St Bartholomew's Episcopal Church

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History The oldest community of faith in Pinellas County and certainly among the oldest on the West Coast of Florida, St. Bartholomew's Episcopal Church was established by a group of St. Petersburg lay people on April 20, 1887. Eight days later Dr. Albert Abercrombie donated an acre of land, and they immediately set about to build a church building, an American Gothic structure of Georgia unturpentined pine boards. It cost six hundred and seventy three dollars to build. Since then St. Bartholomew's has undergone considerable expansion and a move from its original location -22nd Ave. & 19th St. South where we continue to maintain and keep in use one of this area's oldest cemeteries. In 1969 the congregation, now a part of the Diocese of Southwest Florida determined to move the church and acquired our present property on the corner of 34th St. South ( US Route 19 ) and 37th Ave. South. The first service in the relocated and expanded facility took place sometime in August, 1970. Thanks to many generous gifts, the relocation and expansion of St. Bartholomew's was soon accompanied by the addition of a Parish Hall and an Office building in 1978 and the Bidwell Educational Building in 1990. Together, these four structures enclose a courtyard and fountain - our Garden of Peace - created by a couple's gift to their fellow parishioners and was dedicated on Easter of 1995 as a restful and refreshing haven as well as a facility for outdoor gatherings. Another generous gift made the creation of a Memorial Garden and columbarium possible on the northeast corner of the parish complex. This enclosed area provides a sacred space for the interment of the ashes of departed members of the parish and their families. The worship of Almighty God has, from the very beginning, been the reason for St. Bartholomew's existence. The Holy Eucharist is celebrated every Sunday and on certain weekdays throughout the year. From its earliest days, the style of worship here was influenced by the Catholic revival within Anglicanism that dated from the mid-19th century. In more recent times the sanctuary of the Church was refitted to accommodate the contemporary style in which the Celebrant of the Mass faces the congregation.