St. Paul's Church

A Brief History of St. Paul's Episcopal Church

Since 1792...

The history of Saint Paul's Church predates the City of Steubenville, going back to 1792 when the Reverend Joseph Doddridge (a newly ordained deacon) began holding services on both sides of the Ohio River in this area. A Bishop of the Church did not get around to visiting these frontier Episcopalians until May 17, 1819 when The Right Reverend Philander Chase (the Bishop of the 'new' Diocese of Ohio) "officially" organized Saint Paul's Church of Steubenville, baptized 20 children, confirmed 38 individuals, and celebrated Mass.

Saint Paul's Church is the first organized parish in the State of Ohio, is the oldest church building in the City of Steubenville, and continues its vital witness to the fullness of the Catholic Faith in its stately Anglican style.

In 1792 only the burnout ruins of Fort Steuben were left standing, and the last blood was not yet shed in the battle between the white man and the Indians. In this year The Reverend Dr. Joseph Doddridge received Holy Orders, and was ordained a deacon by Bishop White of Philadelphia. He immediately came to Charlestown, Virginia (now known as Wellsburg, West Virginia), to begin his ministrations and to hold service on both sides of the Ohio River, and what came to be known as the City of Steubenville. Seven years before, The Rev 'd. Dr. Doddridge found many solid citizens from Maryland and Virginia who had brought their Bibles, The Book of Common Prayer, and their love for the Church with them into the Ohio Wilderness.

Notes from early diaries tell of the first services celebrated by the Rev 'd Dr. Doddridge, the first Christian Clergyman to preach in the little village which was to become the City of Steubenville. By 1796 he was holding regular monthly services, and the congregation was meeting in a frame building that stood on the south side of Market and Water Streets. In 1798 he continued his monthly service in the log Court House, in which an upper room was reserved for religious purposes. When the city Market House was built in 1816, he held services there.

In 1800 in the prosperous rural district, The Rev 'd. Dr. Doddridge made an agreement with Mrs. Mary McGuire and her neighbors to conduct regular services according to the Book of Common Prayer, at her home, where the Jefferson county Infirmary was to stand later.

At a time when the best wagon roads were only mud trails and the saddle horse the only means of transportation, this early missionary of the church continued his work in Steubenville and, at the same time, over one-fourth of the state, ministering, healing, organizing, and single-handedly maintaining the banner of the church northwest of the Ohio.

Soon the work of organizing the Diocese began, and was finished in 1818. The Right Reverend Philander Chase became the first Bishop of Ohio. In the first summary of his circuit of the newly formed diocese he notes: "Monday, May 17, 1819, I organized a parish by the name of Saint Paul's in Steubenville........I also baptized 20 children. On May 16, I administered the Rite of Confirmation to 38 and the Lord's Supper to 25."

One of the first acts of the newly elected Vestry was to secure a priest that would be their permanent Rector. On June 26, 1819 a formal arrangement was made with The Rev 'd. Intrepid Morse, a nephew of the Bishop, to devote one-fourth of his priestly duties to Saint Paul's, whose services were held in the city council chamber, and later on the second floor of the "Old Academy". In May, 1825 the Articles of Incorporation were signed, and in May 1832 a lot was purchased for the building of a church. The cornerstone was laid September 21, 1833. The consecration of the present church building at Fourth and Adams Streets was celebrated on April 1, 1880. The church was designed by George W. Hewett of Philadelphia. It is of the low gothic order, and is built of native sandstone.

Since 1792 Saint Paul's Church has been served by over 22 priests, and continues its vital Anglican Catholic witness in the center of downtown Steubenville, when so many business and churches are 'fleeing the downtown' and moving to the suburbs. The heart of Saint Paul's church continues to be their devotion to our Lord Jesus Christ present in their midst in the Most Blessed Sacrament of the the Altar, reserved in the Tabernacle. From this love and devotion for our Lord Jesus Christ in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass flows many of the more recent outreach ministries to the community, such as the Courtyard Shoppe, and Saint Paul's Soup Kitchen. For over 200 years Saint Paul's church has witnessed to the fullness of the Catholic Faith, proclaiming the saving gospel of Jesus Christ in this area.