Ronnie and Donnie Lappe
Special to the Bulletin
The Lee Chapel African Methodist Episcopal Church observed its one hundredth anniversary in June 1988. It is located at 913 Beaver Street. The name of the Lee Chapel African Methodist Episcopal Church came from both its denomination and one of the denomination’s early bishops.
The African Methodist Episcopal Church started in a meeting, in November 1787, of the African American people belonging to the Methodist Society in Philadelphia. In 1793, with the support of others in the group, Richard Allen constructed, at his own expense and on his own property, a house of worship which became known as the African Methodist Meeting House. This was the Bethel Church at 6th and Lombard Streets in Philadelphia. It was the first Methodist chapel built for the exclusive use of African Americans.