Trinity Episcopal Cathedral (Davenport, Iowa)
Encyclopedia
Trinity Episcopal Cathedral is the historic cathedral in the Diocese of Iowa
Episcopal Diocese of Iowa
The Episcopal Diocese of Iowa is the diocese of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America which covers all of Iowa. It is in Province VI. Its offices are in Des Moines, and it has two cathedrals: The Cathedral Church of St...

. The cathedral is located on the bluff overlooking Downtown Davenport, Iowa
Davenport, Iowa
Davenport is a city located along the Mississippi River in Scott County, Iowa, United States. Davenport is the county seat of and largest city in Scott County. Davenport was founded on May 14, 1836 by Antoine LeClaire and was named for his friend, George Davenport, a colonel during the Black Hawk...

, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...

 in 1974. The cathedral complex is part of the College Square Historic District
College Square Historic District
College Square Historic District is located on a bluff north of downtown Davenport, Iowa, United States. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places...

, which is also listed on the NRHP.

History

Development of the Episcopal Church in Davenport

The Episcopal Church can trace its beginnings in Scott County
Scott County, Iowa
-2010 census:The 2010 census recorded a population of 165,224 in the county, with a population density of . There were 71,835 housing units, of which 66,765 were occupied.-2000 census:...

 to services held in 1837 by the Rt. Rev. Philander Chase
Philander Chase
Philander Chase was an Episcopal Church bishop, educator, and pioneer of the United States western frontier in Ohio and Illinois.-Life:...

, Bishop of Illinois. The services were held in the hotel at Rockingham, which is now the southwest section of Davenport. In 1841 the Rev. Zachariah Goldsmith of Virginia was appointed missionary to Davenport by the Domestic Committee of the Board of Missions of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States. On October 14, 1841, Trinity Church was organized in Davenport. The congregation originally worshiped in the home of Dr. John Emerson on Second Street. He had owned the slave Dred Scott
Dred Scott
Dred Scott , was an African-American slave in the United States who unsuccessfully sued for his freedom and that of his wife and their two daughters in the Dred Scott v...

, who lived with him in Davenport when it was still a part of the Wisconsin Territory
Wisconsin Territory
The Territory of Wisconsin was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from July 3, 1836, until May 29, 1848, when an eastern portion of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Wisconsin...

. A small frame church was built on the corner of Fourth and Main Streets. In 1853 the congregation erected a stone building at the corner of Fifth and Rock Island (now Pershing) Streets. The building was built in the Gothic
Gothic architecture
Gothic architecture is a style of architecture that flourished during the high and late medieval period. It evolved from Romanesque architecture and was succeeded by Renaissance architecture....

 style and included a rose window
Rose window
A Rose window is often used as a generic term applied to a circular window, but is especially used for those found in churches of the Gothic architectural style and being divided into segments by stone mullions and tracery...

. It is the first church in Iowa to have a pipe organ
Pipe organ
The pipe organ is a musical instrument that produces sound by driving pressurized air through pipes selected via a keyboard. Because each organ pipe produces a single pitch, the pipes are provided in sets called ranks, each of which has a common timbre and volume throughout the keyboard compass...

.

Diocese of Iowa

The Rt. Rev. Jackson Kemper
Jackson Kemper
Bishop Jackson Kemper was the first missionary bishop of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America.Baptized David Jackson Kemper by Dr...

, the missionary bishop of the Northwest, invited the clergy and representatives of the congregations of the state of Iowa to a meeting on August 17, 1853, at Trinity Church
Trinity Episcopal Church (Muscatine, Iowa)
Trinity Episcopal Church is a parish church in the Diocese of Iowa. The church is located in Muscatine, Iowa, United States, at 411 East 2nd Street...

 in Muscatine
Muscatine, Iowa
Muscatine is a city in Muscatine County, Iowa, United States. The population was 22,886 in the 2010 census, an increase from 22,697 in the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Muscatine County...

. In the absence of the bishop, the Rev. Alfred Louderbeck of Trinity Church in Davenport was elected the chairman. At this gathering the constitutions and canons for the new Diocese of Iowa were adopted, and plans were made for the election of a bishop. The General Convention of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States of America admitted the Diocese of Iowa to its membership on October 7–8, 1853.

