T-15

Christ Church

Architectural Survey File

This is the architectural survey file for this MIHP record. The survey file is organized reverse-

chronological (that is, with the latest material on top). It contains all MIHP inventory forms, National

Register nomination forms, determinations of eligibility (DOE) forms, and accompanying documentation

such as photographs and maps.

Users should be aware that additional undigitized material about this property may be found in on-site

architectural reports, copies of HABS/HAER or other documentation, drawings, and the “vertical files” at

the MHT Library in Crownsville. The vertical files may include newspaper clippings, field notes, draft

versions of forms and architectural reports, photographs, maps, and drawings. Researchers who need a

thorough understanding of this property should plan to visit the MHT Library as part of their research

project; look at the MHT web site (mht.maryland.gov) for details about how to make an appointment.

All material is property of the Maryland Historical Trust.

Last Updated: 04-05-2004

Christ Church South and Harrison Street Easton, Marvland 21601

T-15 J 8ltO-I 81t8 nnd Later

Christ Church is a product of the revival of English Gothic architecture in the nineteenth century. Due to

the influence of the famous architect, Richard Upjohn, who built Trinitv Church in New York an~ worked all through New England, this form became popular. The po;ntert nrch winrtows and doors. the heavv stone construction, and the detail~ of Gothic revival make it an interestinq example. Tt was the 'first church in Easton to add a spire and church hell to its tower~

MARYLAND HISTORICAL TRUST

.,.,,.,,.1 "~ ~ston

INVENTORY FORM FOR STATE HISTORIC SITES SURVEY

6NAME HISTORIC

Christ Church AND/OR COMMON

llLOCATION STREET& NUMBER .. South ancl Harri~on Streets CITY, rowN

F.aston VICINITY OF STATE

l>lnrylRnd 21601

DcLASSIFICA TION

CATEGORY OWNERSHIP STATUS

_DISTRICT _PUBLIC ~OCCUPIED K.BUILDING1s( '!..PRIVATE -UNOCCUPIED

_STRUCT\JRE -BOTH _WORK IN PROGRESS

_sm PUBLIC ACQUISITION ACCESSIBLE _OBJECT _IN PROCESS >\_YES RESTRICTED

-BEING CONSIDERED _YES UNRESTRICTED

-NO

DOWNER OF PROPERTY NAME

_ ________ V"""r.o""s.._t""n .......... ·-'o,._f"--'St. Pei P.r' c; Pnri sh STREET& NUMBER c./o .R•w. Charl('S 'Mastin

Christ Church RP.cto1·v CITY, TOWN

R(l1<1tnn - VICINITYOF

llLOCATION OF LEGAL DESCRIPTION COURTHOUSE REGISTRY OF DEEDS. ETC

'I'Rlbot Countv Court Hou,r;E> STREET a. NUMBER

Wnshington Street CITY. TOWN

Iii REPRESENTATION IN EXISTING SURVEYS TITLE

CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT

FIRS''. COUNTY

Talbot

PRESENT USE

-AGRICULTURE _MUSEUM

_COMMERCIAL _PARK

_EDUCATIONAL _PRIVATE R~SIDENCE

-ENTERTAINMENT _!RELIGIOUS

_GOVERNMENT _SCIENTIFIC

_INDUSTRIAL _TRANSPORTATION

_MILITARY _QTHER

Te l ephone #: 301-H2~-c;4i:;q

STATE , zip code Marvlnnd 21601

Lib e r # : 5li Fol io # : 300

STATE

Maryland 2.1601

To\''11 oi' Easton Survey by Pnul Brinltman a.nd N. R. Field DATE

DEPOSITORY FOR SURVEY RECORDS

CITY.TOWN

Sh~et bv William Morgan Auaunt 2q 1967 -FEDERAL ~TATE _COUNTY -LOCAL

Maryland Historicnl Tru!=!t STATE

Annnpoli!=! Marv land

B DESCRIPTION

X EXCELLENT

- GOOO

_ FAIR

CONDITION

_ OET£RIORA TEO

_ RUINS

_ UNEXPOSED

CHECK ONE

- UNALTERED

.!ALTERED

T-15

CHECK ONE

!o1UGINAL SITE

- MOVED DATE __ _

DESCRIBE THE PRESENT AND ORIGINAL (IF KNOWN) PHYSICAL APPEARANCE

"Christ Church, Enston, is n rectangulnr masonry buildinn with a pro­jecti.ng square tow~r at the north f'nd (<lrientation is north-south with nltar at the l'louth); there is e.lRo n smaller, slightly wirier part nt tho re~r which contains the chancel. The navP ~'alls nT~ ?uttressed by eimplC' buttresres at the cornC>r"! nnd therr> nre four nnve windows on each side, plu~ two idE.'ntical windows flnnlcinQ the entrnnce tower. The tall narrow pointed windol1s are set wi tl in stont" arches {about n foot deep), and each window haA rloubl<- pointec1 mullionr; (d<roble lnncets) with a sma.11 quatrefoil at the top. ThrP.e of the windows liave ;i..llu!'!trntive late nineteenth cent1 stained glass (actually one or thes~ mny be ncwe-r),; otl1m· windows, plus the 'west' winrlow ovE't the entrance, hnv<' rlinmonri <=:hnped mullions and earlier neo11ietrical patterned glnss. Th,..rr- is a simple wood !<ipire abovP the tower \:hich has a bracketed wood cornic~ of nimple desi1=1n .

