Administrative Information

Access Restrictions

Collection open for research

Use Restrictions

No physical characteristics affect use of this material.

Preferred Citation

St. Peter's Episcopal Church Collection (M 033), Thomas Balch Library, Leesburg, VA.

Acquisition Information

Ann Thomas, Round Hill, VA; Rev. Thomas Simmons, Purcellville, VA

Alternative Form Available

None

Accruals

2007.0081; 2013.0117

Historical Information

St. Peter's Episcopal Church was first established on Main Street, Purcellville in 1911. It currently serves western Loudoun County as the sole church of Madison Parish in the diocese of Virginia. Madison Parish was formed out of the western portion of Shelburne Parish in 1930. Prior to the 1960s, it consisted of three separate churches: St. Peter's in Purcellville, St. Paul's in Hamilton (established 1877), and Mount Calvary in Round Hill (established 1892). In 1953, the communicant lists of the three churches were merged, and Madison Parish became one congregation using three separate churches. In 1963, the church buildings of Madison Parish were consolidated and St. Peter's was chosen as the single church for Madison Parish due to its central location. In 1964, a new St. Peter's on Glendale Street in Purcellville was consecrated and held its first services. St. Paul's Church and Mount Calvary Church were sold in 1970, and many items from these churches were moved to St. Peter's. A bell tower was erected atop St. Peter's in 2000 to house two bells. The first bell was given to St. Paul's in memoriam of Lt. Jesup Nicholson (1852-1893) by his parents Mr. and Mrs. A. S. Nicholson in 1909. The second bell, dubbed "Loudoun," was cast in 1922 and dedicated in the old St. Peter's to the 29 men of Loudoun County who died in World War I.

Each of the churches in Madison Parish had women's auxiliary groups, in addition to the parish-wide Episcopal Church Women's group. Mount Calvary Guild served Mount Calvary Church, St. Hilda's Guild served St. Paul's, and St. Cecelia's Guild served St. Peter's. In the 1950s, St. Hilda's and Mount Calvary merged. St. Cecelia's merged with Mount Calvary in the 1980s. The Episcopal Church Women's group dissolved in the 1970s, and Mount Calvary Guild is now the sole women's group associated with St. Peter's and Madison Parish. Mount Calvary Guild supports charities and undertakes other tasks necessary for the maintenance and function of the church building and community, in addition to supporting a women's study group.

Scope and Content

The St. Peter's Episcopal Church Collection contains annual reports, directories, administrative records, publications, histories, clippings and other materials relating to St. Peter's Church, Madison Parish, and associated churches. The administrative records consist of minutes, notes, correspondence, and other materials pertaining to issues related to the congregation, including lists of congregants, memorials and gifts, fundraising for the new St. Peter's facility and other building projects. The collection also contains a series of histories of the various churches of Madison Parish, as well as recollections by former clergy and long-time congregants. In addition, the collection contains minutes and an account book created by various women's auxiliary groups associated with Madison Parish, including the Episcopal Church Women of Madison Parish and Mount Calvary Guild. The visual collection consists of 170 photographs. The majority of these photographs are color snapshots of church events from the 1970s through the mid-1980s. There are also several black-and-white formal portraits of church members and publicity photographs.

Related Material

Simmons, Rev. Thomas W. An Open Door: A Century Sharing God's Bounty . Sterling, VA: Gabro Printing and Graphics, 2012. [V REF 283.75528 SIM]; St. Peter's Episcopal Church. What's Cookin' at St. Peter's . Lenexa Kansas: Cookbook Publishers, 2000. [V REF 641.5975 WHA]

Adjunct Descriptive Data

Bibliography

Cocke, Charles Francis. Parish Lines Diocese of Virginia . Richmond: Virginia

Frain, Elizabeth R. and Marty Hartt. Loudoun County, Virginia Death Register 1853-1896 . Westminster, Maryland: Willow Bend Books, 1998.

Journal of the Diocese of Virginia (May 1885): 42, 57.

Journal of the Diocese of Southern Virginia (May 1885): 33.

Journal of the 26th Council... of the Diocese of Southern Virginia (1918).

Scheel, Eugene, Loudoun Discovered. Vol. 4, Quaker Country and the Loudoun Valley . Leesburg: Friends of the Thomas Balch Library, 2002.

St. Peter's Episcopal Church Records (M 033), Thomas Balch Library, Leesburg, VA.

St. Peter's Episcopal Church, http://www.stpetes.net/history.html.

Other Finding Aid

None