Existing comment:
Old St. Paul's
St. Paul's Church (Episcopal) stands on the only property that has remained under the same ownership since the original survey of Baltimore Town in 1730. In that year, Lot. No. 19, the highest point in the new town, was granted to St. Paul's Parish; nine years later, the city's first public place of worship opened its doors. All Episcopal churches in Baltimore trace their lineage to this parish, which was established in 1692, the first place of worship being in Patapsco Neck.
Three churches have succeeded the original structure on this lot. The fourth and present basilica style church, built in 1856, was designed by Richard Upjohn, the noted architect whose most famous work is the Gothic Trinity Church in New York. A six-story bell tower was part of the original plans for St. Paul's, but was never completed.
Marble reliefs of Moses and Christ, sculpted by Antonio Capellano, ornamented the third church of 1812, which burned in 1854. The plaques were salvaged from the fire and reinstalled on the present church. Among the oldest examples of architectural sculpture in the county, the plaques also escaped Baltimore's Great Fire of 1904. |