St. John's Episcopal Church, Lafayette Square

Last updated

St. John's Episcopal Church
St. John's Church, Washington, D.C. LCCN2011631449.jpg
Location map Washington, D.C. central.png
Red pog.svg
USA District of Columbia location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Usa edcp location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Location1525 H Street, N.W., Washington, D.C., U.S.
Coordinates 38°54′1.41″N77°2′9.91″W / 38.9003917°N 77.0360861°W / 38.9003917; -77.0360861
Built1815–1816
Part of Lafayette Square Historic District (ID70000833)
NRHP reference No. 66000868 [1]
Significant dates
Added to NRHPOctober 15, 1966
Designated NHLDecember 19, 1960
Designated NHLDCPAugust 29, 1970

St. John's Episcopal Church, Lafayette Square is a historic Episcopal church located at Sixteenth Street and H Street NW, in Washington, D.C., along Black Lives Matter Plaza. The Greek Revival building, designed by Benjamin Henry Latrobe, is adjacent to Lafayette Square, one block from the White House. It is often called the "Church of the Presidents".

Contents

Every sitting president has attended the church at least once since it was built in 1816, starting with James Madison. [2] Many of the traditional Inauguration Day spiritual services have been held at St. John's. [3] It was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1960. [1]

History

Organized as a parish in 1815, it was named for Saint John the Evangelist. The building opened and the first service was held at St. John's Church on October 27, 1816. The Rev. William Dickinson Hawley served as its rector from 1817 to 1845, also serving as Chaplain of the Senate. [4]

Inception and construction

Two years after Maryland had ceded to the United States the territory constituting the present District of Columbia, the legislature of that state, appreciating the necessity of providing for the spiritual needs of the Protestant Episcopal inhabitants who were to reside there, and on their petition, passed the act of 26 December 1794, creating a new parish, to be known as Washington Parish-to be composed of so much of the Rock Creek Parish, in Montgomery County, Maryland, as St. John's Parish, in Prince George's County, Maryland, as was within the boundaries of the new city of Washington. In the next year a vestry was elected by the Episcopalians of the eastern end of the new parish, and the Rev. Mr. Ralph was appointed rector of the charge then organized, and took his seat in the Maryland Convention of 1795. This congregation occupied a small building on D Street and New Jersey Avenue, in the southeastern part of Washington, which since 1780, had been used as a chapel of ease connected with St. John Parish in Prince George's County. In 1806 a vestry was elected from the people worshipping at this chapel, and, in 1807, a new church was established in that vicinity, which was named Christ Church.

In Georgetown, in 1796, the Protestant Episcopal inhabitants had inaugurated a movement resulting in the establishment of a church within the new parish, which was consecrated in 1809-so that, when the general government was removed from Philadelphia, in 1800, the newcomers found three places of worship for Episcopalians within the district, two previously mentioned and the third being St. Paul's Church in Rock Creek Parish; but all too far removed from the central and more populated portion of Washington to be practically useful in those days of almost impassable roads. To supply this great need the residents in what was known as the First and Second Wards of Washington-lying between Georgetown and Sixth Street-in the year 1814 took decided measures to procure the erection of a church in the part of the city referred to. The persons who seem to have been most actively engaged in this work were Thomas H Gillis, James Davidson, Lund Washington, Peter Hagner, John Graham, John Peter Van Ness, Joshua Dawson, William Winston Seaton, John Tayloe III, Thomas Munroe, James Thompson, James H. Blake, David Easton, and Joseph Gales Jr.

The first entry in the earliest record book of the church, under date May 10, 1816, is in these words:

"May 10, 1816. At a meeting of citizens, resident in the First and Second Wards of the City of Washington, it was resolved that the following named gentlemen be appointed Trustees to manage the secular affairs of St. Johns Church, until a Vestry can be legally appointed, and to apply to the next Convention of the Protestant Episcopal Church for a division of the Parish of Washington; so as to attach the Parish of St. John's Church, viz: John Davidson, Peter Hagner, James Thompson, John Peter Van Ness, John Tayloe III, Thomas H Gillis, James H. Blake, and Roger C. Weightman."

