Christ Church, La Plata

A HISTORY OF CHRIST CHURCH, PORT TOBACCO PARISH, ESTABLISHED 1692
Within a generation of the landing of the first Maryland settlers at St. Clement's Island in 1634, the frontiers of the colony were pushed north and west toward the Potomac and Port Tobacco rivers. A small village developed on the east side of the Port Tobacco River, which in 1658 became the county seat of the new County of Charles.

The early inhabitants of Port Tobacco were people who had fled the religious turmoil in England, where the royal family had been alternating from Catholic to Protestant over many years and several generations. The settlers had the deeply held conviction that freedom from religious persecution could become a reality in this new world. This was to remain a powerful determinant in the course of Maryland's history. Freed from interference by the Toleration Act of 1649 and feeling a need for spiritual guidance, a number of Anglican settlers gathered their first church in a simple log building at the head of the Port Tobacco Creek. The year was 1683, nine years before the Establishment Act which created an Anglican base in the State of Maryland.

Supported by a tobacco poll tax of 40 pounds per head from 1692-1776, Christ Church prospered. After the American Revolution, faced with the loss of this financial support, parishioners had to support their church through their own contributions rather than a general tax on all the citizens. During this era the log church was replaced by a second building constructed in 1709. It served the Parish for nearly a century before it was destroyed by a tornado in 1808. A brick church was then built for $20,000 after lotteries were held between 1808 and 1816. It was consecrated in 1818. After almost 60 years, it fell into disrepair and was demolished. Our present building, made of Aquia sandstone from Stafford County, Virginia, was built in the 1870s and reconfigured to its present shape in 1884.

For the two centuries of its life in Port Tobacco, Christ Church sat amid activities in the square of a busy trading town and county seat. It saw its parishioners go to fight for independence in the American Revolution and to maintain that independence in the War of 1812. Some of its members were very influential in these eras: John Hanson, President of the United States in Congress Assembled; Daniel of St. Thomas Jenifer, a signer of the Constitution of the United States; and Thomas Stone, one of the four signers of the Declaration of Independence for Maryland. Later, the church members saw the occupation of their town by Union troops during the Civil War and witnessed the intrigue of the Lincoln assassination right in their own county when John Wilkes Booth passed through on his way to Virginia, where he was captured and killed.

By this time, Port Tobacco had already begun to die because of the silting of the Port Tobacco River from erosion due to the clearing and over-farming of the land. When the first railroad in Charles County came through a farm named La Plata, political disputes over moving the county seat there caused the burning of the courthouse next door to the church! Christ Church's membership suffered with the loss of each church member to the new town three miles east. Parishioners' spirits soared, however, when members Lizzie Hamilton and Lilla Roberts convinced the vestry to move the church to La Plata in 1904. However, the two women did not want to build a new church — they intended to actually move the existing church stone by stone to La Plata! This was accomplished over a period of months, with the church being dismantled and carried by oxcart stone by stone and rebuilt on its present site.

A Triple-A road marker for our church's original location in Port Tobacco.

Amazingly, less than 12 months after the dedication on Easter, April 23, 1905, the furnace caused a devastating fire and the church building was destroyed except for the sandstone walls. The rector, George C. Graham, wrote sorrowfully on March 25, 1906 to the Bishop of Maryland, "I...saved the Communion vessels and the chancel books. All our memorials... are gone. We only found broken bits of brass and marble... We saved the bell... I felt it more because it was my own anniversary of ordination to the priesthood..and it was so hard to have it marked like that."

But the congregation, true to its ancestry, raised funds and rebuilt Christ Church once again. Before the 20th century ended, the church had seen its members survive the rigors of a severe economic depression, serve in two World Wars, in Korea, Vietnam, and the Middle East. The 1980s were a very productive time in which the stained glass windows were repaired and covered with protective panels (1982), and in 1987 extensive interior renovation was done to open the arches and install a new pipe organ. The chancel was also reconfigured, with a more open area for communicants to come forward and return to their pews.

