St. Luke's Episcopal Church has been serving Lincolnton and Lincoln County since November 29, 1841,
one hundred and sixty-five years.
St. Luke's, the first Episcopal parish established west of the Catawba River,
is known as the "mother church" of the Diocese of Western North Carolina.
Its history dates to 1736 when a worshiping group of Episcopalians lived in Lincolnton.
They became a permanent part of the missionary field in 1835. St. Luke's was
established and approved by the diocese in 1841. A year later the original church
was constructed and consecrated. Fire destroyed the original building and the present
church was built in 1856 and consecrated a year later.
In 1862 The Rev.William Robards Wetmore was ordained at St. Luke's and installed as
parish priest. He remained Rector of St. Luke's until his death some 43 years later.
Fr. Wetmore established the Midnight Christmas Eve mass as well as the Easter
Sunrise Service that we celebrate today, two of St. Luke's most cherished traditions.
Fr. Wetmore riding near his home on South Cedar Street
The traditional Easter Sunrise Service was instituted at St. Luke's by The Reverend W.R.
Wetmore in 1865 on the Easter following the surrender of General Robert E. Lee on Palm Sunday.
On Good Friday, President Abraham Lincoln had been killed. Union troops were scheduled to enter
and occupy Lincolnton on Easter Monday. It was an Easter service of hope in a time of uncertainty.
Dr. Silas McBee, recognized as an authority on architecture, was born in Lincolnton in 1854.
He received his education at the Lincolnton Academy and The University of the South. He was
described as "one of the most prominent laymen of the church in America. In addition to his
exquisite woodcarving and architectural work at St. Luke's, Dr. McBee was responsible for a
number of architectural treasures throughout the South and abroad. Dr. McBee, along with
Fr. Wetmore, rests in St. Luke's Cemetery.
St. Luke's Cemetery is the resting place of many notables and is always a destination for history
buffs around the southeast. Included among the notables is Stephen Dodson Ramseur, the youngest
Major General of the Confederate States of American slain at the age of 26 years.
Major General Stephen Dodson Ramseur
Although the occupants of most graves are known, there are some that have faded from memory
due to time and the elements. St. Luke's Cemetery was one of the few places where slaves were buried
on hallowed ground. Most of these graves were marked with simple wooden crosses which have, like their
owners, returned to the earth.
The history of St. Luke's spans such a long and colorful length of time putting
it into a concise narrative will be difficult if not impossible. Over the years so many articles
have been written about this very special place that this page of the St. Luke's site will be a
work in progress.
We will start with a few articles written over the years by Gladys Childs,
a valued member of St. Luke's who freelanced articles of local interest to The Lincoln Times-News.
Also, you will find an article written by Virginia B. Froneberger.
Please take into consideration when reading the following narratives that some information contained within the narratives
has not been proven and may be written down from memories passed along through the years by word of mouth.
St. Luke's Episcopal Church
by Gladys Childs
The beginnings of the Episcopal Church in Lincoln County were near Lowesville, some 17 miles from Lincolnton.
The Rev. Robert Johnson Miller, known as "Parson Miller", served the Episcopal Church, known then in 1786, as New Haven.
There was no Episcopal Bishop in North Carolina at the time nor had a diocese been organized.
The Rev. Moses Ashley Curtis was appointed to the permanent Missionary field around 1835 for one year. He was succeeded by the Rev. E.M. Forbis in 1841, when members formed a congregation in Lincoln County's Memorial Hall, now the oldest public building in Lincoln County, on November 29, 1841. The name given was "St. Luke's of Lincolnton", which is its name today.
Members of the first Vestry were I.W. Murphy, L.E. Thompson, M. Hoke, V.A. McBee and H.W. Guion, uncle of the late Connie Guion, MD.
On March 9, 1842, the corner stone of the first St. Luke's Church was laid, and on completion of the church in 1843 it was consecrated by the Rt. Rev. Levi Sillman Ives, Bishop of the Diocese of North Carolina (1831-1867, on July 30th to the worship of Almighty God. The Rev. E.M. Forbis was rector at the time of the consecration.