On December 27, 1816, being St. John's Day, Bishop James Kemp of Maryland performed the ceremonies of consecration, and religious services were conducted by the bishop and attendant clergy. The church building was designed by Benjamin Latrobe Esq, and constructed under his superintendence. He declined to receive any compensation for his valuable services, but the vestry voted him a pew free of rent, in acknowledgement of his generosity. This he declined, expressing his preference for some token that he might transmit to his children, and the testimonial took the form of a piece of plate. [5] John Tayloe III donated to the parish a communion service of silver, which Bishop William Meade, in his work on the old Churches of Virginia, says had been purchased by Col. Tayloe at a sale of the effects of the Lunenburg Parish Church/Farnham Church in Richmond County, Virginia, to prevent its desecration for secular use. [6]

Expansion

By 1842, it had become evident that further increases of the seating capacity of the church was expedient, and at a meeting of the pewholders called by public notice, on the eleventh of November, 1842, a committee, consisting of Richard Smith, John Canfield Spencer, Peter Hagner, Benjamin Ogle Tayloe, and William Thomas Carroll, was appointed to report a plan by which the number of pews should be increased, improved access given to galleries, and the interests of the existing pewholders properly adjusted. The committee reported on the twenty-eighth of November, and in the following April, Col. John James Abert, Gen. Winfield Scott, Frank Markoe, and Charles Gordon, were appointed a committee to carry the plan into effect. In its execution the original arrangement of pews and aisles, which had hitherto remained substantially unchanged, was very greatly altered. The box and high-back pews were changed to low-back seats; the brick pavement disappeared with the old form of the aisles; the chancel was enlarged, and the wine-glass pulpit was removed.

Still more extensive changes were made in 1883 under the direction of Bancroft Davis and Gen. Peter V. Hagner, when almost all the windows were filled with stained glass, dedicated, for the most part, to deceased members of the congregation. The chancel was considerably enlarged; a new organ placed within the chancel rail; an addition made at the southeast corner of the church for a chantry, and a new vestry room, choir rooms, and offices erected. Altogether at least 180 sittings were added, making the entire sitting accommodation of the church at 780. [5]

In 1902, the formal state funeral of British ambassador Lord Pauncefote took place in St. John's Church.

"Church of the Presidents"

Presidents' pew PewPOTUS.jpg
Presidents' pew

Beginning with James Madison, every president has been an occasional attendee at St. John's, due to both the disproportionately Anglican religious affiliation of U.S. presidents and the church's proximity to the executive mansion. Perhaps the most devoted presidential attendee was Abraham Lincoln, who habitually joined evening prayer throughout the Civil War from an inconspicuous rear pew. [7] St. John's is popularly nicknamed the "Church of the Presidents".

President James Madison established the tradition of a "president's pew", selecting pew 28 for his private use in 1816. [4] The church was supported by pew subscriptions during its early history; although the vestry offered a pew to President Madison for free, he insisted on paying the rent. [7] During a renovation in 1843, the pews were renumbered, and the president's pew became pew 58. [4] President John Tyler asked that pew 58 be assigned to him, and paid for its use in perpetuity by presidents of the United States. [4] Additional renovations in 1883 renumbered the seat to pew 54, and this pew has remained reserved for the president's use when in attendance. [4] Although the "president's pew" is open for the use of any U.S. president who wishes to worship at the church, during weddings and other events the president usually sits in the front pew as a matter of protocol. [4]

President Chester A. Arthur commissioned a memorial window for his wife, Ellen Lewis Herndon Arthur, who died in 1880, which was displayed in the church's south transept that is visible from the White House and lighted from within at his behest. [8]

Role in the George Floyd protests

President Donald Trump in front of the boarded-up Ashburton House, June 1, 2020 President Trump Visits St. John's Episcopal Church (49963649028).jpg
President Donald Trump in front of the boarded-up Ashburton House, June 1, 2020
Reverend Robert W. Fisher, the 15th Rector at St. John's Episcopal Church in 2024 Reverend Robert W. Fisher, the 15th Rector at St. John's Episcopal Church, Lafayette Square in Washington, D.C. on September 8, 2024 (cropped).jpg
Reverend Robert W. Fisher, the 15th Rector at St. John’s Episcopal Church in 2024

During the George Floyd protests on the night of May 31, 2020, several fires were set in Washington, D.C., including one set in the basement of Ashburton House, the parish house of St. John's Episcopal Church. [9] The fire was isolated to the church nursery and extinguished by firefighters. [10] [11] [12] According to the church's rector, the Reverend Rob Fisher, during the protests "a fire was lit in the nursery, in the basement of Ashburton House" of the church. [9] Fisher wrote that the fire was small, destroying the nursery room but leaving the rest of the church untouched, except by graffiti. [13]

