| Grace Cathedral | |
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| 39°03′3.05″N95°41′3.3″W / 39.0508472°N 95.684250°W /39.0508472; -95.684250 | |
| Location | 701 SW 8th Ave. Topeka, Kansas |
| Country | United States |
| Denomination | Episcopal Church in the United States of America |
| Website | www |
| History | |
| Founded | 1857 (as Grace Church) |
| Architecture | |
| Architect | Root & Siemens |
| Style | Gothic Revival |
| Groundbreaking | 1910 |
| Completed | 1917 |
| Specifications | |
| Capacity | 1000 |
| Length | 160 |
| Width | 100 |
| Height | 62 |
| Other dimensions | Towers 92 feetLimestone High Altar 17 feet |
| Spire height | 33 feet |
| Materials | Limestone |
| Bells | Deagan Tower Chimes |
| Administration | |
| Diocese | Kansas |
| Clergy | |
| Bishop | Cathleen Chittenden Bascom |
| Dean | Very Rev. Torey Lightcap |
Grace Episcopal Cathedral is located inTopeka, Kansas, United States. It is the seat of theEpiscopal Diocese of Kansas. The cathedral reported 801 members in 2015 and 408 members in 2023; no membership statistics were reported in 2024 parochial reports. Plate and pledge income for the congregation in 2024 was $726,096 with average Sunday attendance (ASA) of 201.[1]
Grace Cathedral started as a mission founded by the Rev. Charles M. Callaway. The first service was held on January 20, 1857 at Constitution Hall, a building used by John Farnsworth for his general merchandise business. Two years later services were moved to the Ritchie Block. The convention for the Diocese of Kansas met there on April 11 and 12, 1860 and on September 9 Grace Mission was legally incorporated as Grace Church. Bethany Place, a school for young women, had been opened the same year and was attached to Grace Church.
A new church building was completed in 1865. It contained an altar built of native walnut that has been used ever since.[2] Grace Church was named the diocesan cathedral by the Convention of the Diocese of Kansas in June 1879. Part of the Bethany Place property was set aside for the construction of a new cathedral in 1886. Financial difficulties, however, delayed its construction. The foundation for the present cathedral was laid in 1910 and the walls were completed in 1912. The final fundraising push was initiated by BishopFrank Rosebrook Millspaugh and Dean J. P. DeBevers Kaye. The structure was completed, minus the towers, in 1917. They were completed along with the rest of the cathedral complex under the leadership of Dean John Warren Day (1927-1957) and Dean Leslie Skerry Olsen (1957-1984). On November 26, 1975 the cathedral was extensively damaged in a fire set by anarsonist. Services were held in the Great Hall utilizing the old walnut altar, which had been saved, until the cathedral was reopened on October 1, 1978. The current building has had much work done in recent years to update and keep the maintenance up. A renovation of the 1951 Cloister building was completed in late 2014, featuring a two story tall main entrance Common Room. A capital campaign is currently underway to build a new main floor parish hall to the south onto the Bethany Place grounds of theDiocese of Kansas.
The architects of the cathedral wereRoot & Siemens of Kansas City.[3] Thecruciform structure was built in theGothic Revival style. The exterior features two towers that flank the mainfaçade. They were modeled after those ofMagdalen College inOxford, England.[4] A 1921 history book by Dean J.P. DeBevers Kaye states, the towers of French design (eventually surmounted by spires) resemble in some respects the Church of St. Corentin, at Quimper, in Brittany. The structure is covered in Kansas Silverdalelimestone quarried from St. Mary's, Kansas. A 3000-pound block of the same stone produced the free-standing High Altar. The pulpit is sandstone, removed from a redundant parish in Dewsbury, England. A handcrafted copperfleche is located at the crossing. The interior features an oak wood truss ceiling that is supported by hammered beams and columns with hand carved stone capitals. American-madestained glass windows byJudson Studios andWillet Hauser Studio illuminate the space. The organ was built in 1978 bySchantz Organ Company as Opus 1492. There are 4 manuals, 53 stops, 65 ranks, and 3820 pipes. Additions and enhancements made by Schantz andReuter Organ Company.
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