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with
Captain Harrison's supervision. Mention should be made here of the devotion to detail of these men, for many years later (October 1950), when the structure was moved from the School Street (now Locust Street) location to its present site on Trinity Avenue, the consulting architect examined it and reported: “ the rest of the 60-year-old structure is in remarkably good shape, and in general it is put together with greater care and skill than one finds in most modern furniture – not to mention present-day wood framing.”
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Walnut Creek. In June 1947, $ 5,000 was paid for a 1-acre (4,000 m) lot on Walnut Street (now
Trinity Avenue) as a site for a new church. The land was originally owned by a grandfather of Martin Stow (St. Paul's organist 1976). On October 20, 1950, the church was moved from its original location on Locust Street to the new property on Trinity Avenue. The parish hall was also moved.
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236:, conducted the first service at St. Paul's Benicia on October 21, 1854. As the population expanded, and as church records show the distances the clergy traveled to perform the pastoral offices at ranch homes, Grace Episcopal Church in Martinez was the next mission formally organized on March 12, 1870.
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Holding church services in the schoolhouse or in the town hall, the founding families of St. Paul's discussed the next step of building a church. A convenient Walnut Creek location was found on School Street (now Locust Street) and the price was right. On
December 19, 1887, a gold coin in the amount
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In 1946, the
Reverend James P. Trotter accepted a call and the Reverend David W. C. Graham came to St. Paul's as the second rector. During his tenure at St. Paul's, it was decided that the little church was no longer able to take care of the ever-increasing number of Episcopalians who were coming to
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The
Reverend Wilfred H. Hodgkin came to St. Paul's in 1951 for ten years of service during a period of great expansion. The number of communicants during his tenure tripled from 359 to 941, in spite of the founding of three missions directly from the congregation. It was under his guidance that the
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In May 1889, Captain
Harrison represented St. Paul's Mission as a delegate to the Diocesan Convention held at the Church of the Advent in San Francisco, when St. Paul's Mission was admitted into union with the Diocese of California. The Convention Journal contains the first parochial report for the
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Everyone set to so that the necessary funds might be raised and their church building become a reality. One project succeeded another and somehow the total reached the necessary $ 1600. Ground was broken in
November 1888. The actual construction work was done by Cornelius Waite and his associates,
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area when Bishop Kip asked him to take care of Grace, Martinez. This he did in 1880. He was willing to assume this extra responsibility and on August 21, 1887, Dr. Abercrombie conducted the first
Episcopal church service in Walnut Creek. Neighboring clergy assisted for intervening services, but it
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and other priests-in-charge served the congregation of St. Paul's. In 1939, the
Reverend James P. Trotter came directly to St. Paul's from General Seminary in New York. He was, therefore, the Vicar who met head-on the vanguard of the great migration to California begun during World War II. It was
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The fund-raising and the contributions grew, so only two years after the completion of the church building, the mortgage was cleared, and on April 26, 1891, the Right
Reverend William Ford Nichols, Assistant Bishop of the Diocese of California, consecrated the church. Six people were in the first
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Dr. Abercrombie was not well enough to handle a building program, so Bishop Kip assigned The Reverend Hamilton Lee to take charge of the work in Walnut Creek. Organization of the congregation took priority, so in June 1888, St. Paul's Mission, Walnut Creek, was formally organized, with Bishop Kip
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The following Sunday, April 28, was the official opening day and a very festive service it was, with Dr. Abercrombie again officiating, assisted by The Reverend Hobart Chetwood and The Reverend Hamilton Lee. St. Paul's Mission was on its way. Walnut Creek was now served by four churches: the
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style chapel of St. Paul's is the oldest church building in Walnut Creek. It is still used for regular Sunday and midweek services including small weddings and memorial services. The Walnut Creek Historical Society named the chapel of St. Paul's a historical building.
