Christ Episcopal Church

506 Mulberry Street

Christ Episcopal Church was organized in 1835, and is the 2nd oldest Episcopal parish in Indiana. The Gothic Revival brick church was designed by architect W. Russell West, of Columbus, Ohio. The cornerstone was laid in 1848, and the church was dedicated in 1850. The beautiful stained-glass windows were installed in 1850 and were untouched except for essential maintenance until 1997. Ann Grahn, parish member and the first director of the Community Foundation, was chairperson of the ten-year windows project (which included stain-glass specialist and historians from Illinois, Philadelphia, and New York City). The pews are original, and the historic Ehard piano was donated by Peter Woodburn.

Many noteworthy persons were associated with Christ Church. Among the most noteworthy were James F.D.
Lanier and his daughter, Drusilla Lanier Cravens, Captain Charles Shrewsbury who donated the Baptismal font in memory of his son who was killed in a horse accident, and Emilie Todd Helm, (whose husband was a Confederate
General killed in the Civil War) was Abraham Lincoln’s
sister-in-law and served as church organist from 1866-1874.