The church property is part of lot 42 in the N.E. Square of Lincolnton, formerly owned by Col. John Hoke. The deed to the church was dated March 2, 1842, and is recorded in the Lincoln County Court House.
The Rev. Forbis resigned in 1844. He was succeeded by the Rev. J.C. Huske in 1847 who served the church until June 27, 1851. The Rev. Thomas W. Mott was rector from March 1, 1852 until the Spring of 1854. There were fifty-two communicants when the Rev. Horatio H. Hewitt became rector of St. Luke's on November 12, 1854. Next to serve as rector was the Rev. C.T. Bland from January 1, 1857 until December 1, 1861.
On July 5, 1862, William Robards Wetmore came to St. Luke's as deacon. He was ordained to the priesthood on St. Matthew's day that year and became rector on September 21, 1862, serving the church as rector for 43 years until his death on March 24, 1904.
Dr. Wetmore was born in Raleigh on November 23, 1834. His father was cashier of the North Carolina State Bank which was moved to Fayetteville, where the Wetmore Family also moved.
Dr. Wetmore was educated at Donaldson Military Academy in Fayetteville. His mother was a sister of Judge F. Badger. In 1854 William Robards Wetmore graduated from the State University and for some time was assistant instructor in mathematics studying Law. He was admitted to the Bar in 1858 and went to Alabama where he practiced law with his brother, Colonel Thomas B. Wetmore.
Feeling a call to the ministry, Wetmore gave up the practice of law and studied theology at the General Seminary in New York, where he graduated in 1861. He was ordained deacon in Trinity Church, Mobile, Alabama, by Bishop Green on June 25, 1861, entering upon work in New Bern as assistant to Dr. Watson who later became the Bishop of East Carolina from 1884-1905.
For a short time Dr. Wetmore was a chaplain in the Confederate Army. In 1862 he was advanced to the priesthood by Bishop Thomas Atkinson, Bishop from 1853-1861.
The Rev. Wetmore supplemented his small salary by teaching. Wetmore and Professor H.H. Smith conducted the Lincolnton Male Academy for may years after the Civil War. Many of their students became leaders in the ministry, law, medicine, industry and statesmanship. Among the notables were Dr. Wetmore's son Thomas C. Wetmore who founded Christ Episcopal Church and School in Arden.
Dr. Wetmore established missions in the rural areas of Lincoln Country, one being the Mission Church at Woodside Plantation, established for the slaves at that time. The church has been rebuilt and is now know as the Church of Our Savior, Woodside.
During Dr. Wetmore's ministry, and largely due to his influence, five men from the Woodside Mission entered the ministry. They are The Rev. Norvin C. Duncan, The Rev. Boston M. Lackey, The Rev. Charles Hoffman, The Rev. Frontis Anthony, and The Rev. Thomas C. Wetmore.
The Church of St. Cyprian on West Church Street. was established by Dr. Wetmore. It served the black citizens for many years until it suffered a fire and had to be torn down several years ago.
Dr. Wetmore established the Midnight Christmas Eve Service, a community service still in operation.
He also established the Easter Sunrise Service in 1862, participated in by the community and is still being observed each Easter Sunday.
In 1885 the old St. Luke's Church, which stood North and South, was replaced by the present structure. The tower of the old church was retained as the South transcript in the new building.
Silas McBee was the architect and builder, carving with his own hands the lovely altar, reredos, and the credence table. Through his efforts the beautiful stained glass windows were imported from England, with the exception of the one given by Fassifern School in memory of Mrs. Anne Shipp McBee.
Thomas Wetmore and Will Sumner assisted in the carving of the woodwork in the church interior. The outside has long been bricked, and a furnace and air conditioning system installed.
Elizabeth McBee Lander (Tume), and her husband Verlin, had a special pew in the church. Tume was the oldest communicant until her death in 1950. The special pew used by Mrs. Lander's mother. The Landers are buried in the church cemetery.
