Harshaw Chapel is close to completion of its renovation project. Wil Posey.

Roof Raising

A Conversation with The Rev. Wil Posey on Harshaw Chapel Renovations

By Robyn Barberry

“A city on the hill cannot be hidden.”
(Matthew 5:14-16)

Harshaw Chapel overlooks the small Appalachian town of Murphy, North Carolina. It’s a humble, vernacular Greek Revival brick church named after Joshua Harshaw, who dedicated his land for the construction of a Methodist church in 1844. The building was completed in 1869, but a growing congregation led to the construction of a grand, neoclassical church with an auditorium-plan sanctuary conveniently located downtown, while Harshaw Chapel was left behind, enduring the effects of time, weather, and disuse on the Murphy hillside. A failing roof and precarious steeple caused the building to be condemned. However, in 2018, the Harshaw Chapel Committee and The Rev. Wil Posey embraced its renewal. With the help of Partners for Sacred Places’ Central Appalachia Program, the community of Murphy eagerly awaits the rebirth of Harshaw Chapel. 

Writer Robyn Barberry recently spoke with Rev. Posey about his experience leading the restoration of Harshaw Chapel. This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Robyn Barberry: What were the first steps you took in this project? 

Wil Posey: I had no experience in historic preservation. I had never overseen a capital project. When I heard the price tag for the roof and steeple, I thought, how are we going to do this? We were blessed by the generosity of our congregation and received a grant for an architectural assessment. Right before COVID, we removed the steeple as a stopgap to keep it from collapsing. Around that time, we connected with Partners for Sacred Places. 

RB: How did you find Partners? 

WP:  Partners left a message on the church answering machine, and Blake Hughes, a trustee of the church, suggested I give them a call. Some would call it luck, or serendipity, or the Holy Spirit. I simply call it a gift. They found us. 

RB: How has Partners helped you? 

WP: We knew there would be a financial grant attached to our participation in the Central Appalachia Project. That included support for planning and for construction. The planning grant allowed us to bring in an engineer to reassess the roof structure. The capital grant was more generous than we expected and enormously helpful. Beyond money, Partners gave us training on how to articulate our story and share a vision for the chapel—why it matters and why people should invest in it. 

RB: Do you think improvements to the roof and steeple will draw more attention to Harshaw Chapel? 

WP: Absolutely. The new standing-seam metal roof and cupola catch the eye. People will notice it again, and that will be special for the chapel and for the town. 

RB: What are some obstacles you have faced? 

WP: When our contractor began removing the roof, he discovered that one of the top brick courses had been replaced with two-by-fours that had since rotted. He had to custom-mill replacements to secure the structure. We also learned the old roof had never been fastened to the walls: it was just sitting there! Now over 100 bolts are anchoring the new one. Inside, we’re balancing modern needs like lighting with the historic character of an 1869 chapel. And even getting equipment to the site is tricky: you must work carefully around the cemetery. 

RB: How far are you from being done? 

WP: For this phase, I’d say about five weeks. By then the roof will be complete, and we can ring the bell again. After that, we still need to repaint doors and shutters, finish the ceiling, and move furniture back in. But the largest part of the project will be complete. 

RB: Who is one person who played a major part in this project? 

WP: Wolfgang Raffler, our contractor. Nobody wanted to touch a building this old. But he said, “I’m from Germany, where every building is 500 years old.” We told him, “You’re hired.” His skill and eagerness have been a blessing. 

RB: What is the future of Harshaw Chapel? 

WP: It will be a site for ecumenical worship services, a setting for historical and cultural presentations, and a place for honest and redemptive conversations around uncomfortable topics, such as how the bricks were most likely made by the hands of enslaved folks. It says to our congregation, our town, and our community that this is where we’ve come from and this is who we want to become. Preserving it is a way of leaning into that future.

The Rev. Wil Posey. Marji Hill.