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By mutual agreement rather than by any formal action, it was agreed that Isabella Harrison and Maria O’Neil would speak with Dr. James Abercrombie, Missionary-in-Charge of Grace Church Martinez, about the possibility of establishing an
351:, Cornelius joined his brother in the contracting business. In 1884 or 1885, the Waites purchased land south of Walnut Creek (in the Rudgear area) and spent weekends only “in the country” until 1907 when Cornelius retired.
401:, their building was not quite completed, but Dr. Abercrombie appreciated how they felt, for he made the long trip from Martinez and offered the early Communion service in the new church. Only a few families were present.
312:), California, where Dr. Pearson taught school. In March 1877, they moved to Walnut Creek, where Dr. Pearson taught in the local school for a short time before resuming the practice of medicine and opening a drug store.
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Cornelius and Mary Ann Johnson Waite met when Cornelius’ brother, John, could not take his music lesson from Mary Ann's father, and Cornelius went in his place to take a lesson on the cornet. They were married in
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new church building became a reality and a new parish hall became a necessity after the fire in the hall. When the new church building was completed in 1954, the original church building became the chapel.
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Born Akron, Ohio; daughter of Susan Marie Newman, and Dale Lee Harmon; graduate of University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and the Church Divinity School of the Pacific; married to Tom Fregoso.
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Episcopalians from the Walnut Creek area traveled the twelve-mile (19 km) trip to Martinez for Sunday services. The trip by horse and buggy usually took about two hours. Desiring to have a
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for their children and church-sponsored activities closer to home, five families from the Walnut Creek area were drawn together by their associations at Grace, Martinez.
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in Walnut Creek. At this time in 1887, Dr. Abercrombie was 72 years of age. After long service in the ministry and serving as Rector of Trinity,
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during his tenure that St. Paul's achieved parish status in 1944 and the Reverend James P. Trotter became the first rector of St. Paul's.
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was Dr. Abercrombie's joy on October 9, 1887, to officiate at the first service of the Holy Communion in Walnut Creek.
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for service in the merchant fleet. While captain of a Cunard liner, he met Isabella McLeod, a passenger from
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new mission: 12 communicants; 6 baptisms; 16 in Sunday school; 12 services; $ 2,014.90 annual income.
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appointing Captain Alfred B. Harrison as Warden, John Thorne as Clerk, and Henry O’Neil as Treasurer.
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Episcopalians who lived in the Walnut Creek area in the 1850s had to travel via the
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St. Paul's remained a mission church from its beginning through the beginning of
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Methodist, the Presbyterian, St. Mary's Roman Catholic, and St. Paul's.
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of $ 175 was exchanged for a deed for the land on School Street.
433:. During this time, the various Bishops of California assigned
36:, completed in 1889 on Locust St., moved in 1950 to Trinity Ave.
590:; daughter of Joe F. Vasquez and Celia Ovalle; graduate of the
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The Rev. James P. Trotter, vicar 1939–1944, rector 1944–1946):
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April 21, 1889, was a special day for the “founders”. It was
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570:; son of Fred Kilby Reynolds and Miriam Evelyn; graduate of
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The Rev. Martha Sylvia Ovalle Vásquez, rector 2006 – 2016:
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The Rev. David Warwick Cranbrook Graham, rector 1946–1951:
482:, son of David B. Graham and Helen Cranbrook; graduate of
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The Rev. Stephen Dexter McWhorter, rector 1978–1987:
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The Rev. Wilfred Haughton Hodgkin, rector 1951–1960:
563:The Rev. Robert Eugene Reynolds, rector 1989–2005:
519:The Rev. Alfred Burdon Seccombe, rector 1961–1977:
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707:Relocated buildings and structures in California
692:Carpenter Gothic church buildings in California
596:Episcopal Theological Seminary of the Southwest
603:The Rev. Krista Fregoso, rector 2018–present:
296:. He practiced in the south and then moved to
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667:Grace Episcopal Church, Martinez, California
292:, and studied medicine after serving in the
217:to the first Episcopal mission in the area,
712:Churches in Contra Costa County, California
697:Christian organizations established in 1887
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646:Episcopal Church Clerical Directory 2007.