Tume Lander was one of the organizers of St. Cyprian's Church. Her husband was a barber for many years. He sold out his business in 1949 because of failing health.
Rectors serving St. Luke's after Dr. Wetmore's death were full time and supply ministers. The Rev. D.T. Johnson, 1904-1907, The Rev. W.R. Dye 1909-1914, The Rev. John H. Crosby, The Rev. C.J. Parker, The Rev. R.S. Lassiter, and The Rev. C.E. Bentley 1916-1920, The Rev. Saunders R. Guignard, April 1, 1921 to September 1929.
The Church was without a rector for six years using lay services and guest ministers, until the arrival of The Rev. Frank Bloxham on January 1, 1940. The Rev. Bloxham was rector when the church observed it 100th anniversary in 1941.
Due to the shortage of men that year three women served on the Vestry, Miss Pansy Wood, secretary, Miss Wilhamina Rees, and myself. My son Quintin served as Crucifer and acolyte.
In 1942 The Rev. Maxwell Ganter became rector, followed by The Rev. Grant Omer Folmesbee from the fall of 1944 until the summer of 1946 when The Rev. J.C. Huske Jr. was the rector for a short time.
The Rev. Richard J. Lee, rector of the Hinsdale Church in Chicago for 26 years came to St. Luke's as rector from 1948-1958.
The Rev. Howard Seamon Giere served as rector from March 15, 1959 until February 15, 1962.
The Rev. Wlech K. Tester served from August 1, 1962 until May 31, 1965. He was responsible for the brick wall around the church cemetery and other extensive remodeling of the church, parish house and rectory.
The Rev. John Fraser Chalker was rector from December 15, 1965 until his death June 18, 1971.
A Short History and Appreciation of
St. Luke's Episcopal Church
by Virginia B. Froneberger
Quite by accident one morning I ran into a gentleman browsing through St. Luke's Churchyard. He introduced himself as a Mr. Harrison Toler from Kansas City. He was so intent in this scrutiny and so eager to talk that I lingered.
"I have made a special trip of coming through Lincolnton," he said, "for the sole purpose of seeing this historic and traditional Church. I understand that it has a glorious heritage."
I was quick to confirm his statement, and anxious to prove that St. Luke's fulfilled all the reports that had come to his attention.
We walked around together and with enthusiasm I showed him where a number of prominent people of the Parish had been buried-familiar names in this locality, names that stood for usefulness, patriotism, honesty, faithfulness, progress. He read aloud Hoke, Guion, McBee, Gheen, Page, Love, Williams, Sumner, Wilson, Cobb, Alexander, Grigg, Shipp, McLean, Phifer and others.
We visited the graves of Lt. William Shipp, killed on San Juan Hill during the Spanish American War, Lorenzo Ferrier, a Frenchman, for many years a citizen of Lincolnton, and who had been a soldier in the French Army under Napoleon, and that of a U.S. Army officer shot in ambush near Lincolnton just after the War Between the States. I pointed out particularly the spot where Mr. Barr, a Presbyterian minister was buried, and we spent some time discussing the grave of Gen. Stephen D. Ramseur. He became a General at the age of 27, he was mortally wounded at Cedar Creek, Virginia, October 18, 1864.
We paid homage to the monument erected to Marshall Wilson Byers who lost his life in the battle of Lessay, France, July 14, 1944.
"It is interesting to note", I told Mr. Toler, "that four clergyman of the Church are buried here." The Rev. Mr. E.T. Bland, Rev. Mr. T.S.W. Mott, Rector Dr. W.R. Wetmore and the Rev. Fontis Anthony.
The history of the Church of course is written in the lives of its people and Mr. Toler urged that I give him some idea of the foundations laid in the past by some of these wonderful men and women.
I went back to the very beginning.
