St. John's Episcopal Church (Johnson City, Tenn.)

Biography

The first Episcopal church service held in Johnson City, Tennessee was on June 26, 1889. The service was conducted by Reverend Dr. Samuel Ringgold of St. John’s Episcopal Church, Knoxville and was attended by a total of sixteen people. In the beginning, the congregation met in schools and unused store rooms until the Lusk School building was secured as a regular meeting place.

The congregation grew over time, and, on September 7, 1905, the cornerstone of a church building was laid. This church building, designed in the English Tudor-style of architecture, was constructed at the corner of North Roan Street and Myrtle Avenue and used river stone for exterior walls. Money for the building was raised through memberships and by the church women selling baked goods. St. John’s received its first deacon in 1971.

In 1981, an extensive building project renovated the exisiting structure and added new education and office space. A further major building program was begun in 2000 that saw the addition of a new sanctuary and the restoration of the existing santuary (now to be used as a chapel) to its original interior design. River rock was used from the same quarry that supplied its first cornerstone in 1905. The project was completed in the fall of 2001.

Found in 3 Collections and/or Records: