The Wesley Chapel community has existed as an acknowledged and stable entity since, or before, the early eighteen hundreds. Central to the area over the years has been The Wesley Chapel Methodist Church and the Wesley Chapel School. Both of these continue in existence today. The Wesley Chapel Church (named for John Wesley) had its beginnings as a brush arbor about 1832, the new church being constructed shortly thereafter. On April 7, 1878, this building was destroyed by fire. A new structure was subsequently completed in May of 1879 and remained in use until 1924 at which time the present structure was constructed.
Underlining the Wesley Chapel community's continuing, responsible commitment to education, it is interesting to note that school classes were also held in these church buildings from their inception. In 1901, a bill was introduced in The North Carolina General Assembly establishing a rural high school at Wesley Chapel. By 1904, boarding students were attending at Wesley Chapel what is believed to have been the first public, rural, graded high school in North Carolina
In 1922 the residents of the Wesley Chapel community voted upon themselves a special tax of $.50 on each $100 dollars valuation and authorized the issuance of $20,000 dollars in district bonds for the erection of a new brick school building. This is further evidence that Wesley Chapel has functioned as a semi-self determining entity for many, many years and even though there have been a number of changes in the church, school and their buildings in this 165 year history, the surrounding community has always kept its name - Wesley Chapel.
In late 1995, some Wesley Chapel residents were notified by mail that they would be involuntarily annexed into the Town of Indian Trail. Questions arose about Indian Trail violating the annexation statutes of the State of North Carolina which led to a lawsuit being filed against the Town of Indian Trail. After two successful lawsuits against the Town of Indian Trail (paid for by residents of the proposed annexed area) and a third attempt to annex by Indian Trail to be effective January 31, 1999, it became imminently logical and rational that the Wesley Chapel community incorporate into a municipality in order to maintain its well respected identity and lengthy heritage of service to its residents as well as to be able to deal with, and manage today's rapid growth. And so, on July 15, 1998 after many months of hard effort by residents of Wesley Chapel, the Village of Wesley Chapel was created as an official municipality of the State of North Carolina covering an area of approximately 2,500 acres with a population of 1,100. Since that time the Village has grown through voluntary annexations to over 5,300 acres and a population of approximately 2,162 residents. It has been both a gratifying and humbling experience on the part of the Village Council to have so many people ask to become a part of Wesley Chapel.
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