It was the 29th of November 1841 that we find it stated, that a number of the citizens of Lincolnton assembled together for the purpose of forming a congregation of the Episcopal Church. Twelve persons appear to have been present at the meeting which was held in the old Academy Building, now the Public Library. The congregation was then and there duly formed, the original document drawn up and signed at the meeting is still in existence and is a part of the records of the Parish. The signers were: D. Reinhardt, James M Lytle, W. Williamson, L.E. Thompson, Thomas M. Herndon, Jeremiah W. Murphy, Haywood W. Guion, Vardry A. McBee, H.L. Hicks M. Hoke, R. Williamson, Jr., Thoms. G. Williamson, Thos. W. Lytle.
On March 2, 1842, Col. John Hoke conveyed to the Trustees of St. Luke's Episcopal Church, the lot on which the present Church stands. Haywood W. Guion drew plans for the church and supervised the work of the building. On the 9th of March in the same year the corner stone of the first St. Luke's Church was laid by the Rev. E.M. Forbes, its first Rector. It was due to Mr. Forbes that the church acquired the greatest part of whatever strength it may now possess. There followed a succession of Rectors serving the Parish for varying lengths of time. The Rev. Thomas S.W. Mott came to St. Luke's March 1st, 1852. The whole number of Parishioners including all ages was 52 exclusive of a few slaves; the communicants were 21, and the confirmed but non-communicating members numbered about 20.
Mr. Mott resigned in 1854, and again there were many changes of ministers. The Rev. C.F. Bland served during this time from 1857-1861. The Rev. Wm. R. Wetmore assumed the Rectorship of the Parish in 1862.
It has been truly said that any institution is a projection and reflection of its guiding spirits, and in a very real sense this is true of the Church under the leadership of Mr. Wetmore. He lived in his own house on South Cedar Street and taught school from time to time. He established many missions, the most outstanding being a "Mission of the Church of Our Savior", West of Lincolnton, known as Woodside. This work was at first for the slaves of the Woodside Plantation. It is now a very strong Mission and in 1940 completed the erection of a new church building. Three men in the Church's ministry have come from Woodside-the Rev. Charles Hoffman, the Rev. N.C. Duncan and the Rev. Boston M. Lackey.
The beautiful Easter Sunrise Service of St. Luke's was instituted by the Rev. W.R. Wetmore, a service which has not failed since that time. It was the day he loved above all other. For once in the year every family in Lincolnton was represented in the happy throng that greeted the risen Lord with songs of praise.
At this point I remembered a newspaper slipping written by Miss Kate C. Shipp that I knew Mr. Toler would appreciate. I ran into the Church, searched through the historic records and handed him the following article:
"The first Eastertide I remember was that following Lee's surrender. It was not Easter itself that impressed itself upon my mind, but the events of the day following. On Easter Monday, April 17th, the Northern soldiers entered Lincolnton. Of course I did not then know the date, but have since had it filled by older people. I do not know whether there had been a warning, but the children of the McBee, Lay and Shipp families were, under the supervision of nurses, playing around the steps of the old "Female" Academy, about two blocks from their homes. What I remember is that Mr. Wetmore came rushing by and shouted to us, without stopping, "Children, go home the Yankees are coming!" He was on his way to take care of his own family, and to give warning to those who were not in their homes. Those who remember him in his days of activity can realize the length of the steps and the angle of his coat tails. At his advice, or command, we stood not on the order of your going. Nurses snatched up those who could not travel with speed and in and incredibly short time we were under parental roof trees. We had no idea of what a Yankee was like. My mental picture was a creature with "raw head and bloody bones". As the Yankees came into town, one little girl, catching sight of them, cried out, "La Mamma: They ain't nothing but me."
Bishop Lay, a refugee in Lincolnton at the time, was suspected of having papers belonging to President Davis. He was arrested, while robing in the vestry room of St. Luke's, and carried to Washington. He was acquitted of whatever charge was preferred, and returned to his family, then living in a small house on the property then belonging to Judge Shipp, called formerly the "Slade House". Both these houses have been torn away.