On May 31, 1854, the first convention of the Diocese of Iowa began at Trinity Church in Davenport. During the convention the Rev. Henry Washington Lee
Henry Washington Lee
Henry Washington Lee was a 19th century bishop in the Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States of America. He served as the first Bishop of Iowa from 1854-1874...

, rector of St. Luke's Church in Rochester, New York
Rochester, New York
Rochester is a city in Monroe County, New York, south of Lake Ontario in the United States. Known as The World's Image Centre, it was also once known as The Flour City, and more recently as The Flower City...

, was elected bishop. He was consecrated on October 18, 1854, in his church in Rochester.

Through the generosity of people from the eastern United States, Bishop Lee purchased land as an investment for the new diocese. From the sale of this property a bishop's residence was built, and the diocese also had an endowment of $53,000. On June 29, 1859, the bishop purchased the former Iowa College property in Davenport for $36,000. The school had moved to Grinnell, Iowa
Grinnell, Iowa
Grinnell is a city in Poweshiek County, Iowa, United States. The population was 9,218 at the 2010 census. Grinnell was named after Josiah Bushnell Grinnell and is the home of Grinnell College.- History :...

 and was renamed Grinnell College
Grinnell College
Grinnell College is a private liberal arts college in Grinnell, Iowa, U.S. known for its strong tradition of social activism. It was founded in 1846, when a group of pioneer New England Congregationalists established the Trustees of Iowa College....

. Bishop Lee opened Griswold College on the site. The school was named for Bishop Alexander Viets Griswold
Alexander Viets Griswold
Alexander Viets Griswold was the Episcopal Bishop of the Eastern Diocese, which included all of New England with the exception of the Episcopal Diocese of Connecticut....

 of Massachusetts. The college closed in the late 19th century.

Grace Cathedral

When Bishop Lee arrived in Davenport he found that several people had left Trinity Church and wanted to create a new parish. He gave his permission and they formed St. Luke's Church. They initially worshiped in the former First Baptist Church
First Baptist Church (Davenport, Iowa)
First Baptist Church is located at 1401 Perry Street, Davenport, Iowa, United States. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as Calvary Baptist Church/First Baptist Church.-Development:...

 on Brady Street between Third and Fourth Streets. The Rev. George W. Watson was named the rector. He was followed by the Rev. Horatio Powers. The congregation built a new church on the northwest corner of Brady and Seventh Streets, but because of financial difficulties they had to sell the property to First Presbyterian Church
First Presbyterian Church (Davenport, Iowa)
First Presbyterian Church is located at 316 E. Kirkwood Boulevard, Davenport, Iowa, United States. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.-Development:...

. The building eventually became the Academy of Sciences, a forerunner of the Putnam Museum
Putnam Museum and IMAX Theater
The Putnam Museum and IMAX Theatre is a museum of history and natural science in Davenport, Iowa, United States. The museum was founded in 1867, and was one of the first museums west of the Mississippi River. It houses 160,000 historical artifacts and specimens...

. A chapel was constructed on the corner of Main and 12th Streets on the Griswold College property where the congregation worshiped until June 18, 1873, when it became the nucleus for the new Bishop's Church.

Bishop's Churches, or cathedrals, were not commonplace in the Episcopal Church of the United States at the time. The Cathedral of Our Merciful Saviour
Cathedral of Our Merciful Saviour
The Cathedral of Our Merciful Saviour in Faribault is the oldest cathedral in Minnesota. Built 1862 - 1869, it was the first church in the Episcopal Church in the United States of America designed as a cathedral. The architect was James Renwick, Jr., who also designed St. Patrick's Cathedral in New...

 in Faribault, Minnesota
Faribault, Minnesota
As of the census of 2000, there were 20,818 people, 7,472 households, and 4,946 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,644.8 people per square mile . There were 7,668 housing units at an average density of 605.8 per square mile...