In 1993, a large addition was built on the rear of the Parish House, with the two upper-floor rooms dedicated to Eleanor Jacobs and Gertrude Mitchell, women who were active in the church for many years. The lower level was divided into church-related rooms and offices, and a separate area for a day-care business. At this time, the former parsonage, the Hamilton-Roberts House, is also a rental property called The Royal Tea Room, with an antiques business sharing the building. These three businesses operating on church property provide a steady income which is helping Christ Church achieve firm fiscal security.

The most recent calamity to affect Christ Church — and all of Charles County — was the tornado of April 29, 2002. Passing just across the street, the storm reached F4 intensity at the crest of the hill, demolishing a huge swath of La Plata and damaging Christ Church. The church roof was laid open and windows and the roof were damaged in the Parish House. People meeting in the Hamilton-Roberts House that night were unharmed but experienced the storm first-hand and saw the brutal aftermath. The protective window panels installed in 1983 saved all the stained glass windows, and at this time new covers are being planned to replace these old, yellowed ones.

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Our rector, Joseph Trigg, and his wife Joy enjoy an "up close
and personal" moment with the ox which led the procession on the
commemorative walk from Port Tobacco to La Plata on May 15, 2004.

THE BUILDING
Christ Church, Port Tobacco Parish, is a classic example of the English country church. Its style of a peaked roof and attached bell tower is found in many towns and villages, as well as artists' depictions on Christmas cards and postcards. The exterior of the church is sandstone quarried at Aquia Creek, in Stafford County, Virginia. (This quarry was also the source of stone for the United States Capitol.) The church cornerstone, inscribed on two sides, is located at the southeast corner. A nearby stone commemorates the 1906 reconstruction following the devastating fire. Visitors can find the signs of fire damage next to the organ console, where builders' notches are still visible from the building process! One of the wooden pegs is still in place, singed by the flames in 1906. A Latin cross crowns the roof peak above the central doorway. The bell tower, added in 1904 after the move from Port Tobacco, was raised even higher after the fire in 1906. The 1,000-pound bell contained in the tower rings out over the community before church services, weddings and funerals.

The floor plan of the church sanctuary is in the shape of the Cross, with the altar facing north. The east apse contains the grand piano and four stained glass windows depicting the life of Christ: the Baby Jesus sitting on Mary's lap; Jesus' early ministry; Jesus welcoming little children; Jesus on the shore following the Resurrection, beckoning the disciples to join him for breakfast. See related paino article.

The west apse contains the organ console and is the location of the builders' notches and singed wood mentioned above. One stained glass window is located here. It is dedicated to the many young people who have served as acolytes and crucifers over the years. See related organ article.

Over the altar is a triptych of stained glass windows depicting "Faith," "Hope" and "Love." Faith is represented by a figure with a cross, Hope holds an anchor, and Love is the figure of Christ ascending into heaven. When Christ Church stood in Port Tobacco, a large round window was over the triptych, but that window was omitted when the church was rebuilt in La Plata. (Perhaps it was there until the fire — a good historical mystery.) This window is visible in a photograph of the church interior from the 1880s, which hangs in the "Hyphen" hallway.

Looking south toward the gallery in the rear of the church, one sees the organ pipes on either side of the large rose window. This window depicts the parable in Matthew 25:35-36 : "For I was hungry, and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me." Beneath the gallery are doors leading into the sanctuary from the narthex, with two lights constructed of glass remaining from the 1906 fire.

On the east side of the sanctuary are four stained glass windows on the floor level and five on the clerestory level. On the west side are corresponding windows. The clerestory windows depict ten flowers found in the Holy Land. The floor level windows are each unique, depicting things such as the empty Tomb, the Good Shepherd, the Crown of Christ, and the angel Gabriel. Some of the windows are Tiffany glass, and all are protected by plexiglass, soon to replaced by new lexand. See more window details in related article on stained glass.

