden platform in the center of a pond. A billboard near the road details everything you need to know: "Built in 1989. Floor area 51 inches by 81 inches (28.68 square feet). Seats two people. Non-denominational. Dedicated as a witness to God." Years ago we read a newspaper account of a wedding held at Cross Island Chapel, with only room to accommodate the minister, bride and groom. The rest of the wedding partyanchored nearby in small boats. Guests on shore imagined how the vows went.

It's open to the public on request, and accessible only by boat.

Conway, South Carolina: The Traveler's Chapel, 12 x 24 feet, built in 1972. Seats 12 people. Write your requests in a book.
Warrenton, Texas: St. Martin's Church is 12 ft. X 16 ft., and has been proclaimed the "World's Smallest Active Catholic Church." Not by us, though. Built in 1915 with leftover lumber from a school construction, it holds 12 wooden pews and seats about 20 people. A yearly service is held on November 11th - All Soul's Day.
Elbe, Washington: The Evangelische Lutherische Kirche, aka "The Little White Church," measures 18 ft. X 24 ft. And seats a whopping 46. It was built by German settlers in 1906, and enjoyed a classification by Ripley's Believe It or Not as the "Smallest Church in America" (titles such as this, handed out decades ago, litter the tiny church landscape and cause no small confusion to pilgrims). Because E.L.K. Lies on the highway travelers use to reach Paradise in Mt. Rainier National Park, the church is promoted as "on the road to Paradise."

The church is not open most days, but tourists can climb a convenient observation platform and peer through a window.
Sultan, Washington: The Wayside Chapel. "Pause... Rest... And Worship" encourages the sign in front of the always-open Wayside Chapel. The sign also warns that there are "No Facilities" (For something other than a spiritual bladder break, you need to head a few miles further west to the local reptile ranch). Wayside Chapel is approximately 7 ft. X 9 ft. There's just room inside for four small, two-person pews, a pulpit, and two vases of artificial flowers. A painted landscape of distant blue mountains hangs next to the wooden cross. Travelers leave handwritten prayers on a yellow legal pad on the pulpit.

Horse Shoe Run, West Virginia: "Our Lady Of The Pines" is promoted on old postcards and signs as the "Smallest Church in 48 States." Seating for 12, 24 ft. X 12 ft.