The oldest Catholic Church building in Greenbrier County, the Chapel of Mary Immaculate near Williamsburg will be the site of the first Saturday Mass, Rosary, and covered dish luncheon Aug. 1 beginning at 10:30 a.m..
Built in 1901, the Chapel is the third Catholic church built by the German and Irish Catholics of northern Greenbrier County. The first two were destroyed by accidental fire in the 1880’s and 90’s.
While it never was a parish of its own, the priest from Ronceverte or Rainelle would celebrate Mass on Sunday afternoons. In between times, the Catholics of the area would meet at Corkrean’s Store in Williamsburg at midnight on Saturday night and walk the 18 miles into early Mass at Immaculate Conception Church in Lewisburg.
The public is invited to the service and covered dish luncheon.
To reach the Church, from Lewisburg drive north of US 219 to the community of Frankford and take the Williamsburg Road west 4½ miles to the Catholic Church Road. From the west, take I-64 to the Alta exit, then WV 12 a very short distance north to US 60 East and immediately onto the Shoestring Trail road north to Williamsburg, then go south on the Frankford/Williamsburg Road to the Catholic Church Road – approximately 4 miles south of the town of Williamsburg.
For further information, telephone the Catholic Churches of Greenbrier County304-536-1813 or the Knight of Columbus 304-645-1373.
