Chapelle Saint-Georges
On the road to Vuillecin, at the Pont Rouge, 1 km from the village, in the middle of a pasture stands a chapel.
In 1851 there was a great drought in our mountain, and especially in Vuillecin. The parishioners, at their wits' end, remembered a chapel known as "du temple", which had originally belonged to the Templars, and then to their successors, with all the surrounding land dedicated to Saint Georges. There, in times of distress, they came to seek rain or at least to ask for it, and rarely in vain.
It was decided to hold a procession to the site of this old chapel, leading the procession with the image of St. George existing inside the church, and the entire population vowed to rebuild a chapel in honor of St. George if he would send them rain.
And the rain did come! This vow was recorded by a deliberation of the factory council signed by all the inhabitants, by a deliberation of the town council and by a subscription. For administrative reasons, it was not possible to carry out this vow quickly, so it was decided to erect a cross and plant some trees around the future chapel while waiting for the construction to begin.
One can still see the remains of a church that was destroyed during the revolution, and the older ruins of some of the houses that used to surround it. This church, these houses and the properties which depended on them belonged to the Order of Malta which had obtained them after the suppression of the Templars. All these properties were sold during the revolution. The church of the temple seems to have belonged in the 12th century to the chapter of Saint-Jean which gave it to the Knights Hospitallers in 1211 for 15 sols. A notarized deed of 1586 specifies: the temple and the church depend on the commandery of Salins.
There is an altar on which rests the image of Our Lady and that of Saint George. Mass is celebrated there the day after Easter. From this chapel to the said Vuillecin depend about 200 days of land, behind the said chapel; the farmers pay amodiation of these lands to the lord commander of the temple of Salins.
There are very few documents on the chapel except an article from 1953 which relates the creation of an association of popular education which takes the name of SAINT GEORGES in memory of the former group A.C.J.F. and in honour of the chapel which will have to be repaired
In 1986, some young people from the village accompanied by MRS VUITTENEZ and LIARD carried out some work on the roof and facades.
It was not until the year 2000 that this chapel attracted the attention of two local history enthusiasts (Frédéric DELGRANDI and Jean Pierre BARILLOT), and the creation of the AVPEC which, for about ten years, restored and maintained this chapel with the help of various people.
Sources, research and photos: Toopy Prod DELGRANDI FREDERIC
