History of St. Paul's Parish |
| St. Paul's Parish was established in 1692.
However, that there was an an earlier church built on the old Queenstown
Road near Centreville around 1640, which was replaced in 1693 with a
brick building. A church was suggested for Centreville in 1831 and the
cornerstone laid in 1834. The old Chester Church was torn down and some
of the timbers and bricks were used in the new building.
Of interest is the fact that in the 18th century the vestry expended "14,395 pounds of tobacco" to pay for "building St. Paul's Church". Thus, the parish might not be disturbed if an incoming priest enjoyed the comforts of tobacco. Another charming anachronism of historical interest is the fact that in Maryland an Anglican priest could not be engaged nor transferred without the consent of the Governor of the State. Here is a copy of a more detailed History of St. Paul's written for History Sunday for October 26, 2003. More information concerning the Church and Parish Hall buildings can be found by visiting the Maryland Historic Trust's Historic Site Survey web site http://www.marylandhistoricaltrust.net/MIHP-search.html for site numbers QA-329 and QA-155 respectively. |