.png){kind=small}
.png)
HISTORY OF ST. JOHN'S
St. John’s Episcopal Church in Ellicott City, Maryland, was founded in 1822 in Queen Caroline’s Parish, Anne Arundel County, as a “chapel of ease” by Christ Church, Guilford (now Columbia), for parishioners who desired a church more convenient to their homes. That small country church has grown into the largest church, by number of communicants, in the Episcopal Diocese of Maryland. St. John’s was consecrated on June 5, 1823, by Bishop James Kemp. The original church, which could accommodate 200 worshippers and had a gallery for servants, stood on a one-acre parcel of land donated by Caleb and Elizabeth Dorsey.
The current Romanesque-style church, constructed of Howard County granite, was designed by leading ecclesiastical architect Nathan Starkweather and is a Maryland Historical Trust property. Built in 1860 on the same site as the original church, this new design included a wooden arched belfry and a solid stone 83-foot spire known as the MacKubin tower.
The Church takes pride in its exquisite stained glass windows. According to the late Henry Willet of Willet Stained Glass Studios, “Stained glass windows are not a picture, but a part of the architecture of the building.” The memorial windows of St. John’s contribute a great deal to the beauty and meaning of worship and depict various saints and key scenes from the Bible. A more detailed explanation of the windows is available from the Church office.
The Church grounds, now almost 14 acres, have evolved to include a Columbarium (in the undercroft of the Church), Clark House (former rectory), Rose Hill (offices), Alda’s Chapel & Memorial Garden, Brittany’s Garden & Historic Gate, the Parish Life Center, Resurrection Chapel, the Shiflet Center for Ministry and Education (SCME), a meditation Labyrinth, and five rain gardens.
St. John’s Parish Day School, which opened in 1965 for preschool and kindergarten, expanded in 2001 to include 1st through 5th grade with the construction of the SCME, which includes classrooms, an auditorium, and All Saints Hall, which is available to rent.
