St. James' Episcopal Church

St. James’ Episcopal Church is an historic Episcopal church located at 2423 SW Bascom Norris Drive in Lake City, Florida. The church is in the Episcopal Diocese of Florida. __NOTOC__

History

The first record from the Lake City Episcopal Church Register is in 1870, signed by the Reverend C. William Camp, Rector, and the Right Reverend John Freeman Young, Second Bishop of Florida. A register entry by Rev. Camp on February 26, 1871 describes the rectory in Lake City and the Peabody School under Church supervision, later known as St. James Academy.

The Rev. Charles Snowden built the original St. James Episcopal Church in 1880 with his own money and labor at the corner of South Alachua & West Nassau Streets. The Rectory and St. James Academy were next door. Bishop Young consecrated St. James Church on the second Sunday after Christmas in 1884, according to Diocesan records. Rev. Snowden served as St. James Rector from 1871 to 1886.

In 1898, to serve and be accessible to the students at "Florida Agricultural College" (predecessor of the University of Florida which moved to Gainesville in 1906), the church was moved to the corner of South Marion and East Brown Streets. The current Rectory was constructed at that time.

After Rev. Snowden left, the next 80 years saw a succession of Rectors. Only two, Rev. Walter T. Carvell and Rev. John Banks, served more than a few years. There was little or no growth in the Parish. [City Historical Committee, A Century in the Sun: Lake City, Florida 1859-1959, First edition 1959, Lake City: Lake City Centennial Celebration, Inc., page 13]

Growth

Reverend William Mac-Laurine Hall, known as "Mac", became Rector of St. James' in 1966. The Episcopal church that had remained virtually unchanged since the advent of the twentieth century slowly began to grow. A few members started attending Cursillo and were moved by the Holy Spirit. Their enthusiasm caught on and more families with children began attending.

Growing pains

By the mid-1980’s, the congregation had grown, but there was no room for any type of building expansion on-site. Less critical, but still important, was the lack of nearby parking that had been a problem for many years and the absence of an area for outdoor activities. In 1988, the parish sold their 2 lots to the next door neighbor and moved the church (the second time for the Sanctuary) to the present location south of town, just off State Road 47, a distance of about 4 miles. The Sanctuary and Parish Hall were moved first, followed by the Christian Education Wing, and finally, the Rectory.

A new home

The new property was 10⅔ acres, compared to less than ½ acre in town. It took several years to settle into the new location, and Rev. Hall retired in 1994 after 28 years as Rector at St. James. He left before plans were finalized for a bigger sanctuary. The church had been moved for almost 10 years before the parish was in a position to build a bigger building, but it finally happened. St. James Episcopal Church members consecrated their new sanctuary on March 9, 2003. The Right Reverend Stephen H. Jecko, Seventh Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Florida officiated the ceremony and was assisted by the Rev. William Mac-Laurine Hall, Rector Emeritus and the Rev. Dr. Jeff Robinson, St. James Rector. The new sanctuary became the primary worship center for the St. James family, but the historical old building was not destroyed, nor abandoned. It was used for smaller services, Sunday school classes and the Wednesday midday service. [ [http://www.lakecityreporter.com/articles/2003/04/28/lifestyle/religion/religion01.txt Lake city Reporter.com: March 21, 2003- Sanctuary to become primary worship center] ]

Rev. Susan Q. Claytor became the new rector of St. James Episcopal Church of Lake City in early 2007. Claytor was born in Atlanta but grew up in Jacksonville, Florida. She previously served at the Episcopal Church of Our Saviour of Jacksonville in a lay capacity. [ [Lake City Reporter: Mar. 19, 2007- St. James gets new rector] ]

ee also

* St. James Episcopal Church

References

External links

* [http://www.stjameslakecity.org/ St. James’ Episcopal Church website]
* [http://www.diocesefl.org/ Diocese of Florida website]