A Church Amongst A Town of Churches
Staunton, Virginia, in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia, is a city of some 25,000 residents, a lot of history from Native American connections through both the Revolution and the Civil wars, and many unique types of architecture, some even from pre-Civil War days. While there were no major or large battles fought in Staunton during the Civil War, General Sherman did set a few matches enroute to Georgia, so many homes were burned to the ground, yet still others survive today.
But it is also a town of churches. There are at least 80 churches, synagogues and temples in Staunton, representing all religions from Mennonite and AME, to Roman Catholic and 7th Day Adventists.
But the one that draws the most attention for several different reasons is the spectacular Trinity Episcopal Church, located on West Beverly Street in one of the city’s six the historic districts. The church is the site of private guided tours as well as a trolley stop in the district. Self-guided tours can take hours, especially if you happen to stop in when an orchestra is preparing for a concert.
Actually, this is the third building on the site, the first church being built in 1763 and the second, the first to be called Trinity Church, was completed in 1830. The present building, located a bit northeast of the first Trinity Church, was built in 1855 with several additions through the years until 1923. The building remains the oldest church in continuous use in Staunton.
The history of the parish is best reflected in its windows….12 of them are Tiffany windows, created by the Louis Comfort Tiffany Company of New York between the late 1800s through 1933. The glass-maker was impressed by medieval glass after a trip to Europe and was convinced that it was the impurities in pot metal and no use of paint that created uneven thickness in glass and richness to the colors. His various designs in Trinity Church show the distinctive characteristics that make Tiffany glass different from any other.
Regardless of any knowledge of types of techniques Tiffany used to create his windows, they are magnificent to see. The Ascension Windows, created in 1897, were the first Tiffany windows at the church and are located above the altar, three separate windows created by Tiffany’s lead designer Frederick Wilson and copyrighted as well.
The last Tiffany window installed at Trinity is the Madonna and Child window, installed in 1936 and typical of the darker colors that seem to stand out again deeper colored landscaping scenes.
In between, a pair of Easter Morn windows installed in 1904 show Christ’s tomb on Easter morning and were memorial gifts for a couple were were members of the church. The Beloved Physician is Tiffany’s
1909 depiction of Luke the Physician surrounded by a field of lilies. In sharp contrast is Tiffany’s Benedicite Window from 1903 which contains no people at all but rather a palette of a variety of glasses from plating and acid-etched to flashed. A favorite of many is the Archangel Michael in the adjacent window, part of Tiffany’s Warrior Angel series but with Michael in chain mail and leg armor.
In addition to the dozen Tiffany windows, the church has no fewer than two dozen other stained glass windows by Sharp and Steele, Whippel , and the Lamb studios, all recognized as leading stained glass makers in the world.
A tour also includes the Trinity Organ, made by the Staunton firm of Taylor & Boody and featuring 37 stops and more than 2,500 pipes on three manuals. The organ itself was designed and created by hand, from timber cut locally even with some black walnut the gift of church members. There are carvings above the organ pipes of area songbirds., the Carolina wren, as well as sparrows, a cardinal and some mockingbirds.
Located high up over the pews and in the back of the church, the church’s ceiling had to be raised and the flooring replaced with solid hardwood to improve the acoustics for the singing congregation.
Visiting Trinity Church on a visit that began with a desire to visit Woodrow Wilson’s birth place added one more layer of sheer enjoyment to a quick visit to the Blue Ridge Mountains.
