According to the genealogical research done by
Michael C. Boyette, a resident and business owner, Wesley Chapel was originally part of Hernando and was settled in the mid 1800’s when land was granted to Edward Boyette Sr., his 4 sons and others in the Armed Occupation Act. Wesley Chapel was named after the church honoring the founder of Methodism John Wesley. This church stood across from the present site of Double Branch Baptist Church in the 1890’s. Thomas Boyette, Edward’s grandson named the area Double Branch for the twin creeks which flowed through his property.
Wesley Chapel had its own post office from September 1897 until September 1902 when it was combined with Abbott Station, the current Zephyrhills. Cash crop farming, logging, citrus and cattle ranching were the principal activities in Wesley Chapel from its founding into the advent of the interstate system in the late 1960’s and early 1970’s. Since then it has become first a rural, then a suburban escape from the rapid growth of the Tampa Bay area.
The famous Saddlebrook Resort built in 1980 contributed to the fame of Wesley Chapel.
