Alexander Chapel Baptist Church and Cemetery

Front of Sign for Alexander Chapel Baptist Church

Back of sign with history and names of individuals buried there

The Alexander Chapel Baptist Church and Cemetery, located at #39 Short Sluder Branch Road (off of Alexander Rd in Leicester, NC) is a historic site with cultural and personal connections for many in the region. Family members of those who are buried here may remember the homecoming gatherings and happy events once held on the property — or think of visiting the church site and cemetery as “going home.” Family names of those buried in the cemetery include: Barnard, Penland, Gudger, Lowery, Roberts, Horne, McElrath, McAfee, Whitson, Love, Stevens, Ferguson, Butler, and more.

Since 2015, Annette Penland Coleman has been coordinating upkeep and inspiring folks to get involved with preservation of the church and cemetery. “The cemetery preservation is coming along,” she says. “We’ve had more donations coming in over the past year to pay for cutting the grass and maintaining the drive. We partnered with Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy, and their help has been such a blessing.”

Thanks to generous descendants of family and community, in 2021 a new sign for the historic church was installed on the site.

However, this important “home” needs more hands and support to give it the care it requires. Can you help?

For questions or more info, contact Annette Coleman at (828) 230-0629 or annette-coleman@att.net.

Children at Alexander School_Edited Photo_Printsize

Historic Site of African-American Community

The church and cemetary site were adjacent to a school for African-American children in the rural Leicester and Alexander area. The school structure (pictured above) no longer exists — making it all the more imperative that the remaining structure and cemetary property be properly preserved. Photo shared by Charles Barnard: Students outside Leicester School, with Alexander Chapel Baptist Church in the background.

Black community members buried in the cemetary made significant contributions to the prosperity of the region, and their stories are important to the legacy of land and people in the Southern Appalachians.

AmeriCorpsGroupPicwithAnnetteColeman_RichardButler_DeborahSloan

Volunteer Cemetery Clean-Up

In observance of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day in January 2020, a group of AmeriCorps Project Conserve members and SAHC staff volunteers joined Annette Penland Coleman, Deborah Sloan, and Richard Butler on site. They focused on cleaning up leaves and debris around the cemetery site, mulching part of a large pile of brush and downed trees that had been previously cleared on the site, trimming low branches to make visiting grave sites easier, and installing a new lock on the church doors.

Buncombe County Tipping Point Grant

Families connected to the site and the African-American community in the Leicester/Alexander area are partnering with Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy (SAHC), Asheville Writers in the Schools and Community, and the North Carolina Room of Pack Memorial Library to gather and share stories and history. Buncombe County awarded a $5,000 Tipping Point Grant towards the story gathering project; as a nonprofit partner, SAHC is serving as fiscal agent in administering the grant. The story gathering project provides opportunity to raise awareness about and collect stories of the church, cemetery, former school, and family history. Grant funds supported Asheville Writers in the Schools and Community (Word on the Street) in connecting student crews with community members and conducting video/audio interviews to collect stories/images and document memories from the community. Collected information will be shared at a reunion event (details TBA).

Make Donations To: Alexander Chapel Baptist Church Cemetery Fund c/o Annette Coleman, PO Box 6082, Asheville, NC 28816.

A Brief History of Alexander Chapel Baptist Church by DoRothea Goodman Williams
A brief history of the site 1889 to 1984, scanned as a copy of a pamphlet provided by descendants of people buried in the cemetery. History written by DoRothea Goodman Williams (Dee Williams).
2020 Newletter Update
Updates on preservation efforts and donations for preserving the site.
2019 Newsletter Update
Updates on preservation efforts.

Stories of the Cemetery, Church and Community

April 15, 2019/by sahcadmin

Alexander Chapel Baptist Church Visit

Around the corner from SAHC's Community Farm and other conserved…

Vision:

To maintain the cemetery and restore the grounds, and to educate the community on contributions that people buried in the cemetery and their families have had in the rural communities of Buncombe County.

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Our Mission

The mission of the Southern Appalachian Highlands Conservancy is to conserve the unique plant and animal habitat, clean water, farmland, scenic beauty, and places for all people to enjoy outdoor recreation in the mountains of North Carolina and Tennessee, enduring for future generations. We achieve this through long-term conservation relationships with private landowners and public agencies and owning and managing land. We are committed to creating and supporting equitable, healthy and thriving communities for everyone in our region.