Old St. Gabriel's Episcopal Church facts for kids
Quick facts for kids St. Gabriel's Episcopal Church |
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| Religion | |
| Affiliation | Episcopal Church |
| District | Diocese of Bethlehem |
| Province | III (Middle Atlantic) |
| Location | |
St. Gabriel's Episcopal Church is a very old and important church building. It is located in Douglassville, Pennsylvania. This church is part of the Episcopal Church in the United States. It has a long and interesting history.
Contents
History of St. Gabriel's
Early Beginnings
St. Gabriel's Church started a long time ago, in 1720. Back then, it was a Swedish Lutheran church. This means it was founded by people from Sweden who followed the Lutheran faith. Later, in 1760, the church joined the Church of England.
The Old Chapel
The oldest part of the church is called Saint Gabriel's 1801 Chapel. It was built in 1801. This chapel is a two-story building made of brownstone. Brownstone is a type of sandstone that has a reddish-brown color. The stone walls have a special pattern called a herringbone design. This looks like the bones of a fish. The inside of the chapel was fixed up in 1959. Because of its history, the chapel was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1978. This list helps protect important historical places.
Growing the Church Building
A larger church building was finished in 1884. This new part was made for more people to gather. In 1959, more rooms were added to the church. These new areas included offices and classrooms. The inside of the 1884 church was updated again in 2003. Then, in 2005, the part of the building added in 1959 was made even bigger. It got more classrooms and a large hall for events.
The Historic Cemetery
St. Gabriel's also has a very old cemetery. Many brave soldiers are buried there. These veterans fought in different wars throughout history. You can find soldiers from the Revolutionary War, which ended in 1783. There are 25 veterans from that war. The cemetery also has veterans from other wars, all the way up to the Persian Gulf War. There is one veteran from the Persian Gulf War buried there. The only major war not represented is the Spanish-American War.
