Article: Cradle of worship: With 10 churches for 1,896 souls, Chesapeake is a hotbed of religion

Chesapeake is a sliver of a town wedged between eastern Kanawha County's mountains.

"Two miles long and 30 feet wide," jokes longtime resident Bill Cottrell.

Ten churches are crammed into that cranny. Chesapeake's 1,896 residents have their pick of a denominational assortment.

"On a per capita basis, we've got a bunch," says Pastor Jack Henry of the First Assembly of God.

Bethlehem Missionary Baptist and the Jesus Christ Praise Worship and Word Center anchor the western end of town. On the eastern end, a white cinder-block Church of Christ sits on a hillside.

"It sits up there kind of calm, by itself," says 61-year-old resident Shelby Shelton.

Shelton lives across the street from First ...

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