Dr. Wetmore was a great walker as well as worker. It is said that he walked to Iron Station to teach school. He was known to walk to Shelby for services there. He walked to Cherryville in the snow to baptize a child. On one occasion he went to High Shoals on horseback, the horse not proceeding sufficiently fast was hitched by the wayside and the Dr. proceeded on foot. (The explanation later was that the horse became stubborn and so the Rector left him and went on.)
Mr. Wetmore's students became some of the most eminent men in their professions, lacking nothing in the way of fine scholarship and thorough training. Those who went into the ministry were Rev. W.S. Bynum, Rev. Cardry McBee, Rev. Thomas Wetmore, Rev C.R. Cody, Rev. Frontis Anthony, and Rev. Coachman Preston. Dr. Wetmore's life seems to have been one of the great usefulness and moral and spiritual uplift to the whole community. That is why this monument erected to his memory by his friends in 1907 is near Cedar Street. His whole life was a spotless example of Christian purity and unselfishness. The Parish House over there to the left, a gift from Judge Preston Bynum of Charlotte, was given as a memorial to Dr. Wetmore: it was completed and dedicated June 1905.
After such a long tenure of office, the subsequent history of the Church is a story of a succession of ministers who stayed but a short time. Reverends D.T. Johnson, W.R. Dye, J. Crosby, G.S. Parker, C.E. Bentley, Saunders Guignard, John C. Seagle, J.G. Grainger, Frank Bloxhom, Grant Fornsbey, Joe Haas and Richard Lee.
The Present Rectory-I pointed out to Mr. Toler-was built during the Rectorship for the Rev. W.R. Dye. The lot was given by Mrs. Vardry McBee.
St. Luke's, I went on to explain, has furnished besides her eight or nine men for the ministry many prominent men of professional and business life, in law, medicine, statecraft, education, agriculture, as soldiers and in other fields of endeavor, including Michael Hoke, Col. John F. Hoke, Haywood W. Guion, Judge W.P. Bynum, Judge W. M. Shipp, Silas McBee, Gen. R.F. Hoke, Wm. Julius Alexander, Judge W.A. Hoke, Major John D. Shaw, Major A.W. Burton, V.A. McBee, Dr. J.M. Richardson, Capt. C.C. Wrenshaw, B.H. Sumner, J.G. Cobb and others.
St. Luke's has grown but slowly for the very reason that so many of her sons and daughters have moved to larger cities, and lives of greater influence.
Mr. Silas McBee's daughter, Dr. Vadrine McBee, founded and conducted Ashley hall, a high grade private school in Charleston, S.C.
Fassifern School was established in Lincolnton in 1907 by Miss Kate Shipp. Many students came from various points, besides a large local patronage, and under the capable management of Miss Shipp, work of superior merit was done here. The demand for larger equipment was met by enterprising business men of Hendersonville on condition that the school be moved to that city, and there a much larger student body found accommodation and the school was recognized among the best of its kind of the State. Fassifern has always been a monument to the rare genius and sacrifices of Miss Shipp.
This year, 1951, its doors have closed, but it is with great hope that the institution can be carried on at some future time.
I suggested to Mr. Toler now that he look at the Church itself. The original building, I explained has undergone several changes. During Mr. Wetmore's time, in 1885 and 1886 the old Church which stood North and South was replaced by the present structure facing East and West, but the tower of the first building remained. The single spire pointing upward like a finger is a silent witness to our faith in the One True God. In 1917 during the Rectorship of the Rev. C.E. Bentley, the Church was clothed in stucco, but it proved a failure and fell off badly. In 1923 during Mr. Sanders R. Guignard's service, the Vestry decided to veneer the whole church with red brick and white mortar, with the result as the church now appears. The work was accomplished through the advice of Mr. Slaughter of Raleigh, architect of Lincolnton Court House, and the services of Mr. H.D. Kistler, contractor who had worked on the Church in 1886 and at that time a member of the Vestry.
