Montgomery Attraction: St. John's Episcopal Church

St. John's Episcopal Church is the oldest Episcopal parish in Montgomery, and one of the most historic churches in the State of Alabama. Not only was St. John's Episcopal the church used by Jefferson Davis in Montgomery, Alabama, but the church also enjoyed an extensive history throughout the first and second world wars. Because of this, visiting St. John's Episcopal Church is one of the necessary things to do for anyone who visits Montgomery, Alabama with an interest in history.

St. John's Episcopal Church was originally organized in 1834, when a small group of pioneer settlers sought to establish an Episcopal Church in Montgomery, Alabama. Dating back to 1834 makes St. John's the oldest Episcopal Parish in Montgomery, Alabama.

Episcopalians were vastly outnumbered by other religious denominations during the frontier period. However, by 1837, St. John's Episcopal Church had already managed to occupy all 48 pews of the new church building. In addition to being the oldest Episcopal Church in Montgomery, Alabama, St. John's original location on the corner of Perry and Jefferson Streets was also the first brick church built in the young frontier town. As the church grew, this building was eventually replaced with a new structure on the opposite end of the block, which is the building that St. John's Episcopal Church uses today.

St. John's Episcopal Church was at the center of many historic moments leading up to, and during, the American Civil War. St. John's Episcopal Church was the host for the Secession Convention of Southern Churches in 1861, which helped fuel the secession that powered the Civil War. St. John's Episcopal Church was also the church attended by the President of the Confederate States of America, Jefferson Davis, who was married to one of the first Episcopalians in Montgomery, Alabama.

Following the end of the Civil War, St. John's Episcopal Church was closed from 1865 to 1866 by order of the Union Army. This mandatory closure was enforced on all Episcopal Churches in Alabama. During this time, church services were conducted in private homes around the city.

A historic photo of the outside of St John's Episcopal Church

Credit: St John's Episcopal Church

Copyright: St John's Episcopal Church