Reedy Chapel, located at 20th Street and Broadway in Galveston, is a historic church that played a role in the announcement of the Emancipation Proclamation in Texas on June 19, 1865, a date now celebrated as Juneteenth. Established in 1848 and known as the "Mother Church of Texas," it became the first African Methodist Episcopal Church in the state and hosted the first two annual conferences of the AME Church. Despite being rebuilt after the Great Fire of 1885 and damaged by the 1900 storm, Reedy Chapel remains an active community space and houses one of the oldest pipe organs in Texas.
Reedy Chapel, located at 20th Street and Broadway in Galveston, is a historic church that played a role in the announcement of the Emancipation Proclamation in Texas on June 19, 1865, a date now celebrated as Juneteenth. Established in 1848 and known as the "Mother Church of Texas," it became the first African Methodist Episcopal Church in the state and hosted the first two annual conferences of the AME Church. Despite being rebuilt after the Great Fire of 1885 and damaged by the 1900 storm, Reedy Chapel remains an active community space and houses one of the oldest pipe organs in Texas.
On June 19, 1865, enslaved people in Galveston gathered around a church on 20th and Broadway. A notice had been posted on the church. The notice read the people of Texas are informed that, in accordance with the proclamation from the Executive of the United States, all slaves are free. This involves an absolute equality of personal rights and rights of property between former masters and slaves. General Gordon Granger and 2,000 federal troops, many of whom were black, marched into Galveston and delivered the news to Texas, the last Confederate slave-holding state. June 19th has since become known and celebrated in Galveston and across the United States as Freedom Day in Galveston and across the United States as Freedom Day, emancipation Day or, most commonly, juneteenth. The 250,000 enslaved people in Texas were now free by executive decree. That church at 20th and Broadway still stands, known as Reedy Chapel, and it is one of the oldest churches in Galveston. It has been an important gathering place for the island's black community since it was established on this spot in 1848.
Speaker 1:
The land at 20th Street and Broadway was purchased by the trustees of the Methodist Episcopal Church and given to the enslaved people to provide a space for them to worship separate from the white churchgoers. The first permanent meeting house was built in 1863, and that is where many of the enslaved people of Galveston would first see and hear the Emancipation Order. After emancipation, ownership of the property was transferred to the recently freed church members. Reedy Chapel also served as a school educating the freed men and women of Galveston. The congregation became Texas' very first African Methodist Episcopal Church two years after emancipation in 1867, earning it the nickname the Mother Church of Texas. Reedy Chapel also hosted the first two annual conferences of the AME Church in 1867 and 1868. These conferences were the first meeting of Methodist men of color to be conducted by and for African Americans. Reedy Chapel is named after the congregation's second pastor, reverend Houston Reedy, who began his service to the congregation in 1867. Though he was only a pastor for a year, he oversaw both AME conferences, and the chapel was later renamed in honor of his service.
Speaker 1:
The original church building was destroyed by the Great Fire of 1885, which consumed hundreds of homes and nearly 40 city blocks of vulnerable buildings and structures. A new church was constructed on the same site the next year. The masonry of the 1886 Reedy Chapel was laid by a renowned church member, norris Wright Cuny. Reedy Chapel was severely damaged during the Great Storm of 1900, but much of the building survived and for the music lovers.
Speaker 1:
The chapel is also home to one of the oldest pipe organs in the state, which has been housed here since the 1930s, initially built in 1872 for nearby Trinity Episcopal Church. The organ is 18 feet tall and built of ash with carved walnut trim. It is made up of 800 pipes and 15 independent stops, and the original mechanical action and wind system have been lovingly preserved to maintain the organ's original beauty and sound. The organ is called an Opus 647, and there is only one other organ of this type in the United States, located in Washington DC at the Smithsonian Museum. Reedy Chapel remains an important and active community space today. Those visiting Galveston Island during Juneteenth can take part in local festivities and the annual Emancipation March. From the old Galveston Island during Juneteenth can take part in local festivities and the annual Emancipation March from the Old Galveston Customs and Courthouse to Reedy Chapel honoring the announcement of General Order no 3, which officially ended slavery in Texas. Reedy Chapel.