, which had been consecrated in 1869 by Bishop Kemper, was the first church built as a cathedral. The cathedral in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...

 was the only other cathedral that existed in the country at the time. It had not been built as a cathedral, however.
Bishop Lee began planning for the Bishop's Church after he received a gift of $30,000 from David J. Ely of Chicago in memory of his daughter, Sarah Ely Parsons, for the expressed purpose of building a cathedral. Edward Tuckerman Potter
Edward Tuckerman Potter
Edward Tuckerman Potter was an American architect best known for designing the 1871 Mark Twain House in Hartford, Connecticut. With his half-brother William Appleton Potter, he also designed Nott Memorial Hall at his alma mater, Union College, Schenectady, New York...

 of New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

 was chosen as the architect. He was the son of the Rt. Rev. Alonzo Potter
Alonzo Potter
The Right Reverend Alonzo Potter was an American bishop of the Episcopal Church in the United States who served as the third Bishop of Pennsylvania.-Early life:...

 who had been the Bishop of Pennsylvania
Episcopal Diocese of Pennsylvania
The Episcopal Diocese of Pennsylvania is a diocese of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America encompassing the counties of Philadelphia, Montgomery, Bucks, Chester and Delaware in the state of Pennsylvania....

, and one of his brothers was a priest in New York. The cathedral was designed in the English Gothic style. The cornerstone for the new cathedral was laid on June 17, 1867, on the Griswold College property on top of the bluff that overlooks the downtown area. The building was completed in 1873 according to 14 architectural drawings, but without the planned bell tower and spire. It is constructed of native Iowa limestone, trimmed in Indiana limestone. The roofline is adorned by wrought iron Gothic ornamentation. Nineteenth century stained glass windows illuminate the interior of the church.

The Diocesan Convention of 1872 recommended that the structure should be a Cathedral Church
Cathedral
A cathedral is a Christian church that contains the seat of a bishop...

. It was named Grace Cathedral after Grace Church in New York because a significant amount of the money that was raised to build the cathedral came from this one parish, as well as David J. Wolfe and his daughter Catherine Lorillard Wolfe from another New York parish. The church was built for $80,000, of which 10% of the money was contributed from people in Iowa. Bishop Lee contributed several thousand dollars of his own money to finish construction and furnish the church. The cathedral was consecrated on June 18, 1873, by Bishop Lee who was joined by Bishops Robert Clarkson of Nebraska
Episcopal Diocese of Nebraska
The Episcopal Diocese of Nebraska is the diocese of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America with jurisdiction over the state of Nebraska, except for two congregations which are in the Santee Mission of the Episcopal Diocese of South Dakota. It is in Province VI. Its cathedral, Trinity...

 and Henry Benjamin Whipple
Henry Benjamin Whipple
Henry Benjamin Whipple was the first Episcopal bishop of Minnesota, a humanitarian and an advocate for Native Americans.-Summary of his life:...

 of Minnesota
Episcopal Diocese of Minnesota
The Episcopal Diocese of Minnesota is the diocese of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America which has jurisdiction over all of Minnesota, except Clay County, which is in the Episcopal Diocese of North Dakota, and Browns Valley, which is in the Episcopal Diocese of South Dakota. It is...

, who preached the dedicatory sermon.

Grace Cathedral was a Bishop's Church and not a parish church, although Bishop Lee had hoped that it would be so, possibly uniting with Trinity Church. However, it was up to Lee's successor, the Rt. Rev. William Stevens Perry
William Stevens Perry
William Stevens Perry was a 19th century bishop of the Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States of America and an educator. He served as the second bishop of the Diocese of Iowa from 1876 - 1898....

 to implement the administration of the cathedral. Bishop Perry appointed a Dean and Chapter
Chapter (religion)
Chapter designates certain corporate ecclesiastical bodies in the Roman Catholic, Anglican and Nordic Lutheran churches....

 based on the English model. The Chapter was made up of the following officials: Praecentor, Chancellor
Chancellor
Chancellor is the title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the Cancellarii of Roman courts of justice—ushers who sat at the cancelli or lattice work screens of a basilica or law court, which separated the judge and counsel from the...

, Treasurer, Canons
Canon (priest)
A canon is a priest or minister who is a member of certain bodies of the Christian clergy subject to an ecclesiastical rule ....

