St. Paul's Episcopal Church of Cleveland Heights was founded in 1846 under the name of Parish of St. Paul's Church of Cleveland, Ohio. The founders were forty-five men, most of them members of Trinity Church in Cleveland. According to tradition, the new church came into existence due to a disagreement between High Church and Low Church adherents within the Episcopal denomination. Trinity Church at that time was a High Church affiliate.
The earliest services were held in a loft room on Seneca Street (now West 3rd Street) until the first church building was built on the corner of Euclid Avenue and Sheriff Street (now East 4th Street) in 1848. The building promptly burned in 1849, but was rebuilt by 1851. In 1874, the property on which the church was located was sold. The congregation held services in Plymouth Congregational Chapel on the corner of Prospect and Perry Streets until a new building was constructed on the corner of Euclid Avenue and East 40th Street in 1876.
In 1928, St. Martin's Episcopal Church (f. 1916) was consolidated with St. Paul's. At this time the church officially moved to Cleveland Heights, the home of most of the members. A new Parish Hall was built there and the first service was held on Palm Sunday in 1928. Work began on a new church building on the corner of Coventry Road and Fairmount Boulevard in Cleveland Heights. Construction was slowed by World War II, but in 1951, the new building was completed. The official name of the church became St. Paul's Episcopal Church of Cleveland Heights.
The St. Paul's Episcopal Church of Cleveland Heights Records, 1874-1875, 1903-1969, consist of church histories, lists of church regulations, St. Paul's Guild minutes, vital statistics, annual reports, registers of church services, treasurers' reports, lists of communicants, membership transfers and lists, correspondence, publications, examinations on the
The collection most thoroughly documents the activities of the church from 1907 until 1969. Little material dating before 1907 has survived. The records of the Special Unemployment Relief Committee deal with the efforts of numerous Cleveland area churches to alleviate the effects of the Great Depression for various families under severe economic stress. Some of the material also deals with efforts to raise money to build the new church in Cleveland Heights between 1928 and 1951.
The collection is arranged in four series.
All photographs have been removed to the photograph and print collection.
The researcher should also consult MS 3266 St. Paul's Episcopal Church Records.
Processed by Richard Hite in 1987.
None.
[Container ___, Folder ___ ] MS 4088 St. Paul's Episcopal Church of Cleveland Heights Records, Western Reserve Historical Society, Cleveland, Ohio
Gift of St. Paul's Episcopal Church of Cleveland Heights, Ohio, in 1974.
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library's online public access catalog.