The next day, police and National Guard troops cleared out demonstrators in the immediate area around the church, using tear gas, smoke canisters, and pepper balls. Contrary to some initial reporting, police did not clear the square so that President Trump could have a photo op. The clearing operation was for the installation of ant-scale fencing. [14] [15] [16] [17] The Episcopal Bishop of Washington, Mariann Budde, who oversees the church, criticized the use of tear gas to clear the grounds of the church for a photo opportunity "as a backdrop for a message antithetical to the teachings of Jesus." [18]

Design

St. John's Church - Washington, D.C..jpg
St. John's Episcopal Church in 1918
ST. JOHN'S CHURCH OF THE PRESIDENTS, WASHINGTON D.C..jpg
Interior

In 1966, St. John's Church was placed on the National Register of Historic Places by the U.S. Department of the Interior, and is designated a contributing property to the Lafayette Square Historic District and Sixteenth Street Historic District.

The church building was designed by Benjamin Latrobe, architect of the U.S. Capitol Building, and is constructed of stucco-covered brick, taking the form of a Greek cross. In 1820, the portico and tower were added. [19]

The bell in St. John's steeple weighs nearly 1,000 pounds (450 kg). It was cast by Paul Revere's son, Joseph, at his Boston foundry in August 1822 and installed at St. John's on November 30, 1822. President James Monroe authorized a $100 contribution of public funds toward the purchase of this church bell, which also served as an alarm bell for the neighborhoods and public buildings in the vicinity of the church. St. John's bell is one of two Revere bells in Washington, both cast and installed in 1822. Of the two, St. John's bell is the only one that has been in continuous service since its installation. [20] According to at least two accounts, whenever the bell tolls because of the death of a notable person, six ghostly men in white robes appear in the president's pew at midnight and then vanish. [21]

Artwork in the church includes two sculptures by Jay Hall Carpenter, a chapel cross in polished brass, and Ascent Into Heaven, a 3/4 lifesize bronze angel and child overlooking the church's columbarium.

Related Research Articles

Trinity Church is a historic parish in the Episcopal Diocese of New York, whose church is located at 89 Broadway opposite Wall Street, in the Financial District of Lower Manhattan in New York City. Known for its centuries of history, prominent location, distinguished architecture and bountiful endowment, Trinity's congregation is said to be "high church", its activities based on the traditions of the Episcopal Church and the worldwide Anglican Communion in missionary outreach, and fellowship. In addition to its main church, Trinity parish maintains two chapels: St. Paul's Chapel, and the Chapel of St. Cornelius the Centurion on Governors Island. The Church of the Intercession, the Trinity Chapel Complex and many other of Manhattan's Episcopal congregations were once part of Trinity parish. Columbia University was founded on the church's grounds as King's College in 1754.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Episcopal Diocese of Washington</span> Diocese of the Episcopal Church in the United States

The Episcopal Diocese of Washington is a diocese of the Episcopal Church covering Washington, D.C., and nearby counties of Maryland in the United States. With a membership of over 38,000, the diocese is led by the Bishop of Washington, Mariann Budde. It is home to Washington National Cathedral, which is the seat of both the diocesan bishop and the Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Octagon House</span> Historic house in Washington, D.C., United States

The Octagon House, also known as the Colonel John Tayloe III House, is a house located at 1799 New York Avenue, Northwest in the Foggy Bottom neighborhood of Washington, D.C. It was built in 1799 for John Tayloe III, the wealthiest planter in the country, at the behest of his new family member, George Washington. In September 1814, after British forces burnt the White House during the War of 1812, for six months the Octagon House served as the residence of United States president James Madison and first lady Dolley Madison. It is one of only five houses to serve as the presidential residence in the history of the United States of America, and one of only three, along with the White House and Blair House, that still stand.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. Paul's Chapel</span> Chapel in Manhattan, New York

St. Paul's Chapel is a chapel building of Trinity Church, an episcopal parish, located at 209 Broadway, between Fulton Street and Vesey Street, in Lower Manhattan, New York City. Built in 1766, it is the oldest surviving church building in Manhattan, and one of the nation's most well renowned examples of Late Georgian church architecture.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Christ Church, Philadelphia</span> Historic church in Pennsylvania, United States

Christ Church is an Episcopal church in the Old City neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Founded in 1695 as a parish of the Church of England, it played an integral role in the founding of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States. In 1785, its rector, William White, became the first Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Christ Church (Alexandria, Virginia)</span> Historic church in Virginia, United States

