Time Machine: How Grace Episcopal Church was founded in 1850

Grace Episcopal Church, commonly called Grace Church, was organized in 1850. The church's first vestry officers were William Greene, N.B. Brown, Judge George Greene and John Kelsey. Other pioneer families associated with Grace Church include the Bevers, Carpenters, Keyes and Mays.

The church's cornerstone was laid Oct. 17, 1851.

When Sampson C. Bever arrived in the city in 1852, not much more had been done. The congregation met in various places, including a riverside building known as the 'old store building.” An 1871 history of the church said the place was used for grain storage, and worshippers were often interrupted by river rats.

Bever brought a bell with him that came from Pittsburgh. It was mounted in front of the store until the original church was built in 1855-56 at the corner of A Avenue and Sixth Street NE. The church was consecrated on Feb. 17, 1856, with the Bever bell secure in its tower.

The bell lasted about 10 years before it broke. A new one was installed with the inscription: 'Sing unto the Lord a new song, for His mercy endureth forever.”

In 1873, improvements were made to the church and it was enlarged. It reopened on Feb. 22, 1874.

ST. LUKE'S hospital founded

After waiting patiently for progress on a hospital in Cedar Rapids, Grace Church Rector Samuel Ringgold preached a sermon on the subject July 22, 1883. Then, armed with the support of the vestry, Ringgold went to Calvin G. Greene and asked about a pair of lots once promised the city by his father, George Greene, for use as a hospital.

The lots were deeded to Grace Church and, with $1,000 from Sampson Bever, St. Luke's Hospital was founded, opening to patients in 1884. The hospital was turned over to the Upper Iowa Conference of the Methodist Church in 1923.

A third construction period at Grace Church began in 1890. It was consecrated on Feb. 17, 1906. At that time, it was one of the largest Episcopal churches in the state. The newest addition was built of Stone City stone. The original church was brick and stone, and the rectory was brick.

1892 FIRE

Officer William Stepanek was standing at the corner of Second Avenue and 11th Street on Jan. 24, 1892, when he smelled something burning. He discovered the original part of Grace Church was burning and ran to the nearest fire box, turning in the alarm.

He then told a railway switchman to wake up the Rev. Dr. Thomas E. Green, the church rector, but Green already had been awakened by the alarm whistle at the waterworks by the Cedar River.

Flames were shooting out of the church's rear door and the windows.

Night Fire Capt. Shields turned in a second alarm before he and patrolman McGuire brought the hook and ladder from the central fire station.

Soon the entire fire department and the volunteer Independent Hose Company were fighting the blaze.

The fire penetrated the church's false ceiling, and soon the rafters and supports were burning. Firemen working inside the structure were in danger when the slate roof began to cave in.

The smoke was dense as seven streams of water were played on the flames. One of those was aimed at the door connecting the old church to the new church to prevent flames from spreading there.

It was two hours before the fire was under control, but charred walls were all that remained of the chapel.

Reconstruction and repair began immediately, and on All Saints Day, Nov. 1, 1892, the new chapel was opened with a service of benediction.

In all probability, the repairs were largely financed by Sampson C. Bever, whose son, James, braved the dense smoke to ensure the flames would not reach the organ in the new building.

CHANGES OVER THE YEARS

In 1912, the entire property of Grace Church was valued at $100,000. In today's dollars, that would be about $2.5 million.

Stained glass windows were dedicated to the church's early families, such as the Ishams, the Beresfords and the Calders. Many of the furnishings were memorials to the Greenes.

The church flourished for a while, but its location became a disadvantage as residents moved farther away from downtown.

In 1948, the 1890 part of the church was deemed unsafe, and plans were made to demolish it. Windows from the 'big church” were carefully crated and stored in the chapel basement and removal of the large stone addition began.

On Sept. 22, 1948, a wrecker tore up the cornerstone and revealed a small, tin box.

L.M. Preston, who was there when the cornerstone was laid in 1890, watched as church officers pried open the rusted box open. Some of the contents had been damaged by water. A crumbling prayer book, a fragile Bible, a certificate signed by Bishop of Iowa, the Rev. William Steven Perry, and an unrecognizable photo were on top of a copy of The Living Church, a June 10, 1890, edition of The Cedar Rapids Gazette and a June 11, 1890, edition of the Daily Republican.

By the end of the year, the church had returned to its earlier footprint.

TIN CAN FOUND IN 1954

A 1954 building campaign headed by Sampson Bever's grandson, James D. Bever, set out to raise $75,000 to help the congregation preserve the landmark and add additional space. Improvements were made to the original building, an exterior wall was rebuilt, Sunday school rooms were added and the main church was enlarged.

During construction, a tin can, sealed for more than a century, was found inside a foundation stone on the east wall. The contents included two issues of the Progressive Era newspaper from October 1851, a hard-bound New Testament and copies of the articles of incorporation of the Dubuque & Keokuk Railroad Company North, of which George Greene was president. Everything in the zinc-lined can was in good condition.

In 1963, another construction project restored the church to the way it once looked and added an education wing was completed.

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