Last November, my mom and I found ourselves hurtling through the countryside chasing old Long Line towers in Northern Indiana. As we zoomed toward Angola from LaGrange, a weathered schoolhouse caught my eye. I fumbled with my trusty Lumix for a shot, but it wasn’t until we pulled into a Love’s Travel Stop that I got a second chance at a decent picture.
Mom went inside for a coffee while I seized the opportunity to immortalize the mysterious structure. I completely forgot about it until a couple days ago, and found out that what I’d mistaken for a humble schoolhouse was actually a church called Silver Lake Chapel. Unfortunately, that’s about all I know. The building’s steeped in history and mystery alike, at least for me.
The lakes of Northern Indiana were carved from melting glaciers. Steuben County’s home to more than a hundred1, and Silver Lake is about three miles west of the county seat, Angola. The lake’s eponymous chapel sits at the corner of US-20 and County Road 325-West.
As early as 1880, a schoolhouse known as Silver Lake2 served Pleasant Township’s District 5 from the south side of the intersection3. Just north, Bishop N. Castle of Ohio’s U.B. Circuit dedicated the Silver Lake United Brethren Church in 18884. Called a “cozy place of worship” by period papers5, the frame building measured 28 x 42 feet and sat on a stone foundation6.
The Silver Lake schoolhouse stood close to the site of the Love’s Travel Stop I took my photo from. Fourteen students graduated eighth grade in 19227, but their alma mater must have closed shortly afterward. By 1938, the building was used as a dwelling8. Today, nothing remains of it. On the other hand, Silver Lake Chapel was active at least through the 1950s and 1960s as far as I can tell. Church trustees finally sold the property to its current owner in 19949.
The old chapel’s in rough condition today. Although I eventually learned more about Silver Lake Chapel than I first let on, there’s still a lot to uncover. When did it close? Why did it close? Unfortunately, I think I know the answers if Silver Lake’s story is similar to some of Indiana’s other rural churches I’ve happened across. Still, its sad to see the once-vibrant institution reduced to ruin.
Sources Cited
1 Lakes (n.d.) Visit Fort Wayne [Fort Wayne]. Web. Retrieved February 16, 2024.
2 Ben Ault Found Guilty of Grant Larceny (1938, March 25). The Angola Herald. p. 5.
3 Atlas of Steuben Co., Indiana (1880). J.H. Beers & Company. [Chicago]. Map.
4 Notice of Dedication (1888, January 18). The Steuben Republican [Angola]. P. 6.
5 Local And Personal (1888, January 18). The Steuben Republican [Angola]. p. 3.
6 Steuben County Office of Information & GIS Services. (2024). Parcel ID: 760629000028000011. Steuben County, Indiana Assessor. Map, Angola, IN.
7 City News (1922, May 12). The Angola Herald. p. 7.
8 Ben Ault Found Guilty of Grant Larceny (1938, March 25). The Angola Herald. p. 5.
9 (See footnote 6).
