The Living Church Shines On
As I have done the work of the School Archivist the past dozen years, outside of our holdings I have come across and been guided to several key repositories of information that I consult from time to time. ?The Chronicling America Historic American Newspaper site (The Library of Congress), Hathi Trust, Washington Post and Washington Star archives (thank you DC Public Library card), ancestry.com, Google Books, and now, The Living Church magazine archives site. ?When I was researching our bronze lectern, this site gave me some excellent background about the lectern's donor, Rev. Charles C. Pierce. ?
This week, I've been collecting information about our tubular chimes in the Little Sanctuary, and I needed to provide some evidence about when we got them. ?They came as a gift from Zion Episcopal Church, Wappingers Falls, NY, given by the Bowdoin family to Bishop Henry Y. Satterlee (first Episcopal Bishop of Washington). ?On page 24 of the June 30, 1906, edition I tracked down an announcement about the bell chimes that replaced our tubular chimes in Wappingers Falls that I had seen before -- I wasn't sure I had the date and edition of the magazine correct. ?This helped confirm what I had read on Zion Church's website. ?Our tubular chimes were originally installed at Zion in 1896, and they were replaced by an 11-bell chime in 1905-1906.
"Chime of Bells for Zion Church, Wappinger's Falls -- The Meneely Bell Company of Troy is making a chime of bells on the order of George S. Bowdoin of New York City, which is to be the memorial gift of himself and wife to Zion Church, Wappinger's Falls. ?This chime will be similar to the one placed in the new magnificent memorial church, built and equipped by H. H. Rogers at Fairhaven, Mass., and the chime just erected in the new 'Christian Science Cathedral,' Boston, Mass." ?
As I scanned the archive issues of The Living Church, I noticed that group photos of The Grammar School of Racine College (GS-RC) appeared on several covers, and as I focused on the cover from June 30, 1906, I noticed a familiar face -- George Francis Green, first Athletic Director at the National Cathedral School for Boys, later St. Albans School. ?In the group photos are probably a few students in our first two graduating classes, as several boys came with Coach Green and our first Headmaster, Earl Lamont Gregg, from GS-RC. ?1906 was GS-RC's fifty-fourth year, and 158 students made up that year's student body, the graduates placed a "1906" stone in their chapel wall, and the classes of 1870 and 1871 (the "old boys") held a reunion on June 19. ?Much like at St. Albans, at the time GS-RC had three aims: spirituality, scholarship, and athletics. ?
And this edition of The Living Church wasn't done surprising me yet. ?An add for St. Alban's Academy, Knoxville, IL, appears on page 30. ?This St. Alban's was about 250 miles from GS-RC and was in existence from 1873 (first as a two year high school connected to Ansgari College, Keokuk, IA). ?After moving to Knoxville, the school closed in 1879. ?It reopened under the control of the Episcopal Church in 1890. ?Moving again to Sycamore, IL, in 1919, the Academy permanently closed in 1938 due to financial constraints and declining enrollment. ? ?
And predating us by nine years, National Cathedral School for Girls, had advertisements in this edition of the magazine and quite a few others I examined. ?The Close was only 40 of its current 57 acres, and NCS was housed entirely in the "fireproof" Hearst Hall. ?Mrs. Barbour (Mary Adelaide) Walker was the Principal, and Bishop Satterlee was the President of the Board of Trustees. ?
And although he hadn't given the bronze lectern (gifted in 1908) yet, and Bishop Satterlee didn't mention him by name, Rev. Charles C. Pierce was a frequent speaker at the open-air, Sunday afternoon services that Bishop Satterlee reported on in this issue of The Living Church, page 29.
"The Open-Air services on the Cathedral grounds have continued each Sunday afternoon since Ascension Day, except when the weather made it necessary to use St. Alban's Church. ?This Evensong under the trees and in the beautiful surroundings of the Cathedral close is now an established feature of Church life in the summer, and hundreds of persons are attracted to it every Sunday; not Church people only . . . and this is indeed its great value, for every year many wanderers from the fold, and others indifferent before, have been brought to care . . . During the month of June, several of the Bishops of the Church have been preachers at this service . . . Just as he [Bishop Woodcock of KY] concluded, a sudden and violent storm broke, and St. Alban's was soon filled with people unable to reach the cars [trolleys] as rain came down in torrents. ?While the storm raged, the congregation sang hymns, the Bishops each spoke a few informal words, and the band that leads the singing, played selections of sacred music. ?When it was possible to leave -- not till seven o'clock -- a most perfect rainbow was seen spanning the city and showing magnificently from Mt. St. Alban."
I am ever so grateful for the multi-colored references rainbow I have discovered doing this work. ?Each time I access one of the sources, another shade of our history is more perfectly revealed and shines its light.