In the narthex are five more wonderful stained glass windows: three large ones, and two narrow ones which flank the main entrance. In the bell tower is the history window, which shows the main facts of Christ Church's existence. From the crowns of William and Mary, who established 30 Anglican churches in the Province of Maryland, to a depiction of the oxcart moving the stones, there is a wealth of detail. Two other large narthex windows show symbols of the state of Maryland and symbols of the Episcopal church. One of the two smaller windows depicts a cross and musical symbols and is the memorial to Leah Stewart (1893-1970). The other shows a cross, an Easter lily and a violet, dedicated to the memory of Esther Barnes (1888-1956).

The sanctuary features brass fixtures and wood. Brass in the pulpit, the chalicist prayer desk, the communion rail, the lectern, handrails and elsewhere. The floors are wood, and the roof is supported by dark wooden beams and arches. Wainscoting on the three walls of the chancel surrounding the altar features a criss-cross pattern that contrasts beautifully with the white plaster walls. The brass is gradually being stripped and re-lacquered by Junior Warden Bruce Dalton.

A new feature of the sanctuary is the needlepoint cushions which were installed and dedicated on January 15, 2006. Two members of the church were instrumental in this project: Verna Kordack, chairperson of the 2004 committee, and Louise Turner, who designed the artwork for the cushions, which has the theme, "Symbols of Christ." For details concerning the cushions and their meaning, see related needlepoint article.

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THE ALTAR
A marble altar is the focal point of the sanctuary. Carved in its face are a Jerusalem Cross, the Greek Alpha and Omega ("beginning and end"), and the Latin Sanctus ("Holy, Holy, Holy"). The altar is a memorial to Lemuel Wilmer, rector from 1822 to 1869, and the base of the altar bears his name and the dates of his life. He was an ardent Unionist in the time of the Civil War. Throughout the war (1861-1865), he continued to pray for President Abraham Lincoln in worship services, causing Confederate sympathizers to regularly rise to their feet in silent protest. Mr. Wilmer founded the first free school in Charles County, Piney School, on land which he donated. The school existed until 1930.

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THE FONT
The font for Holy Baptism stands to the right of the pulpit. In the classic octagonal form, it has an oak cover with the Jerusalem cross and a large ring for lifting it. Because the world was created in seven days, seven traditionally denotes creation. Therefore, eight denotes a new creation, and the eight sides thus signify that we are newly created by dying with Christ and being raised with him in baptism.

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The Bishop's chair stands to the left of the altar.

THE BISHOP'S CHAIR ("CATHEDRA")
The chair to the left of the altar is reserved for the Bishop when he visits. The Bishop is chief pastor of the diocese. "Episcopal" means "bishop." During three centuries, Port Tobacco Parish has been under three successive bishoprics: London in colonial years, Maryland following the Revolution, and Washington since 1896. The cushion for the Bishops's chair was stitched by Gertrude Mitchell and portrays symbols of the Episcopal faith. The primary chair for the Bishop of Washington is in the Cathedral of Saint Peter and Saint Paul (Washington National Cathedral) on Mount Saint Alban in the District of Columbia.

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The Good Shepherd window, at the rear of the nave on the west side,
is a memorial to Albert Evans Sanderson, rector from 1943-1946, who
died in 1946 at the age of 41. Mr. Sanderson saw to the building of a
chapel in the area of the present day sacristy. The wooden altar for
that chapel is now in the Mitchell Room under the banner celebrating our
parish hymn, "Port Tobacco," which begins "Great Shepherd of thy people."

THE STAINED GLASS WINDOWS
Stained glass windows give Christ Church a sense of timelessness and provide changing patterns of light through the day. These "jewels of light" memorialize parishioners of past and present, and their designs range from trditional to contemporary, from pictorial to abstract.

The windows over the altar form a triptych. The large central window portrays the Ascension — Christ, the embodiment of God's love, transcending time and space. The Baptismal font and the chalice below the ascending Lord declare his continuing presence among us. The figures on either side of Christ hold the cross and the anchor, representing faith and hope.