, Rural Dean
Rural Dean
In the Anglican Communion and the Roman Catholic Church, a Rural Dean presides over a Rural Deanery .-Origins and usage:...

s, and Honorary Prebends
Prebendary
A prebendary is a post connected to an Anglican or Catholic cathedral or collegiate church and is a type of canon. Prebendaries have a role in the administration of the cathedral...

. Not all of these offices were functional, not all of them were filled all the time, and the dean actually functioned like a parish vicar. The Very Rev. Dr. Willis H. Barris was appointed as the cathedral's first dean, and the Rev. Joseph S. Jenches, Jr. was appointed the first canon.

Episcopalian Institutions

The Episcopal Church established other institutions in Davenport in the late 19th century that served the community into the 21st century, even though none of the institutions are supported by the church today. Bishop Perry announced plans for a girls school in 1883. The residence of Mrs. John L. Davies, which was named Cambria Place, was chosen as the location for the new school. On September 24, 1884, St. Katherine's Hall
St. Katherine's Historic District
St. Katherine's Historic District is located on the east side Davenport, Iowa, United States and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It is the campus of a former Episcopal girl’s school named St. Katherine’s Hall. It is currently the location of a senior living facility called...

 opened to both day and boarding students. In 1902 the Sisters of Mary took over the administration and teaching responsibilities at the school. In the years following the school expanded with the addition of a chapel and academic buildings. The Renwick mansion was added to the facility in 1907. In 1968 the school ended its boarding program and admitted boys. The name was changed to St. Katherine and St. Mark to reflect this change. In 1973, the school moved to the former home of Joseph Bettendorf
Joseph F. Bettendorf House
The Joseph F. Bettendorf House, located at 1821 Sunset Drive, Bettendorf, Iowa is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Built as a private home, the building now houses a private school named Rivermont Collegiate.-History :...

 in Bettendorf, Iowa
Bettendorf, Iowa
Bettendorf is a city in Scott County, Iowa, United States. Bettendorf is the fifteenth largest city in the U.S. state of Iowa and the fourth largest city in the "Quad Cities". As of the 2010 United States Census the population grew to 33,217. Bettendorf is one of the Quad Cities, along with...

, and in 1980 it amicably broke its ties with the Episcopal Church. In 2001, the school changed its name to Rivermont Collegiate
Rivermont Collegiate
Rivermont Collegiate is a nonsectarian, independent, multicultural, college preparatory school for students - preschool through twelfth grade...

.

In 1884 the trustees of Griswold College began planning a school for boys. They built a structure opposite the cathedral on Main Street and it opened in September 1886 as Kemper Hall, named for the missionary bishop. It closed for lack of funds in December 1895. The building was sold to the public school district and it remains on the Central High School
Davenport Central High School
Davenport Central High School is a four-year comprehensive high school located in Davenport, Iowa. Opened in 1907 as "Davenport High School," Central is one of three public high schools part of the Davenport Community School District. The school, whose western side is located along U.S...

 campus.

In 1893 St. Luke's Hospital
St. Luke's Hospital (Davenport, Iowa)
St. Luke's Hospital is a former hospital building located on a bluff overlooking downtown Davenport, Iowa, United States. It is listed on the Davenport Register of Historic Properties and on the National Register of Historic Places.-History:...

 was founded at the corner of Eighth and Main streets in Davenport and moved to its Rusholme Street location in 1914. In 1993, one hundred years after its founding, a merger was announced between St. Luke's and Mercy Hospital in Davenport, and the consolidated hospital opened in 1994 as Genesis Health System
Genesis Health System
Genesis Health System is a health system based in Davenport, Iowa that provides health services to a 10-county region of Eastern Iowa and Western Illinois. Genesis Health System operates a hospital with two campuses in the city of Davenport, hospitals in the cities of Silvis, Illinois and DeWitt,...

.

Trinity Cathedral

In the meantime, Trinity Church moved to a new stone building on the southwest corner of Brady and Seventh Streets because its old church had been destroyed in a fire in 1874. It was built through the generosity of Clarissa Cook, an early benefactor to charitable organizations in Davenport and the Episcopal Church. She built the new church in memory of her husband, Ebenezer Cook, who had served on the vestry
Vestry
A vestry is a room in or attached to a church or synagogue in which the vestments, vessels, records, etc., are kept , and in which the clergy and choir robe or don their vestments for divine service....

 at Trinity for 30 years.

