History of Trinity   "One generation shall praise your works to another... They shall praise the remembrance of your great goodness." - Psalm 145

In 1994 Trinity Episcopal Church celebrated the two hundredth anniversary of the first Episcopal service in Rutland, Vermont. In honor of this event a history of the parish was compiled and published. The history of Trinity was written by Audrey Murdock (parish historian at the time), with assistance from Christopher Powell (who was then rector) and Mary Pratt (who was then Trinity's deacon).

The following excerpts are either taken or paraphrased from that booklet, "A History of Trinity Episcopal Church Rutland, VT".

Two of the images on this page are from a USGenWeb Archives Web Site, Penny Postcards From Vermont, and are used with kind permission of the postcards' owner Joy R. Fisher.

Old State House

The Old State House which was built around 1775 and demolished in the early 1900s, was on West Street facing Court Square and situated close to the Rutland Armory. The State Legislature met here in October 1784 and 1786, and the first Episcopal service in Rutland was held here on March 4, 1794.

In 1832 Vermont became a diocese separate from the Eastern Diocese which had formerly included New Hampshire, Massachusetts and Rhode Island. On April 22 the first Vestry of Trinity Church was appointed. On this same day, a committee was formed to purchase a site for an Episcopal Church building in Rutland. The group soon purchased a parcel of land for $450 on the west side of North Main Street, a little north of West Street (about where Wendy's Restaurant is today).

Bishop John Henry Hopkins

The Church, designed by Bishop John Henry Hopkins, was built entirely of wood with a square tower in the center containing the present bell (which was first rung March 11, 1855). It had a basement which was used for Sunday School and for weekday services.

Early photo of Trinity Church on West Street

In 1849 the railroad came to Rutland and the town began to expand. As a result there was soon a need for a new church building. Plans were put on hold due to the outbreak of the Civil War, but in 1863 the site was selected and purchased for our present church building. On August 16, 1865, the new Trinity Church was consecrated by Bishop Hopkins. Bishop Hopkins had been the rector of Trinity and was responsible for planning and designing the new church.

Hopkins Chapel

Under the direction of the fifth Rector, the Rev. William J. Harris, (1870 - 1876) the chapel was designed and built. The Women of Trinity defrayed the entire cost of building the chapel, $2,500. In the chapel is the marble altar mensa and the chancel chairs from our first church. The chapel was completed in 1876 and has been continuously used for weekday services and by the Sunday School. The chapel was blessed on Sunday, April 24, 1994 by Bishops John Smith and Harvey Butterfield (former rectors at Trinity). It was named "Hopkins Chapel" in memory of the Right Reverend John Henry Hopkins.

In his "Afterword" written for the History of Trinity, The Rev. Christopher Powell points out that Audrey Murdock's painstaking efforts in researching our history have reminded us that we are part of a great cloud of witnesses. Many of these witnesses have names and faces which have been important to our lives. Some of them will always be unknown to us in this life; but, known or unknown, their efforts are now part of our effort to rejoice in the new life we share in Christ.

The Rt. Rev. John H. Smith served Trinity from 1974 - 1989. In 1989, Fr. John was nominated and elected as Bishop of West Virginia.

Succeeding Bishop Smith was the Rev. Christopher Powell, our seventeenth rector who was here from 1990 - 2002. Fr. Powell left Trinity when he was called to be rector of St. James' Episcopal Church in Jackson, Mississippi.

Our eighteenth rector, the Rev. Alan Gibson, came to Trinity in the summer of 2004 from Navesink, NJ where he had served as rector of All Saints Memorial Church for nine years. We sadly bid "adieu" to Fr. Alan in January, 2008 when he left Trinity to accept a call to serve as rector of St. Andrews Episcopal Church in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

With joyful hearts, we welcomed the Rev. Canon Lee Alison Crawford, Ph.D. who joined us as our Priest-In-Partnership in November, 2008. Lee served as Rector at St. Mary's Parish, Northfield, VT for fourteen years before coming to Trinity. She was named Canon Missioner of the IAES (Anglican Episcopal Church of El Salvador) in August, 2004.

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We wish to thank the creators of The Mission of St. Clare   for permission to use some of their graphics on this web site.

This page was last modified on January 4, 2009