Christ Church is an Episcopal church located at 118 North Washington Street, with an entrance at 141 North Columbus Street, in Alexandria, Virginia. Constructed as the main church in the Church of England's Fairfax Parish, the building was designed by Col. James Wren, a descendant of Sir Christopher Wren.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. Peter's Episcopal Church (Philadelphia)</span> Historic church in Pennsylvania, United States

St. Peter's Church is a historic Episcopal church located on the corner of Third and Pine Streets in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It opened for worship on September 4, 1761 and served as a place of worship for many of the United States Founding Fathers during the period of the Continental Congresses. The building was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1996. The church remains an active parish; the current priest-in-charge is the Rev. Dr. Clarke French.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thomas John Claggett</span> American bishop

Thomas John Claggett was the first bishop of the newly formed American Episcopal Church to be consecrated on American soil and the first bishop of the recently established (1780) Diocese of Maryland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lafayette Square Historic District, Washington, D.C.</span> Historic district in Washington, D.C., United States

The Lafayette Square Historic District is a National Historic Landmark District in Washington, D.C., encompassing a portion of the original L'Enfant Plan for the city's core. It includes the 7-acre (2.8 ha) Lafayette Square portion of President's Park, all of the buildings facing it except the White House, and the buildings flanking the White House to the east and west. The district was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1970.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Christ Church, Washington Parish</span> Historic church in Washington, D.C., United States

Christ Church — known also as Christ Church, Washington Parish or Christ Church on Capitol Hill — is a historic Episcopal church located at 620 G Street SE in Washington, D.C., USA. The church is also called Christ Church, Navy Yard, because of its proximity to the Washington Navy Yard and the nearby U.S. Marine Barracks.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ashburton House</span> Historic house in Washington, D.C., United States

Ashburton House, also known as St. John's Church Parish House or the British Legation, is a historic house at 1525 H Street NW, on Lafayette Square in Washington, D.C. Built in 1836, it is notable as the residence of Lord Ashburton in 1842, during which time negotiations took place there culminating the Webster–Ashburton Treaty. This settled a long list of border disputes between the U.S. and the British provinces that are now Canada, and ended the Aroostook War. It was declared a National Historic Landmark in 1973. It presently serves as the parish house for St. John's Episcopal Church.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. John's Episcopal Church (Fort Washington, Maryland)</span> Historic church in Maryland, United States

St. John's Church, St. John's Episcopal Church, or St. John's Episcopal Church, Broad Creek, is a historic Episcopal church located at 9801 Livingston Road in Fort Washington, Prince George's County, Maryland. It is a rectangular Flemish bond brick structure with a bell hipped roof. The interior features a barrel vaulted ceiling with an intricate support system.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. Paul's Episcopal Church (Alexandria, Virginia)</span> Historic church in Virginia, United States

St. Paul's Episcopal Church is an historic Episcopal church in the Anglican Communion located in the Old Town area of Alexandria, Virginia. The church, consecrated in 1818, was designed by Benjamin Latrobe, the second architect of the United States Capitol. It is one of the few buildings designed by Latrobe in a Gothic style and one of the earliest examples of Gothic Revival architecture in the United States. The church was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1985. During the year 2009, St. Paul's Episcopal Church celebrated the bicentennial of its founding.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. Paul's Church (Fairlee, Maryland)</span> Historic church in Maryland, United States

St. Paul's Church is an historic Episcopal church located near the village of Fairlee, southwest of Chestertown, Kent County, Maryland. St. Paul's Church is one of the original thirty parishes created in 1692 by an Act of the General Assembly declaring the Church of England as the established religion of the Province of Maryland. The Georgian-styled building, completed in 1713, is the second-oldest Episcopal church on the Eastern Shore of Maryland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trinity Episcopal Church (Muscatine, Iowa)</span> United States historic place

Trinity Episcopal Church is a parish church in the Diocese of Iowa. The church is located in Muscatine, Iowa, United States. It was individually listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974. In 2006 it was included as a contributing property in the Downtown Commercial Historic District.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Tayloe III</span> American politician

Col. John Tayloe III, of Richmond County, Virginia, was the premier Virginia planter; a politician, businessman, and tidewater gentry scion. He was prominent in elite social circles. A highly successful planter and early Thoroughbred horse breeder, he was considered the "wealthiest man of his day". A military officer, he also served in the Virginia House of Delegates and Senate of Virginia for nine years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mariann Budde</span> American Episcopal bishop (born 1959)

Mariann Edgar Budde is an Episcopal prelate who has served as Bishop of Washington since 2011.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mount Calvary Church</span> Catholic ordinariate Church in Baltimore, Maryland

