St. John's Episcopal Church is located at 2600 Church Avenue in the Ohio City neighborhood of

Cleveland, Ohio Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...

. St. John's is the oldest consecrated building in Cuyahoga county. This stone

gothic revival Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic, neo-Gothic, or Gothick) is an architectural movement that began in the late 1740s in England. The movement gained momentum and expanded in the first half of the 19th century, as increasingly ...

church building was designed by

Hezekiah Eldredge Hezekiah Eldredge (April 3, 1795 – August 25, 1845) was an early American architect. Born in South Mansfield, Connecticut, he moved to New York then on to Cleveland, Ohio. He became known as a fine carpenter and because of his skills later t ...

and built beginning in 1836 and was completed 1838. Eldridge was probably familiar with John Henry Hopkins' "An Essay on Gothic Architecture", the first book on Gothic

ecclesiastical architecture Church architecture refers to the architecture of buildings of churches, convents, seminaries etc. It has evolved over the two thousand years of the Christian religion, partly by innovation and partly by borrowing other architectural styles as ...

to be published in the United States. St. John's is a good representative of a small group of American churches inspired by Hopkins' book. On November 9, 1816, a group of Episcopalians met in the log home of Phineas Shepard on the Cleveland's west side at what is now West 25th Street and Detroit Avenue, to organize what was to become Trinity Parish. The parish is the site of the original

Episcopal Episcopal may refer to: *Of or relating to a bishop, an overseer in the Christian church *Episcopate, the see of a bishop – a diocese *Episcopal Church (disambiguation), any church with "Episcopal" in its name ** Episcopal Church (United State ...

congregation A congregation is a large gathering of people, often for the purpose of worship. Congregation may also refer to: *Church (congregation), a Christian organization meeting in a particular place for worship *Congregation (Roman Curia), an administra ...

in Cleveland. In 1825, east side members moved the original parish, named Trinity from Ohio City, to a site near Public Square. West side members remained in Ohio City, naming the new parish St. John's. Trinity Cathedral is now the seat of the Episcopal Diocese of Ohiobr>
St. John's was also the mother church to several of the west side parishes. In 1837, the Ohio City Directory described the church as follows, "The Episcopal Church, which is not yet finished, is built of hammered stone, and has a lofty steeple. Its style of architecture is Gothic, resembling that of the ancient and venerable Cathedral. This building, when finished, will be one of the best of the kind in the western country, and may be considered as an ornament to the young city". The original bell (1846) now is housed in the west side of the narthex, due to weakening of the steeple. Next to the church stands the frame gothic revival

Parish Hall A church hall or parish hall is a room or building associated with a church, generally for community and charitable use.

is circa (1875). This "Gothicized meeting house" has been rebuilt twice, once after a fire in the 1880s and once after a tornado in 1953. The present plan, with neither a central aisle nor an apse, is therefore similar to the original plan. At one time the church was more elaborate than it is today; the church

pinnacle A pinnacle is an architectural element originally forming the cap or crown of a buttress or small turret, but afterwards used on parapets at the corners of towers and in many other situations. The pinnacle looks like a small spire. It was mainly ...

s no longer exist. St, John's was known as "Station Hope" on the Underground Railroad. An Episcopal parish continued to worship in this space through December, 2007; and the building remains property of the Diocese. Currently, social justice events, guest speakers and meetings also occur at the church. As of 2016, the Vicar is The Rev. Kelly Aughenbaugh. Yearly, an event called "Station Hope" occurs in spring. The following is from an advertisement for the event: "STATION HOPE 2017 - A Beacon Of Freedom. A Convening of Community. A CELEBRATION OF HOPE. - Join over 200 artists to engage and reflect on social justice, equity and a shared vision of hope- on the grounds of Cleveland's first authenticated Underground Railroad site, St. John's Episcopal Church in Ohio City. Audiences explore the historic church and surrounding properties to view short works of theatre, music, storytelling and dance, along with choir performances and visual art installations inspired by the most important issues of our time. Saturday, April 29, 2017-- FREE AND OPEN TO ALL." This event is done in partnership with the Cleveland Public Theatre, and other community organizations.

Noted members

William B. Castle William Bainbridge Castle (November 30, 1814 – February 28, 1872) was an American politician of the Whig Party who served as the 11th and final mayor of Ohio City from 1853 to 1854 and the 14th mayor of Cleveland, Ohio from 1855 to 1856. Ca ...

: Cleveland mayor * Mark Hanna:

industrialist A business magnate, also known as a tycoon, is a person who has achieved immense wealth through the ownership of multiple lines of enterprise. The term characteristically refers to a powerful entrepreneur or investor who controls, through perso ...

and Republican politician from Cleveland. *

: builder, charter member and was a member of the Vestry.

References

*www.dohio.org *Cleveland Public Theatre, www.cptonline.org
History of Trinity parish, Cleveland
* ttp://planning.city.cleveland.oh.us/landmark/landlist.htm Designated Cleveland Landmarksbr>History of St. John's Church

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Saint John's Episcopal Church, Cleveland, Ohio Churches in Cleveland Episcopal churches in Ohio Churches on the Underground Railroad History of Cleveland Churches completed in 1838 19th-century Baptist churches in the United States Gothic Revival church buildings in Ohio Churches on the National Register of Historic Places in Ohio National Register of Historic Places in Cleveland, Ohio Ohio City, Cleveland 19th-century Episcopal church buildings 1838 establishments in Ohio