The rose window, over the entry and gallery, tells Christ's parable of the Final Judgment from Matthew 25 with six symbols. He claims for his own those who give clothing (white garment), drink (a glass being filled) and food (bread being sliced) to the needy, welcome the stranger (door opened inward), visit the prisoner (a jail), and minister to the sick (basket of fruit).

The ten clerestory windows depict flowers of the Holy Land. Clockwise from the right side of the chancel they are: blue/white anemone, blue pentagonia, thicket rose, blue lupin, flowering almond (behind the east pipes) yellow Jerusalem crowfoot (behind the west pipes), white dove's dung, red anemone, white dogwood, pink columbine.

Three narthex windows celebrate Maryland, the Episcopal Church, and Port Tobacco Parish. The Maryland and Episcopal Church windows were dedicated for the 300th year of the Church, 1983. In the Maryland window, Christ is represented by a stylized fish swimming in the waters of the Potomac and Chesapeake. The Christ Fish is marked and surrounded by familiar Maryland signs: the crown of Charles I, Lord Baltimore's banner (state flag), the "Ark" and "Dove" (vessels that carried our earlist settlers from England), the Baltimore oriole, black-eyed susans (state flower), white oak leaf, tobacco plant, tidewater marsh grass, rock fish, oysters, and blue crab. The Episcopal Church window depicts the Anglican commitment (lighted candle) to Scripture (open Bible), Creed (Trinitarian circles), Baptism (water and shell), Eucharist (wheat, bread, grapes, chalice of wine), and the Episcopate (crozier and mitre emblazoned with the Episcopal Church shield).

The third of the large narthex windows is the Port Tobacco Parish window, in the base of the Bell Tower. This window highlights the unfolding story of the parish and was dedicated in 1986 to the memory of Alice Bowie Lyon, a lifelong member of Christ Church. At the peak of the window are the crowns of William and Mary, who provided for the "immediate care and protection" of the colonists in the Province of Maryland through the Rites of the Church of England. The three Episcopal sees (governing bodies) are depicted in the names "London, Baltimore, Washington." Two buildings, the Courthouse in Port Tobacco and the State House in Annapolis, are shown, along with sailing ships and tobacco. The American and Confederate flags appear over a depiction of the church's marble altar, memorializing Lemuel Wilmer, rector during the Civil War. An oxcart bearing stones from Port Tobacco to La Plata reminds the viewer that the church was originally built three miles west. And the scissors, crochet hook and thread represent the legacy of Alice Bowie Lyon, who created many of the altar linens still in use today. Her actual thimble and scissors may be viewed in the "Hyphen" hallway between the church and the Parish Hall.

Two smaller windows flank the main entrance. One is a memorial to Leah Stewart and shows a crucifer's cross surrounded by a variety of musical symbols, representing the joyful sounds of music in a worship service. The window on the other side is in memory of Esther Barnes and features a cross, an Easter lily and a violet.

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A view of the pipe loft and the rose window in the gallery.

THE PIPE ORGAN
Music of pipes has enriched worship in Christ Church since Gustavus Brown, colonial physician from Scotland, provided a modest pipe organ in 1758. It was the first church organ in Charles County. It was succeeded by other, larger instruments.

The present pipe organ, built by the Wicks Organ Company of Highland, Illinois, was dedicated in 1987. The organ has 12 ranks of pipes with a total of 799 pipes, which are located in the rear gallery of the sanctuary. The tallest pipes are 16 feet high, and the shortest are smaller than a pencil. There is a "great" division and a "swell" division to the organ. An antiphonal division can be added in the future. It has a three-manual capability and a full pedalboard. The organ console, where the organist plays, is in the west transept of the chancel. The console can be moved into the center of the chancel for recitals.