The Rev. Theodore Nevin Morrison
Theodore Nevin Morrison
Theodore Nevin Morrison was a 20th century bishop in the Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States of America. He was Bishop of Iowa from 1898 to 1929.-Early life & Ministry:...

, rector of the Church of the Epiphany in Chicago, was consecrated as the third bishop of Iowa on February 22, 1899. During his episcopate it had become apparent that a merger between Grace Cathedral and Trinity Church was necessary. On Christmas Day 1909 both congregations worshiped in Trinity Church and on the following day, which was a Sunday, they worshiped together in the cathedral. In 1910 the corporation of Trinity Church was maintained and the cathedral was renamed. Trinity was now not only a Bishop's Church, but a parish church as well.

Christ Church, which had been established in 1864, had a small frame church building at the corner of Third and Pine Streets in the west end. It merged with Trinity Cathedral in 1928.
Several changes occurred in the second half of the twentieth century. The 1960s saw changes for the Trinity congregation with the establishment of two new churches in the Iowa Quad Cities
Quad Cities
The Quad Cities is a group of five cities straddling the Mississippi River on the Iowa–Illinois boundary. These cities, Davenport and Bettendorf and Rock Island, Moline, and East Moline , are the center of the Quad Cities Metropolitan Area, which, as of 2010, had an estimated population of...

. St. Alban's Church was organized in 1960 in northwest Davenport, and in 1966 St. Peter's Church was established in Bettendorf. In 1979 the Wolff & Associes pipe organ, opus 22, was installed in the gallery of the cathedral. In 1988 Trinity's Dean, the Very Rev. Edward Harding MacBurney, was elected the seventh Bishop of Qunicy
Episcopal Diocese of Quincy
The Diocese of Quincy is an Anglican diocese in western Illinois, United States. It is a founding member of the Anglican Church in North America...

.

The status of Trinity Cathedral was changed in the 1990s. During the episcopate of the Rt. Rev. Elwood Lindsay Haines
Elwood Lindsay Haines
Elwood Lindsay Haines was a 20th century bishop in the Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States of America. He served as the bishop of the Diocese of Iowa from 1944-1949.-Early life & Ministry:...

 (1944–1949) the bishop's residence and the diocesan headquarters were moved to Des Moines
Des Moines, Iowa
Des Moines is the capital and the most populous city in the US state of Iowa. It is also the county seat of Polk County. A small portion of the city extends into Warren County. It was incorporated on September 22, 1851, as Fort Des Moines which was shortened to "Des Moines" in 1857...

. In 1992, when the Rt. Rev C. Christopher Epting was the bishop, the diocese announced that St. Paul's Church
Cathedral Church of Saint Paul (Des Moines)
The Cathedral Church of St. Paul, is located at 815 High Street, Des Moines, Iowa in the United States. It is the cathedral church of the Episcopal Diocese of Iowa. The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2010 as St. Paul's Episcopal Church.-St. Paul's Episcopal...

 in Des Moines would became the liturgical cathedral for the diocese. Trinity would be maintained as the diocese's historical cathedral. In 2010 Bishop Epting, now retired, became the interim Dean at Trinity.

The Clarissa C. Cook Parish House, which had been built in 1917, began to deteriorate and had to be replaced. A fund drive in the parish raised two million dollars, and the new structure was completed in 1993. The building, designed to complement the cathedral, contains a Great Hall, kitchen facilities, parish offices, classroom space, children's chapel and a larger octagon shaped chapel. It is connected to the cathedral by two cloister walks. In the middle is an outdoor garden, or garth
Quadrangle (architecture)
In architecture, a quadrangle is a space or courtyard, usually rectangular in plan, the sides of which are entirely or mainly occupied by parts of a large building. The word is probably most closely associated with college or university campus architecture, but quadrangles may be found in other...

. It was named the Haines Parish House after the largest donor, Elizabeth Haines.

Ms. Haines also desired to fulfill the original plans for the cathedral. In 1998 she donated all the funds necessary to complete the cathedral's 131 foot bell tower and spire. One hundred and thirty-one years after the cornerstone was laid by Bishop Lee, the cathedral was finished.

External links

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