Payne Reformed Methodist Union Episcopal Church

Front inscription

Payne Reformed Methodist Union Episcopal (R.M.U.E.) Church organized in the 1870s. Tradition holds that early members, including first pastor Rev. Prince “Pappy” White, were previously enslaved on the Seabrook family plantation. In 1879 the church entered into an 88-year lease for this site from F.P. Seabrook.

Reverse inscription

The church was originally called Payne Chapel and affiliated with the African Methodist Episcopal (A.M.E.) denomination. In 1885 Payne was among the first members of the newly formed R.M.U.E. Church, an A.M.E. offshoot. Congregants took ownership of the site in 1947. The original sanctuary was renovated in the 1960s.