Throughout 2016 and 2017, Emmanuel Church Chester Parish celebrates its Sestercentennial, marking 250 years since the formation of Chester Parish and the laying of the cornerstone for its present church building. From the beginning of the 18th century to the present, Emmanuel Church and Chestertown have shared a common history. Soon after the founding of Chestertown in 1706, a wooden chapel was built in town for Anglican worship. In 1720, after that wooden structure burned down, a brick chapel was built to replace it. In 1767, a third structure was erected, two stories tall, on a stone foundation reusing bricks from the earlier chapel. It had two tiers of clear glass windows.
In 1880, the church underwent extensive remodeling.The gallery was removed, and the roof was lowered twelve feet (in one piece!). The clear windows were replaced with stained glass, beginning a parade of magnificent stained glass windows that reflects the history both of Emmanuel Church and Chestertown. Ranging from geometric windows out of a mail-order catalog (four of which still remain) to a spectacular rendering of the Good Shepherd by Louis Comfort Tiffany, the panoply of Emmanuel’s stained glass windows spans centuries of local history.
Ron Abler retired from the U.S. Navy in 1987, having served as a helicopter pilot, Professor of Naval Science, and the Navy’s Program Manager for Office Automation. He was a founding partner of AOM Associates, a software development company in Alexandria, Virginia, and later served as the Standards Engineer with the Presidential Helicopter Team at NAS Patuxent River. He has published in the fields of correspondence management, software design, marine biology, aeronautical engineering, and numismatics. He moved to Chestertown from Southern Maryland during the town’s Tricentennial celebration and soon became interested in the history of Emmanuel and Chestertown.
Join us for History Happy Hour, May 6 at the Bordley History Center, 301 High Street and learn more about historic Emmanuel Church. Remember arrive before 4PM to be certain to get a seat.
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