Placement of the new pipe organ prompted refurbishing of the church interior in 1987. The transepts were re-opened, the chancel freed from over-crowding, and the furnishings and floor refinished. The architectural and historical integrity of the building were respected, and liturgical needs were honored. The result is an inspiring sanctuary in the old English style but with wonderful flexibility and beauty.

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THE BELL TOWER
When Christ Church burned to the ground on March 25, 1906, it had just been freshly rebuilt in 1904-05 after the move from Port Tobacco by oxcart. At the dedication on Easter, April 23, 1905, parishioners joyfully attended church in a fresh new sanctuary. But the fire eleven months later destroyed all but the sandstone walls and the tower bell, which the firefighters worked hard to protect after it was plain that the church itself would be destroyed. The chancel Bible and Communion set were saved by Rector George Graham before the fire became too intense for further rescues. Other than those, only small portions of stained glass, marble and brass remained.

The church was soon rebuilt — again — and the congregation chose to extend the bell tower even higher to house the large bell purchased for the church in 1905 to celebrate the move to La Plata. The original bell tower only reached as high as the church roof, and it is still possible to see this in the change in stone color above the level of the church roof, where the louvres are. The quarry where our church's stone was cut had been depleted, and even though the bell tower stone was quarried nearby, the color did not match perfectly.

The bell has two ropes for ringing it. The one used for Sunday services operates the bell itself, making it swing so that the clapper strikes the bell on each swing. The other rope, which is pulled during funeral services, does not make the bell swing. Instead, it is attached to a wooden mallet which itself strikes the bell, producing a muted, appropriately somber sound. In the past, people were told that there are two bells in the tower, but that information is incorrect. There is one bell, weighing about 1000 pounds, and it is dedicated to the memory of Mary Emily Hamilton by her children. Mary died August 13, 1876 at the age of 62. The bell's inscription reads:

Through all eternity, to thee a joyful song I'll raise.
But, oh, eternity's too short to utter all thy praise!

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Narthex Lantern

LANTERNS
The handmade lantern over the main entrance and the one hanging inside the narthex were constructed using glass preserved from 1906, when the church suffered a devastating fire. The artisan was Jewish coppersmith Erwin Thieberger, himself a survivor, having endured the Nazi concentration camps in World War II. Mr. Thieberger, a resident of Waldorf, created beauty from destruction, and he is memorialized by a plaque in the narthex.

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MEMORIALS
Various memorials enhance the church. They commemorate persons departed this life, persons still among us, special events, and thanksgivings. The memorials range from sacramental vessels to education rooms; from prayer books and hymnals to endowment gifts.

Chancel furniture and pews (provided since 1906; refinished 1987-88) are among the memorials. Their plaques tell of parents, children, friends, priests, "those lost at sea," and special thanksgivings. A front pew wall (center aisle, east) honors Terry Waite, envoy of the Archbishop of Canterbury, who while seeking the release of hostages in Lebanon was taken hostage in 1987.

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Mitchell Room banner made by Bruce and Judy Dalton, August 2005

THE PARISH HOUSE
The Parish House, linked to the church by a hallway we call "The Hyphen," was built in 1938. The Parish House sees constant use by the congregation and community. Its large hall is the scene of annual dinners, many meetings, and get-acquainted potluck suppers, as well as the home of Boy Scout troop 1321. Alcoholics Anonymous gathers weekly, as does Narcotics Anonymous, and the Charles County Garden Club holds major events there as well. There is a large kitchen, several offices, the church sacristry, and a restroom on this upper level.

The newest portion, on the rear of the building, includes the Gertrude Mitchell Room and the Eleanor Jacobs Room. The Mitchell room serves as a small chapel, the choir room and for meetings. It is the scene of lively mid-week lunchtime discussions each Wednesday. The Jacobs room is our church nursery, and during the week it houses the older children who attend The Children's Learning Tree day care center, whose main facility is in the lower level beneath the Mitchell-Jacobs area. Other rooms on the lower level include the church office, the rector's office, two restrooms, the Sunday School rooms, the library and the Registrar's office.

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