Battle of Yorktown

6. Grace Episcopal Church

Yorktown, VA

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Formerly called York-Hampton Church, Grace Episcopal Church was built six years after the founding of Yorktown. Royal Governor Francis Nicholson provided a stimulus for the church with 20 pounds sterling, according to a letter he addressed to the York County Court on October 26, 1696. The church erected the structure using local stone called marl, instead of traditional brick. Before the York-Hampton Church was built, services were held at earlier parishes at Yorke on Wormley Creek , which is now the Yorktown Coast Guard Training Center, as well as Charles Parish on the Poquoson River near present-day Tabb High School, and at Kiskiack Parish eight miles north of Yorktown, which is currently the Naval Weapons Station. The original seat was Old Yorke, built around 1642, but Yorktown became the new seat after Old Yorke was abandoned, and the church in Yorktown became the center of worship. All that is left to see of old Yorke Parish are its 46 x 55 foot foundations and a section of wall. Major William Gooch is buried within the early church foundation. He was only 29 when he died on October 29th, 1655, but he was already a member of the King's Council and represented York County in the House of Burgesses in 1654. The inscription on his tomb shows the importance of church in his life. "Within this tomb there doth interred lie No shape but substance true nobility; Itself though young in yeares but twenty nine Yet graced with vertues morall and divine; The church from him did good participate; In councill rare fit to adorn a State." Legend has it Governor Alexander Spottswood is also buried near this spot. This church was one of the most sought-after appointments for clergy before the Revolutionary War. In 1724 the Reverend Francis Fontaine reported to the Bishop of London that his parish was 20 miles in length and 4 miles broad. He served 200 families, and there were three score communicants in his Yorktown church. During the presence of Lord Cornwallis in 1781, the church proved perfect for a powder magazine with its strong marl walls. After the British surrendered, the church was repaired and the scars of war were removed. In 1785 the parish priest, Reverend Robert Anderson, left the ministry to work at another profession to support his family. In June of that year, 45 members of the parish raised funds to support the new rector, Reverend Samuel Shield. James Madison was the first Protestant Episcopal Church Bishop of Virginia. He was born on August 27th, 1749 and passed away on March 6th, 1812. Madison visited the church for confirmation soon after his London confirmation. Bishop William Meade, the 3rd bishop of Virginia, writes how Hugh Nelson prepared the confirmands in the Nelson House parlor before they went to the church. This is the first recorded confirmation service at the Church, and possibly in Virginia. In 1814 half the town was destroyed by an accidental fire which started nearby at Mrs. Gibbons's house. Ten years later, the church had still not been repaired. Bishop Moore preached from the courthouse that year, and preached from the Nelson House the next year, moving from house to house hoping someday the church would be rebuilt. In 1848 the church was finally rebuilt and renamed Grace Episcopal Church. Before the fire, the church was t-shaped. The two-story north wing, hence the T-shape, was most likely used to house visiting priests and for having church school. During the Civil War, the church belfry was converted to a lookout and the inside as a hospital, but it remained largely undamaged until a nearby bakery caught fire. The Courthouse was used to store Union gunpowder, and when the bakery caught fire the gunpowder exploded and destroyed the church. The bell in the church today is the one that was blown from the belfy at this explosion. It was salvaged and repaired. In the 1920s the church was renovated. The new additions included an altar rail, raised chancel and altar, coal stove, dentil molding, raised wall paneling, wrought iron chandeliers, windows, a new belfry, front doors and steps. Between 1933 and 1936, the priest-in-charge, Reverend C.A. Pruden led the way into modernizing the church to include electrical wiring, furnishings, and accoutrements of worship that are still used today. He also persuaded the vestry to change the name to Colonial Grace Episcopal Church, which changed back in 1945. A colonial facade was added around 1925 to include a new cupola, rose window, door frame, and semi-circular steps. The brick wall was added in 1931. In 1936, a summary of the church history was added on a bronze tablet at the front of the church. In the 1940's, a major effort was made to restore the outside appearance of colonial times. Archaeologists came out and explored the site, but the restoration never took place. In 1951, the first parish hall was added to the east end of the church. In 1975, in preparation for the bicentennial, the church was re-stuccoed to resemble large blocks. In 1996 the church broke ground for a $750,000 expansion of the Parish building. In 1649 Queen Anne gave a silver communion set to the Kiskiack Church. This set is still used at Grace Church. The hallmark on the set is engraved: "Hampton Parish in Yorke County, Virginia."