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 Bruton Parish - Williamsburg, VA Posted by:  NorStar
N 37° 16.281 W 076° 42.158
18S E 349040 N 4126333
The Bruton Parish is the oldest Episcopal church in uninterrupted use in the United States, and is both an exhibit for Colonial Williamsburg and an active house of worship.
Waymark Code: WM82EX
Location: Virginia, United States
Date Posted: 01/15/2010
Views: 20
In Williamsburg, in the section known as Colonial Williamsburg, there is the Bruton Parish, a brick church at the corner of Palace Green Street and Duke of Gloucester Street.
The American Guide Series book for Virginia has the following text about the church:
37. BRUTON PARISH CHURCH (open 9-12, 1-5 daily), apparently the oldest Episcopal church of uninterrupted use in America, is a mellow red brick building of early Virginia Colonial design. Tall white-shuttered windows, well proportioned and nicely spaced, run along the sides and east end. Above the cornice of the square tower at the west end rises a two-tiered octagonal steeple. Within is the spacious box pew of the Colonial governor, sheltered by an elegant canopy and bearing the royal insignia.
Bruton Parish was created in 1674 through the union of two earlier parishes. A new church on land donated by Colonel John Page, ordered built in 1679 and completed in 1683, was inadequate for the fashionable crowds after Williamsburg became the capital. Governor Spotswood drew the plans and supervised construction of the present structure, which was built in 1710-15. The tower was not constructed, it seems, until 1769. The interior was altered in 1838-40 but restored in 1905-07 under supervision of the rector, Dr. Goodwin. Beneath the aisles and in the yard are buried many distinguished Virginians, including Governor Edward Nott, Lieutenant Governor Francis Fauquier, Judge John Blair, and three secretaries of state. The church preserves a seventeenth-century marble font from Jamestown, Bibles, and three communion services. A silver flagon, dated 1756, chalice dated 1764, and alms basin are supposed to have been given to Bruton Parish by Governor Fauquier between 1759 and 1768. The silver service presented by Lady Rebecca (Staunton) Gooch to the college is kept here. The cup has the hallmark of London's Peter Maraden, and the plate is dated 1737. The third service preserved here is the chalice, paten, and basin given by Acting-Governor Francis Moryson in 1661-62, 'For the use of James City Parish Church.'
--American Guide Series: Virginia - A Guide to the Old Dominion, p. 323
Today
Today, the church still stands and is both an exhibit for Colonial Williamsburg and a house of worship for an active Episcopal congregation. Since the publishing of the book, the church has been growing. There are five services on Sunday, and several other events planned in 2010 as shown in their web site. They often have concerts (I attended a concert featuring their pipe organ).
Sources:
Bruton Parish:
Visit Site
XRoads.Virginia.edu (Text Version of American Guide Series for Virginia):
Visit Site
Book: Virginia
Page Number(s) of Excerpt: 323
Year Originally Published: 1941
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