In 2017, we celebrated the 150th anniversary of the founding of the first Grace Church, located about a half mile from our current church in what was then called Hart's Village. The year was 1867, the morning was spectacular and the occasion auspicious. We even have a local newspaper account. Unfortunately that lovely country church burned down three years later.
Already in those three years much had changed in the area. With the arrival of the railroad, Millbrook was born. A new church was built on Church St.--seemed like a good site--and so it was until the turn of the century.
That was when John D. Wing, a prosperous member of the parish, came back from a trip to England determined to build a church in the style of an English country church. He gave the land and most of the money needed for the job, and the third and current church was built and dedicated in 1901. The splendid Tiffany style window that pictures Jesus and Mary Magdalene in the garden after the Resurrection is dedicated in memory of Wing and his wife. (We also have other stunning windows, including a glorious rose window from the Maitland studio and a window of Abraham Lincoln.) A few years later, the Rector of the church felt that the village was in need of a community center for all sorts of activies. The Parish Hall was built, with a bowling alley in the basement and a theater on the second floor.
Years have passed and changes have been made--including the addition of a magnificent Beckerath tracking organ in 1969. The basement of the Parish Hall now houses a thriving and recently renovated Preschool. But the purpose of the buildings remains the same--to be a house of prayer for all people, worshiping the Lord in the beauty of holiness, and to be a community center where all sorts of activities and groups can meet to teach our children, enrich our common life, and work toward a better world.
Already in those three years much had changed in the area. With the arrival of the railroad, Millbrook was born. A new church was built on Church St.--seemed like a good site--and so it was until the turn of the century.
That was when John D. Wing, a prosperous member of the parish, came back from a trip to England determined to build a church in the style of an English country church. He gave the land and most of the money needed for the job, and the third and current church was built and dedicated in 1901. The splendid Tiffany style window that pictures Jesus and Mary Magdalene in the garden after the Resurrection is dedicated in memory of Wing and his wife. (We also have other stunning windows, including a glorious rose window from the Maitland studio and a window of Abraham Lincoln.) A few years later, the Rector of the church felt that the village was in need of a community center for all sorts of activies. The Parish Hall was built, with a bowling alley in the basement and a theater on the second floor.
Years have passed and changes have been made--including the addition of a magnificent Beckerath tracking organ in 1969. The basement of the Parish Hall now houses a thriving and recently renovated Preschool. But the purpose of the buildings remains the same--to be a house of prayer for all people, worshiping the Lord in the beauty of holiness, and to be a community center where all sorts of activities and groups can meet to teach our children, enrich our common life, and work toward a better world.
