Editing Wesley Chapel, North Carolina (section)

== History ==
The village of Wesley Chapel's existence can be traced back to the establishment of Wesley Chapel United Methodist Church, one of many [[United Methodist Church|United Methodist]] churches to be named after [[Methodism]] founder [[John Wesley|John Wesley's]] [[Wesley's Chapel|chapel]] in [[London]]. The Wesley Chapel church was founded in 1832 on the remains of an abandoned campground outside nearby [[Mineral Springs, North Carolina|Mineral Springs]] known as McWhorter Campground. The community became first recognized in the early 20th century as residents of Monroe and [[Vance Township, Union County, North Carolina|Vance Township]] in the early 20th century declared themselves as part of the Wesley Chapel vicinity of Sandy Ridge Township, taking the name from the Methodist church.<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |last=Lee |first=Bill |date=July 15, 2008 |title=The History and Heritage of the Village of Wesley Chapel: Celebrating Ten Years as an Incorporated Municipality |url=https://www.ci.wesley-chapel.nc.us/vertical/Sites/%7B1AD59A02-0FFA-4E56-AC61-69E74B4BE4D0%7D/uploads/History_of_THE_VILLAGE_OF_WESLEY_CHAPEL.pdf |access-date=April 11, 2023 |website=The Village of Wesley Chapel}}</ref>

The village was originally known as Price's Mill, named after the family of Joseph Price and his son James Newton Price. The Price family began as farmers but acquired a significant portion of the land of Wesley Chapel and contributed to much of the village's early development.<ref name=":1" />

James Newton Price served in the North Carolina General Assembly for four terms, during which he established Wesley Chapel High School in 1901 and served as the first director of the Wesley Chapel School District Board of Trustees.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Union County North Carolina Ancestral Trackers |url=https://www.ancestraltrackers.net/nc/union/union.htm |access-date=April 12, 2023 |website=www.ancestraltrackers.net}}</ref> Wesley Chapel High School was the first rural public high school in North Carolina.<ref>{{Cite web |title=School Profile / Fast Facts |url=https://www.ucps.k12.nc.us/domain/http%3A%2F%2Fwww.ucps.k12.nc.us%2Fsite%2Fdefault.aspx%3FDomainID%3D732 |access-date=April 12, 2023 |website=www.ucps.k12.nc.us |language=en}}</ref> The school burnt down in 1955 and reopened in 1961 as Wesley Chapel Elementary School following the opening of [[Sun Valley High School (North Carolina)|Sun Valley High School]] in Indian Trail. The school was destroyed in a fire and rebuilt again in 1966.<ref name=":1" />

Wesley Chapel was officially incorporated as a village of Union County in 1998.<ref name=":1" />