MAMMOTH CHAPEL
Yellowstone National Park (Wyoming)
nps.gov/yell/historyculture/ftyell
Mammoth Chapel has one of the oldest and
most colorful histories of any religious site in
the national park system. Its origins go back
to the mid-19th century, when the Mammoth
Springs area of Yellowstone was home to the
military outpost known as Fort Yellowstone.
Church services were irregular until the
chapel opened in 1913, more than four
decades after the park was established—
meaning that Mammoth Chapel is the only
church in U.S. history to be constructed with
public funds.
Mammoth is one of the most
architecturally unique and beautiful places in
the entire park system. Built from the same
local materials that were used to construct
other buildings in the park, its elaborate
stonework and vaulted wooden roof make it
look like a cross between a traditional church
and a minipark lodge. The chapel is in the
Fort Yellowstone complex, which is near the
North Entrance on the Wyoming side.
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CHURCHES OF CADES COVE
Great Smoky Mountains National Park
(Tennessee)
cadescove.net
Cades Cove is a town that time forgot. When
Great Smoky Mountains National Park was
created in 1934, isolated Cades Cove found
itself caught just inside the park’s western
border. Instead of being abandoned and torn
down, the town was preserved as a historical
district. This included three beautiful old
churches that date from the 19th and very
early 20th centuries. These institutions, the
Primitive Baptist Church, the Missionary
Baptist Church and the Methodist Church,
are in good condition and remain semiactive.
The Cades Cove Baptist community was
founded in 1827 but split into two churches
in 1841. The Primitive Baptist Church
moved into the current building in 1887,
while the Missionary Baptist Church dates
back to 1915. The Cades Cove Methodist
community also dates back to the 1840s,
and the current church was completed in
1902. The three churches are spread out
throughout Cades Cove, one of the most
visited places in the park, but are all within
walking distance of the visitor center.