St. John's Church in Savannah is a

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christianity, Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest#Christianity, priest, often termed a parish pries ...

of the

Episcopal Diocese of Georgia The Episcopal Diocese of Georgia, USA is one of 20 dioceses that comprise Province 4 of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America, Province IV of the US Episcopal Church in the United States of America, Episcopal Church, and is a dio ...

. The church was formed in 1841 from the growing Christ Church,

Savannah A savanna or savannah is a mixed woodland-grassland (i.e. grassy woodland) biome and ecosystem characterised by the trees being sufficiently widely spaced so that the canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to reach th ...

, as part of a plan to increase Episcopal presence in Georgia and to provide for a first

bishop A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...

of the

diocese In Ecclesiastical polity, church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided Roman province, prov ...

. One of its founders was local businessman

Edward Padelford Edward Nathaniel Packard Padelford (April 30, 1799 – June 27, 1870) was an American businessman, prominent in Savannah, Georgia. He was one of the city's longest-serving merchants and most respected citizens, and was a board member of a large n ...

. After his death in 1870, his name was added to one of the church's stained-glass windows. Eleven other windows are also dedicated to notable early members of the church.''A Short Biography of Edward Padelford''
Larry Tinker (

Armstrong Atlantic State University Armstrong may refer to: Places * Armstrong Creek (disambiguation), various places * Armstrong River (disambiguation), various rivers Antarctica * Armstrong Reef, Biscoe Islands Argentina * Armstrong, Santa Fe Australia * Armstrong, Victori ...

) In addition to his Episcopal duties, the bishop would be rector of both St. John's and Christ Church. Stephen Elliott, Jr. was consecrated as Bishop of Georgia in February 1841. St. John's first building was consecrated in 1843. When the congregation outgrew this building, the construction was undertaken of the current building (which is situated in

Madison Square Madison Square is a public square formed by the intersection of Fifth Avenue and Broadway at 23rd Street in the New York City borough of Manhattan. The square was named for Founding Father James Madison, the fourth president of the United St ...

, across from the historic Green-Meldrim House, now the church's parish house). The building was designed by Calvin N. Otis of

Buffalo, New York Buffalo is a Administrative divisions of New York (state), city in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York and county seat of Erie County, New York, Erie County. It lies in Western New York at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of ...

,''Antebellum Churches in Georgia''
Don Joiner (2007) and was consecrated in May 1853. The Parish continues to use the 1928

Book of Common Prayer The ''Book of Common Prayer'' (BCP) is the title given to a number of related prayer books used in the Anglican Communion and by other Christianity, Christian churches historically related to Anglicanism. The Book of Common Prayer (1549), fi ...

, as the basis for worship. St. John's holds its property in trust for the

, and the Episcopal Church (TEC). It is included in the

Savannah Historic District Savannah Historic District may refer to: *Savannah Historic District (Savannah, Georgia), a National Historic Landmark district in Georgia * Central of Georgia Railroad: Savannah Shops and Terminal Facilities, Savannah, Georgia, a historic district ...

Rectors

References

External links

Official websiteThe Episcopal Diocese of GeorgiaThe Prayer Book Society
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint John's Church, Savannah, Georgia Landmarks in Savannah, Georgia Book of Common Prayer Episcopal church buildings in Georgia (U.S. state) Churches in Savannah, Georgia Churches completed in 1853 Religious organizations established in 1841 1841 establishments in Georgia (U.S. state) Madison Square (Savannah, Georgia) buildings Savannah Historic District

Rectors

References

Further reading

External links