CHAPEL, Levi R. (1816-1901) and Jane Eliza (1818-1903)

Levi and Eliza Chapel took “an active part in the movement of 1843-44.” According to one source, Levi Chapel also expected the Advent in 1845, and in a letter to his grandparents written July 15, 1845, “bids them goodbye forever, for he is lookin [sic] for the world to end.” The Chapels became Sabbatarian Adventists before 1851, though the exact year is uncertain.1EGWLM 807.1

Levi Chapel, born in Massachusetts, migrated with his family to Oswego County, New York, in 1823. Listed variously as carpenter, grocer, and farmer in the censuses, he also served as postmaster for East Palermo, New York, for some time in the 1860s. He was an active layperson, being district leader for the Tract and Missionary Society in the 1880s, and on occasion serving on various committees of the New York Conference.1EGWLM 807.2

Ellen White mentioned the Chapels in connection with a crisis that their home church in Palermo underwent during the late 1850s. After the “Laodicean” call to the churches to “be zealous … and repent” (Rev. 3:19) had taken hold among Sabbatarian Adventists in 1856/1857, some members had interpreted this as a call to watch for faults among fellow members rather than to repent of their own shortcomings. This had led to internal dissension in the Palermo church. Levi and Eliza Chapel were admonished for the prominent part they had played in the troubles.1EGWLM 807.3

See: Mary Shaw Green, The History of Levi Greene of Rhode Island, Massachusetts, New York, Michigan: And His Descendants (Adrian, Mich.: Adrian College Press, 1944), pp. 10, 11, 27, 28; obituary: “L. R. Chapel,” Review, Jan. 7, 1902, p. 14; obituary: “Eliza Chapel,” Review, Mar. 17, 1903, p. 23; 1900 U.S. Federal Census, “Levi R. Chapel,” New York, Oswego County, Palermo Town, p. 229B; search terms “L. R. Chapel” and “J. E. Chapel” in Review and Herald online collection, www.adventistarchives.org; Ellen G. White, Lt 8, 1857 (July 19); Lt 2, 1858 (c. 1858); Lt 17, 1859 (Oct. 28).1EGWLM 807.4