St. Stephen’s Episcopal Nearing 200th anniversary

St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church dates to 1814, when the Rev. John William Hawley became its first recorded minister. Before that, the area’s Anglican-Epicopal Church started in 1730 with the organization of St. Mark’s Parish at a meeting at Germanna. Congregations worshipped at Great Fork (near the fork of the Rappahannock and Rapidan rivers), Buck Run and Little Fork — where the existing Little Fork Episcopal Church is north of Rixeyville — in the years following establishment. The Masonic Hall and the courthouse were used for services. Gen. Edward Stevens, a Revolutionary War patriot, donated the land where the church was built in 1821 on North East Street. According to J. Harold Boyd, St. Stepens is the only pre-Civil War church still standing in Culpeper. In 1984, St. Stephens’ parish began the Food Closet, where families in need receive food, household items and personal care products. The Rev. Michael Gray has served since 2002. » Stories by Rhonda Simmons