I pointed out to Mr. Toler that the Church is built in the shape of the Cross, and as we walked up the front steps and opened the doors he caught his first sight of the beautiful Gothic architecture of the interior. The religious feeling is well expressed in the lofty arches and highly decorative details.
"Do you know anything about an Episcopal Church building in general?". I asked Mr. Toler.
He answered in the negative. I knew that he would have a greater appreciation and understanding of what he was viewing if I would take the time to explain as we went along.
Experience shows that people are affected by their surroundings. Put them in a worshipful building and they are sure to be stirred by an impulse to reverence. As one furnishes a dining room with table, chairs etc., so the Church's furnishings are necessary to our worship.
The first thing to attract your attention, I went on to explain, is the long, straight passageway which runs from end to end. This is called the center aisle. The altar is always at the East end of the Church, representative of God's spiritual Presence. The font is generally at the West end, near the entrance, indication that by baptism one gains admission into the Christian life. So the center aisle is a parable of the Way of Life, reaching from birth to the throne of God, from the font to the altar.
The original font was made and placed in the Church in 1859. A donation for this was given by Mrs. Mary Brent Smith, the stone by Mr. L.E. Thompson, and the marble shaft by Mr. William Tiddy. The Rector, Mr. Bland, also gave of his time and labor in the construction. The present esthetically proportioned marble font was given by Lt. Wm. Shipp, Mrs. Sumner McBee in memory of their mother Mrs. Catherine Cameron Shipp.
The Lectern, from which the Gospel is read, stands at one side. The lectern was hand hewn and carved by Mr. Ed James, a member of the congregation during the 1860's. The pulpit stands on the other side. The pulpit is a recent gift from Mr. J.F. Mullen.
The interior has three main divisions:
The nave is the main part of the church where the congregation sits. Advancing toward the altar, the chancel is the next section, elevated above the floor of the nave. The sanctuary is separated from the chancel by the altar rail and is the place for the ministering clergy and their assistants. Through all of these three divisions the center aisle runs free and open.
In the center of the altar stands the Cross with candles on either side. They are a visible reminder that Christ is the Light of the World. The flowers on the altar are not there because they are beautiful in themselves, but as a symbol of the resurrection. As the seed dies in order to produce the more beautiful blossom, so does human life die in order that it may flower in eternal life.
The frame for the altar is called the reredos. I now suggested to Mr. Toler that we go closer in order for him to examine the elaborate carving extending high up the wall. Mr. Silas McBee, a member of the Parish and Vestry during 1885 and 1886, (who later became nationally known as Editor of the Churchman; and internationally known as founder and editor of the Constructive Quarterly) did the carving with his own hands of the altar and reredos, The credence table, ( a small table to the right on which are placed various articles used in the communion service) was carved by Rev. Tom Wetmore-the son of Dr. Wetmore and founder of Christ School in Arden. The Bishop's chair was made by Mr. John Cobb.
I pointed to the Rood Screen, the beam across the arch of the chancel and explained that the beautiful carving there had been done by Mr. J.E. Love, assisted by Mr. Will Sumner, during the same years that Mr. McBee had done his work.
I directed Mr. Toler's attention to an antique chest, given in 1886 by the Rev. John McVicar, D.D. of the Diocese of New York. I opened the chest and let him read the following article attached to the lid, which appeared in a Church Paper that same year:
"It is proper to give publicity to the fact that the Rev. John McVickar, D.D. of New York has presented to St. Luke's Church, Lincolnton, N., a very handsome and valuable gift consisting of a full set of altar linen, three pieces of Communion Silver-chalice, paten and alms basin, a surplice and stole, and antique chest and a number of Bibles and Prayer Books, St. Luke's became the fortunate recipient of this donation thus: twenty years ago Dr. McVickar the appointed Chaplain on Governor's Island, in New York Harbor, erected on the island a beautiful little chapel, giving it the name of St. Cornelius, which he has constantly officiated in during this score of years. Recently on resigning his chaplainry, the Doctor gave the chapel, the title to which had remained in him, to the government to be used for the sacred purposes for which it was built; and he wrote to an old friend in N.C. who held during the war a high commission in the Confederate Army, and to who the Doctor became warmly attached while the former was in command at Governor's Island as a major in the U.S. Army previous to the war, to choose some Church in the South to which the above named present should be given. "The most dear and sacred gift I have been able to bestow", the donor writes. St. Luke's was the choice of the southern friend."
