Tag: St. John’s Episcopal Church (Hampton VA)

Wikipedia says: St. John’s is an Episcopal church located in Hampton, Virginia, United States, within the Episcopal Diocese of Southern Virginia. Established in 1610, St. John’s is the oldest English-speaking parish in continuous existence in the United States of America.

…In the early 18th century, activity centered about the busy port which has become downtown Hampton. The parishioners petitioned the Governor for permission to relocate their place of worship closer to the population center. It was granted, and construction of the fourth church on one and one half acres on the outskirts of Hampton began.  Henry Cary Jr. of Williamsburg completed the present cruciform building in 1728.[3] A belfry was added to the west front in 1762. The building was damaged in the Revolutionary War, the War of 1812, and (most extensively) the Civil War.  It took the parish several decades to complete repair the church after the War of 1812. 

After full restoration, on Saturday, 6 March 1830, Bishop Richard Channing Moore, Bishop of Virginia, consecrated the church with its new name St. John’s.  The building was damaged again during the Civil War on 7 August 1861.  In an attempt to keep the town from Union occupation, Confederate soldiers set fire to homes, businesses and the church.  The great bell was destroyed, and only the blackened walls remained by the time Union soldiers occupied the town and camped in the churchyard.  As a result of the fire, St. John’s is the only surviving colonial structure in downtown Hampton.  At war’s end, contributions due to a widespread appeal to rebuild the church were used.  Restoration was finished around 1869/1870.