Cobb Landmarks and Historical Society

Properties | Preservation Priorities

 

 

Nesbitt/Union Chapel Property
Powder Springs Road, unincorporated Cobb

 

 

The circa 1886 Nesbitt/Union Chapel, built four miles south of Marietta on Powder Springs Road, for many years hosted worship services of different denominations on a rotating basis. The community it served consisted of rural farmland, where commuting to Marietta for church meant a difficult trip. Instead, neighboring families of differing faiths came together and built this gathering place for worship, education, and community events. The church was known as Union Chapel to signify the union of church denominations for worship. The Nesbitt family donated the land on which the chapel was built, with stewardship of the property assigned to a diverse board of trustees. The family specified in the Trust established when the donation was made that the land was to be used by various denominations for worship, for education, and for other community purposes. In recent years, a legal dispute over the ownership of the property has arisen after a local family attempted to file suit for title to the property after paying the property taxes for several years. The Friends of Nesbitt/Chapel officially formed in 2002 to continue stewardship of the property and work to resolve the legal dispute. It is their position that the original Trust be upheld as the legal basis for the proper ownership of this property. It was created to serve the community and the Friends group believes that it can still exist in that capacity. The pictures shown here show the ruins that the Friends of Nesbitt/Chapel had been working to preserve. Unfortunately, since these pictures were taken in 2003, the majority of the church ruins shown here were bulldozed without authorization. The Friends of Nesbitt/Chapel continue to be dedicated to resolving this issue and sharing the history of this property.

 

 

CLHS Actions:

 

CLHS continues to work with Cobb County and the Friends of Nesbitt/Chapel group to facilitate the legal activity required to resolve the situation.

 

 

Preservation Priorities

Acworth’s Rosenwald School Acworth’s Bethel AME Church Brushy Mountain Trenches Cheney-Newcomer House Hooper-Turner House

Nesbitt/Union Chapel Power-Jackson Cabin Tapp House Wallis House

"Graduates” of our List

• Bostwick-Fraser House
• Cowen Farmstead

 

 

• Root House
• Power Cabin
• Preservation Priorities