In connection with this episode, I told Mr. Toler that Mrs. Eleanor Roosevelt wrote in one of her columns, "My Day" that the little Church of St. James in Hyde Park was tied up with St. Luke's in Lincolnton thorough the generosity of one of the early rectors, the Rev. John McVickar. It is understood that Mrs. Roosevelt was interested in knowing if these gifts could be bought for the Hyde Park Church.
I thought this an opportunity time to say that St. Luke's had received many other valuable and useful gifts. I mentioned some of these. The family of the late James T. Williams presented a set of Eucharistic Vestments for the use of the Parish as a memorial to the life and work of Dr. Wetmore. There are no handsomer vestments in any Church.
The silver bowl used in Baptism was given by lt. Col. W.E. Shipp for his aunt the late Miss Kate Shipp in memory of Mrs. Mary Galas Day, a life friend of the family. It is a reproduction of an early American Sterling Silver Baptismal Bowl made in Boston by Wm. Cross about the year 1700, the original now being in the the Boston Museum of Fine Arts.
The Prayer Desk was presented by Col. Tom Mott from Hickory in memory of Rev. T.S.W. Mott.
Mr. Toler and I walked back to the center of the Church so that he could have the benefit of the best light possible on the beautiful stained glass windows, long and pointed as a sign of spiritual aspirations. It was through Mr. Silas McBee also that practically all of the stained glass windows were put in the Church. The last one near the tower door was placed in 1926 by the faculty and students of Fassifern School, Hendersonville, N.C., in memory of Mrs. Anna McBee, sister of Miss Kate Shipp.
These windows are the product of Lamb & Company of England and with one exception the work of the incomparable "Booth" of London. Handsome in design and excellent in workmanship they are the finest examples of stained glass windows in the United States.
There is one very exquisite round Italian window-over the front door-that I called our visitor's attention to. It is named "The Cherubim". The soft rose and blue toned colors and the repose in the angelic faces of the children are a stirring and beautiful thing to see.
Before we left I wanted to show Mr. Toler how the new improvements in our Church were taking place without destroying the old atmosphere. We are indebted to our present Rector, Mr. Richard Lee, for gathering the congregation together, venturing great things despite discouragements and seeming obstacles and carrying us forward. In the three years since he has been here, the handsome Cathedral lanterns, a gift from Mr. A.E. Miller, have been hung, the altar and reredos cleaned and done over to show the beautiful old wood and delicate carving, the altar lights installed, a new organ purchased through generous contributions and hard work, and many other conveniences carried out. The physical property of the Church. Parish and Rectory has all been definitely improved, and work is now beginning toward installing an efficient and modern oil heating system.
The Parish records show that during Mr. Lee's three years of Rectorship 41 persons have been baptized, 36 confirmed and an increase in the pledged income of over $1,000.00 a year.
The mission "The Church of Our Savior" is making proportionate progress.
And now I was ready to say goodbye, hoping that I had given Mr. Toler enough information to carry with him a true appreciation of the historic, beautiful edifice of St. Luke's, recognizing that her members have contributed largely to the life of community, state and nation, and counting upon the loyalty and support of members and friends to make it a truly spiritual center and a place of power for the upbuilding of The Kingdom of God.
References:
Sherrill's "Annals of Lincoln County"
"A Record of the First One Hundred Years"
Published by the Vestry of St. Luke's, 1941
Newspaper Clippings
Tombstone records
Historic markers
Personal knowledge of Miss Mary Wood Sumner
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