The interior of Cl- rist Chur-ch consists of a laJ•gc, nudi.torium-lik~ rPctangular nave which is riividerJ by n wide ccntc•r aialt" (ther(> ar,.. narrotf' aide aisJ~s nqainst thP ~~de wnlls) . ThP lip pews hn~e ~oppy head finials. The ra.thl'r wide eimanse of CPiling ('for a masonry a:r~h, whi.ch this is not) is !=!panned by a hammer bpam roof with pendant drops nnd a pani:>lled ceiling. '!'hr" chanof:"l iR almoi:.t as wirle as the nave and is

r1parnted by o wfd,,-, arch supoorter1 by Pngaoed, imflut~d columns with composite capitals. A double arched nrcnrle, rcstino on n c~ntrnl compot'1ite column with colonettes i'ln~ on corb('l]r>d enqa(1r>d C'olumns (with cnpi~als ejmilar to thone of thP chnncel arch), oJ)('ns on t~~ 6i~P (east) of the chancPl to the oroan. The west chencel unll is blank. A gallery lines the:> renr wall of the church, itl'I c<>ntral J)ortion pt'Ojectinq. There is a triple, composite lnncet window ayer the altar.

A stone parish house> was added to thP renr of the. chuT'd1 in 18QJ."

Description written by William Moroan Dcpartm,.nt of Art 1H storv University of Delaware Ne"'-a.rl<:, De> lnware Juno 12, l'l6Q

CONTINUE ON SEPARATE SHEET IF NECESSARY

I

II SIGNIFICANCE

r-. PERIOD

- PREHISTORIC

_1 400-1499

_ 1500.1 599

- 1800-1 699 _ 1 7()().1 799

AREAS OF SIGNIFICANCE ·· CHECK AND JUSTIFY BELOW

x 1800-1 899

_ 1900·

_ ARCHEULU<iY· PREHISTORIC

.-ARCHEOLOGY·HISTORIC

-AGRICULTURE

~RCHITECTURE -ART

-COMMERCE

_COM MUNICATIONS

_COMM UNITY Pl.ANNING _LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE

_CONSERVATION _LAW

_ECONOMICS -LITERATURE

-EDUCATION _MILITARY

-ENGINEERING _ MUSIC

_EXP LORA TIONtSETTLEM ENl _PHILOSOPHY

_INDUSTRY _POLITICStGOVERNMENT

_INVENTION

~RELIGION _SCIENCE

_SCULPTURE

_SOCIA U HUMANITARIAN

_THEATER

_TRANSPORTATION

_OTHER ISPECIFYI

SPECIFIC OATES • tf:llill- 1348 nncl Lntcr BUILDER/ ARCHITECT Wi 11 i am Stri c-klnnd

·"STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE

The building is si oni ficant for its archl tect11r~. 1n the mid ninctcent~ c~nturv, Chri~t Church wns rortuna t.e in selecting aA it~ '{>a""tor a man devotrd to both architecture and theology. The builder of Chri!:;t Church and ite Rcctorv~ Re,· . Henry M. :1.1ason, came to E-:iston from SalP. i New Jersey, in 1838. There he hod bP.en clos<>lv affiliated wi1'h the Rt Rev. GooroP W. Doane, a builder of several churches in New Englnnd nnd a lcndP-r in the Amnricnn Ecclesiology MovemPnt . Ecclcsiogical theory, founded in England in the early nineteenth century, 1'nvor"d thA En<Jlish Gothic pariSh church as a model for construction of churchE>s. In the Uni te<l Staties, \ii llinm Strickland, a lenYing American architect and proponent of Ecclesiological theory, had deeigned

,...-.. a church for Rev. Mat'on in Salem, New Jcri:::ey, in 1836 . Christ Church i~ base.d on these plnns .

Orioino.lly, th!'.' tower had four woQ<lcn pinnacle~ at thP cor.ners .. ThP.~c "'"re remov('rl in the ln.te nineteenth century nnd a centrnl window on tko!~ .. trance facacle wa!' Rhortencrl . TJ~e three-part rloor wacs re pl ncen by n ~no e opcninQ in 1~78 . The chnncel, added in 1876,va~ needPd to re~pond to chnn •re; in l i. """'L gy nnd to reflect com..i-non church 'form of thr. time. Although l1istorics of thC" church and local trndition attribl.1tr> the chancel tQ. Richllr,.f Upicihn (the designer of the Rectory) jt was planned nftPr the not~l arc~itPct hnd retired.