470:in New York; married to Ann Louise Alger;
277:Henry and Maria C. O’Neil emigrated from
687:Episcopal church buildings in California
534:; married to Elizabeth Clagett Welbourn;
250:Alfred Bernard Harrison was a native of
727:19th-century Episcopal church buildings
281:and made their home on Charles Hill in
576:Church Divinity School of the Pacific
512:Church Divinity School of the Pacific
488:Church Divinity School of the Pacific
413:class confirmed at the same service.
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494:; married to Margaret Ellen Wilson;
425:St. Paul's Church completed in 1954
304:. In 1876, the Pearsons settled in
508:University of California, Berkeley
288:Dr. Joseph E. Pearson was born in
16:Church in Walnut Creek, California
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722:1887 establishments in California
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270:in 1872. In 1887, they moved to
672:Episcopal Diocese of California
662:St. Paul's, Benicia, California
578:; married to Elizabeth Walters;
194:Episcopal Diocese of California
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514:; married to Ann Barratt Hall;
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532:Virginia Theological Seminary
492:Virginia Theological Seminary
556:Episcopal Theological School
468:General Theological Seminary
417:The mission becomes a parish
331:in 1869 and settled in the
315:Mary E. Thorne was born in
290:Livingston County, New York
182:St. Paul's Episcopal Church
22:St. Paul's Episcopal Church
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717:Churches completed in 1889
460:Victoria, British Columbia
450:List of vicars and rectors
173:Senior: Lisa Bell Stewart,
592:Oblate School of Theology
544:Charleston, West Virginia
343:in 1865 and emigrated to
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702:Walnut Creek, California
598:; married to Bill Ennis;
572:Arizona State University
552:University of Pittsburgh
548:West Virginia University
464:University of California
364:, he had retired in the
246:The five families were:
190:Walnut Creek, California
48:Walnut Creek, California
148:The Rev. Krista Fregoso
528:University of Virginia
524:Beverly, Massachusetts
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641:History of St. Paul's
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335:area of Walnut Creek.
319:in 1849 and moved to
302:Lincolnshire, England
283:Lafayette, California
158:The Rev. Laurie Moyer
504:Berkeley, California
272:Danville, California
234:Bishop of California
230:William Ingraham Kip
632:Christianity portal
480:St. Louis, Missouri
373:Building the church
321:Hyde Park, New York
266:, and then came to
175:Junior: Julie Layne
121:Marc Handley Andrus
45:1924 Trinity Avenue
588:San Antonio, Texas
484:Occidental College
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345:Hannibal, Missouri
294:American Civil War
188:parish located in
568:Prescott, Arizona
381:Historical Marker
325:St. James’ Church
260:Washington, D. C.
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70:www.stpaulswc.org
34:St. Paul's Chapel
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358:Episcopal Church
198:Carpenter Gothic
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55:Denomination
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366:Los Angeles
681:Categories
618:References
554:, and the
329:California
252:Devonshire
219:St. Paul's
133:St. Paul's
116:California
82:Dedication
306:Bay Point
264:Minnesota
192:, in the
186:Episcopal
154:Deacon(s)
60:Episcopal
594:and the
574:and the
510:and the
298:Illinois
215:Martinez
123:, Bishop
99:Province
87:St. Paul
42:Location
643:, 1977.
349:Oakland
341:England
333:Saranap
223:Benicia
205:History
196:. The
111:Diocese
76:History
66:Website
550:, the
490:, and
486:, the
435:vicars
399:Easter
256:London
225:. The
144:Rector
138:Clergy
129:Parish
586:Born
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458:Born
213:from
211:ferry
163:Laity
530:and
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104:VIII
221:in
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