Christ Church, Philadelphia
This article needs additional citations for verification. (March 2022) |
Christ Church | |
Location | 24 North 2nd St. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
---|---|
Coordinates | 39°57′03″N 75°8′38″W / 39.95083°N 75.14389°W |
Built | 1727–1744 |
Architect | John Kearsley (supervisor)[2] |
Architectural style | Georgian |
NRHP reference No. | 70000553[1] |
Significant dates | |
Added to NRHP | April 15, 1970 |
Designated NHL | April 15, 1970 |
Designated PHMC | December 17, 1954[3] |
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.
History
Christ Church was founded in 1695 by members of the Church of England, who built a small wooden church on the site by the next year. In 1700, Evan Evans travelled from Wales to become their rector.[4]
When the congregation outgrew the original building twenty years after its construction, they decided to erect a new church, the most sumptuous in the Thirteen Colonies. The main body of the church was constructed between 1727 and 1744, and the steeple was added in 1754, making it the tallest building in the future United States, at 196 feet (60 m).[5] Christ Church is considered one of the nation's most beautiful surviving 18th-century structures, a monument to colonial craftsmanship and a handsome example of Georgian architecture. Modeled on the work in London of Christopher Wren,[2] it features a symmetrical, classical façade with arched windows and a simple yet elegant interior with fluted columns and wooden pews. Although the architect of the church is unknown, its construction was supervised by John Kearsley, a physician, who was likely also responsible for the design, possibly with John Harrison.[2][6] The church was rebuilt in 1777 by Robert Smith, and the interior was altered in 1883 by Thomas Ustick Walter.[6]
The baptismal font in which William Penn was baptized is still in use at Christ Church; it was sent to Philadelphia in 1697 from All Hallows-by-the-Tower in London. Another baptismal font and the communion table were crafted by Philadelphia cabinetmaker Jonathan Gostelowe, who served on the vestry in the 1790s.
Christ Church's congregation included 15 signers of the Declaration of Independence. American Revolutionary War leaders who attended Christ Church include George Washington, Robert Morris, Benjamin Franklin and Betsy Ross (after she had been read out of the Quaker meeting house to which she belonged for marrying John Ross, son of an assistant rector at Christ Church).
Brass plaques mark the pews where these individuals once sat. At the convening of the
Bishop White returned to Philadelphia that Easter Sunday. In 1789, under White's direction, the first meeting of the
Christ Church is a National Historic Landmark and a unique historic site that continues its original function as an Episcopal parish. More than 250,000 tourists visit the church each year.
Notable interments
Several notable people are buried in the church and adjacent churchyard, including:
- United States Constitution from South Carolina
- Elizabeth Graeme Fergusson (1739–1801), poet and writer[7]
- John Forbes (1710–1759), British commander during the French and Indian War, who captured Fort Duquesne, was an advocate for Native Americans, and named the city of Pittsburgh[7]
- Andrew Hamilton (1676–1741), lawyer known as "The Philadelphia Lawyer"[7]
- Charles Lee (1731–1782), Continental Army major general during the American Revolutionary War
- Robert Morris (1734–1806), signer of the Declaration of Independence, the Articles of Confederation, and the U.S. Constitution[7]
- John Penn (1729–1795), governor and proprietor of the Province of Pennsylvania
- James Wilson (1742–1798), signer of the Declaration of Independence and U.S. Constitution,[7] and U.S. Supreme Court associate justice
- William White (1748–1836), rector of Saint Peter Church and Christ Church, first Episcopal Bishop of Pennsylvania, and first and fourth Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church[7]
Other notable people are buried at nearby Christ Church Burial Ground, which is associated with Christ Church, including Benjamin Franklin and four other signers of the Declaration of Independence.
-
Questioning Chimney Sweeps before Christ Church, a c. 1813 portrait by John Lewis Krimmel
-
General Washington at Christ Church, a c. 1908 portrait of George Washington by J.L.G. Ferris
-
Plate 15 from Birch's Views of Philadelphia, painted in 1800
-
Christ Church, Philadelphia, an 1811 portrait by William Strickland
-
Christ Church (c. 1876)
-
Interior from Christ Church's balcony (c. 1883)
-
Christ Church Interior, c. 1914, by Joseph Pennell; Gostelowe's baptismal font is in the foreground.
-
Interior from balcony (c. 1960)
Other notable events
John Inglis was baptised here in September 1744.
See also
- Philadelphia portal
- Christianity portal
- List of National Historic Landmarks in Philadelphia
- National Register of Historic Places listings in Center City, Philadelphia
References
- ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. January 23, 2007.
- ^ ISBN 0962290815, p. 22
- ^ "PHMC Historical Markers". Historical Marker Database. Pennsylvania Historical & Museum Commission. Archived from the original on December 7, 2013. Retrieved December 10, 2013.
- ^ Robert Thomas Jenkins. "Evans Evan; (1671-1721), cleric and missioner in Pennsylvania". Dictionary of Welsh Biography. National Library of Wales. Retrieved November 28, 2020.
- ^ A historical account of Christ Church, Philadelphia, by Benjamin Dorr, Swords, Stanford & Co., N.Y., 1841.
- ^ ISBN 0262700212, p.40
- ^ a b c d e f g "Christ Church Burial Grounds: Notable-burials". www.christchurchphila.org. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: Christ Church. Retrieved June 5, 2018.
External links
- Christ Church parish web site
- Christ Church at the Historic American Buildings Survey
- Christ Church at Philadelphia Architects and Buildings
- Christ Episcopal Churchyard at Find a Grave
- Digitized historical documents from Christ Church