Thn timber roo:f waa constructed in 1922, nt the same time that electric lights w~..re in~talled . Between 1871 and 188~, the poppy headed ~ws replaced earlier seats.

Mr . Reynolds, n local builde~ , built Christ Church based upon the archi tecturnl advice of William Strickland . Reverand Ma.ad n was rector of' -the ChQrch at the time of construction.

CONTINUE ON SEPARATE SHEET IF NECESSARY

IJMAJOR BIBLIOGRAPHICAL REFERENCES Not~s fr·o•n Cbj•iqt Church Dir ectories lt')l~ 1 1923 1 1926. Stanton, Pl•oebe B. , The Gothic Revival and A'.merican ~hurch Archi.t~ctnrf",

Tohns Hopkin"! Press, 'Baltimore, 1Q68.

CONTINUE ON SEf ARATE SHEET IF NECESSARY

lltJ<;EOGRAPHICALDATA ACREAGE OF NOMINATED PROPERTY ___ N_A ____ _

VERBAL BOUNDARY DESCRIPTION

NA

LI ST All STATES AND COUNTIES FOR PROPERTIES OVERLAPPING STATE OR COUNTY BOUNDARIES

STA TE NonP COUNTY

STATE COUNTY

mroRM PREPARED BY NAM E I TITLE

M.."lrsha L. Jt'ri tz, Con~u 1 tant Cvnthta B. L•uHow, ... iRtor; n ORGANIZATION OAT£

Historic Easton, !neorpornt~n .Jnnu.nrv 7, 1°77 STREET • NUMBER

Box 1171 TELEPHONE ~tr. Pau 1 Pnr o:;on~ I 301 - R22- 2106 Prr~id~t

CITY OR TOWN STATE

Ens ton \t.arvl n.nd 21601

The Maryland Historic Sites Inventory was officially created by an Act of the Maryland Legislature, to be found in the Anno tated Code of Maryland, Article 41, Sectio n 181 KA, 1974 Supplement.

The Survey and Inventory are being prepa red for information and reco rd purposes only and do no t constitute any infringe­ment of individual property rights .

RETURN TO: Maryland Historical Trust The Shaw House, 21 State Circle Annapolis, Maryland 21401 (301) 267-1438

P8• 1101

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i. STATE Maryland couNTY Talbot TOWN Easton STREET No. South

VICINITY Street

oRtGtNAL owNER Christ Church Episco-oRtGtNAL usE Church pal PRESENT owN ER Christ Church Episcopa PRESENT usE Church

HISTORIC AMER IC AH BUILDINGS SURVEY

INVENTORY

2. NAME Christ Church Episcopal T-/J'1

DATE OR PERIOD v. 1865 I sTYLE Victorian Gothic & Italianatf ARCH! TE CT BUILD ER

WALL CONSTRUCTIONRough dressed granite FOR LIBRARY OF CONGRESS USE NO. OF STORIES 1 vaulted storey

4. NOTABLE FEATURES, HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE AND DESCRIPTION OPEN TO PUBLIC yes

This is a very attractive Gothic style church made of rough­dressed granite. This material of construction makes the church outstanding because stone buildings are rare on the Eastern Shore of Maryland.

The church is 3 bays wide and 4 bays deep with a steeply pitched A-roof with the gable end on the front. There are tall poined arched windows set with diamond shaped beaded colored glass~ These are very high, running almost from the ground up to the roof line. The front central bay of the church is occupied by a massiv square tower, also of granite. The tower was originally flat­roofed and had a cornice of closely placed cut wooden brackets. It is very Italian in feeling. It now is surmounted by a very thin tall spire covered with tin •

At the rear of the church is a protruding apse with buttress wings on either side which slope almost to the ground. These are really radiating ambrelatories around the 2 sides of the apse. This part of the Church construction is derived from late antique Christian basilicas and reflects early Lombardian Romanesque con­struction.

The Church is very attractive and well kept-up. Its granite surface is pleasing and the whole structure has a very refined and restrained air- the parish house is noted on its own separate sheet.

5. PHYSICAL CONDITION OF ~TRUCTURE Endangered

~ 6. LOCATION MAP (Pion Optiorool)

3. PUBLISHED SOURCES (Author, Title, Pages)

INTERVIEWS, RECORDS, PHOTOS, ETC.

Interj or

7. PHOTOGRAPH 9. NAME, ADDRESS AND TITLE OF RECORDER

Paul A. Brinkman

DATE OF RECORD August 28, 1967

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Church· & Harrison Streets

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PHOTOGRAPH BY WILLIAM D. MORGAN.

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