Mount Calvary Church is a Catholic parish located in the Seton Hill neighborhood of Baltimore, Maryland. The church was founded in 1842 as a mission congregation within the Episcopal Church and is now a community within the Personal Ordinariate of the Chair of Saint Peter of the Roman Catholic Church.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. James's Episcopal Church (Richmond, Virginia)</span> Church in Virginia , United States

St. James's Episcopal Church is the third oldest Episcopal congregation in Richmond, Virginia. Only the older St. John's Episcopal Church on Church Hill also remains an active congregation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Donald Trump photo op at St. John's Church</span> 2020 controversial presidential photo op

On June 1, 2020, amid the George Floyd protests in Washington, D.C., law enforcement officers used tear gas and other riot control tactics to forcefully clear peaceful protesters from Lafayette Square, creating a path for President Donald Trump and senior administration officials to walk from the White House to St. John's Episcopal Church. Trump held a Bible and posed for a photo op in front of Ashburton House, which had been defaced by graffiti and damaged by a fire set during protests the night before.

References

  1. 1 2 "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. January 23, 2007.
  2. ↑ White House Historical Association
  3. ↑ Burke, Daniel (January 20, 2017). "Inflammatory pastor preached to Trump before inauguration". CNN . Retrieved January 21, 2017.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Grimmett, Richard F. St. John's Church, Lafayette Square: The History and Heritage of the Church of the Presidents, Washington, D.C. Minneapolis, Minn.: Hillcrest Publishing Group, 2009. ISBN   1-934248-53-3
  5. 1 2 Hagner, Alexander B. "History and Reminiscences of St. John's Church, Washington, D. C." Records of the Columbia Historical Society, Washington, D.C., vol. 12, 1909, pp. 89–114. www.jstor.org/stable/40066995.r
  6. ↑ Touring Historyland: The Authentic Guide Book of Historic Northern Neck of Virginia, the Land of George Washington and Robert E. Lee, Volume 186, Northern Neck Association, 1934
  7. 1 2 "Historic Places: St. John's Episcopal Church". Abraham Lincoln Online. Retrieved June 3, 2020.
  8. ↑ "Ellen Lewis Herndon Arthur". White House . Retrieved September 21, 2015.
  9. 1 2 Barnes, Sophia (June 1, 2020). "Historic Church Near White House Damaged Amid Unrest; Leaders Pray for Healing". NBC 4 Washington. Retrieved June 3, 2020.
  10. ↑ Danner, Chas; Hartmann, Margaret (June 4, 2020). "More Than 10,000 Americans Have Been Arrested at George Floyd Protests: Updates". New York . Archived from the original on June 6, 2020. Retrieved June 6, 2020.
  11. ↑ Hermann, Peter; Bailey, Sarah Pulliam; Boorstein, Michelle (June 1, 2020). "Fire set at historic St. John's church during protests of George Floyd's death". The Washington Post .
  12. ↑ McCreesh, Shawn (June 1, 2020). "Protests Near White House Spiral Out of Control Again". The New York Times. Retrieved June 1, 2020.
  13. ↑ Lowe, Lindsay (June 2, 2020). "A look at damage inside historic St. John's Church, which burned during protests". today.com . Retrieved June 6, 2020.
  14. ↑ https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/donald-trump/police-did-not-clear-d-c-s-lafayette-park-protestors-n1270126
  15. ↑ Chappell, Bill (June 2, 2020). "'He Did Not Pray': Fallout Grows From Trump's Photo-Op At St. John's Church". NPR. Retrieved June 2, 2020.
  16. ↑ "Trump stands in front of St. John's Church holding Bible after threatening military action against protesters". NBC News. Retrieved June 2, 2020.
  17. ↑ Charles Creitz (June 1, 2020). "St. John's Church rector on aftermath of fire, impromptu Trump visit: 'Like I'm in some alternative universe'". Fox News . Retrieved June 1, 2020.
  18. ↑ "Bishop Mariann Edgar Budde's Response to the President". Episcopal Diocese of Washington Facebook Page. Archived from the original on February 26, 2022. Retrieved June 2, 2020.
  19. ↑ Federal Writers' Project (1937). Washington, City and Capital: Federal Writers' Project. Works Progress Administration / Government Printing Office. p. 126.
  20. ↑ St. John's History Archived 2010-10-13 at the Wayback Machine St. John's Church Lafayette Square website
  21. ↑ Hauck, Dennis. Haunted Places: The National Directory. 2d ed. New York: Penguin Group, 2002. ISBN   0-14-200234-8

Bibliography

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.