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Holy Trinity Church (Old Swedes)
Encyclopedia
Holy Trinity Church, also known as Old Swedes is a church in Wilmington, Delaware
that is a National Historic Landmark
. It was dedicated on July 4, 1699.
from local blue granite and Swedish bricks that had been used as ship's ballast
. The church was situated on the site of the Fort Christina
's burial ground, which dates to 1638. It is claimed that it is "the nation's oldest church building still standing as originally built". There are reportedly over 15,000 burials in the churchyard. Lutheran Church services were held in the Swedish language
well into the 18th century.
The church has housed an Episcopal
parish since 1791 and is now part of the Episcopal Diocese of Delaware
. An earlier church in New Sweden was built in Swanwyck, near New Castle
about 1662 which was replaced by a combined church and fort at Crane Hook in 1667.
In 1958 the historic Hendrickson House
was moved to the grounds of the church. The church building was declared a National Historic Landmark
in 1961.
Trinity Parish operates two church buildings in Wilmington, both listed on the NRHP: the main building
on North Adams, and Old Swedes at East 7th and Church Streets.
Wilmington, Delaware
Wilmington is the largest city in the state of Delaware, United States, and is located at the confluence of the Christina River and Brandywine Creek, near where the Christina flows into the Delaware River. It is the county seat of New Castle County and one of the major cities in the Delaware Valley...
that is a National Historic Landmark
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...
. It was dedicated on July 4, 1699.
History
The church was built in 1698-99 in the Swedish colony of New SwedenNew Sweden
New Sweden was a Swedish colony along the Delaware River on the Mid-Atlantic coast of North America from 1638 to 1655. Fort Christina, now in Wilmington, Delaware, was the first settlement. New Sweden included parts of the present-day American states of Delaware, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania....
from local blue granite and Swedish bricks that had been used as ship's ballast
Sailing ballast
Ballast is used in sailboats to provide moment to resist the lateral forces on the sail. Insufficiently ballasted boats will tend to tip, or heel, excessively in high winds. Too much heel may result in the boat capsizing. If a sailing vessel should need to voyage without cargo then ballast of...
. The church was situated on the site of the Fort Christina
Fort Christina
Fort Christina was the first Swedish settlement in North America and the principal settlement of the New Sweden colony...
's burial ground, which dates to 1638. It is claimed that it is "the nation's oldest church building still standing as originally built". There are reportedly over 15,000 burials in the churchyard. Lutheran Church services were held in the Swedish language
Swedish language
Swedish is a North Germanic language, spoken by approximately 10 million people, predominantly in Sweden and parts of Finland, especially along its coast and on the Åland islands. It is largely mutually intelligible with Norwegian and Danish...
well into the 18th century.
The church has housed an Episcopal
Episcopal Church (United States)
The Episcopal Church is a mainline Anglican Christian church found mainly in the United States , but also in Honduras, Taiwan, Colombia, Ecuador, Haiti, the Dominican Republic, Venezuela, the British Virgin Islands and parts of Europe...
parish since 1791 and is now part of the Episcopal Diocese of Delaware
Episcopal Diocese of Delaware
The Episcopal Diocese of Delaware is one of 108 dioceses making up the Episcopal Church in the United States of America. It consists of 38 congregations or Parishes in an area the same as the State of Delaware...
. An earlier church in New Sweden was built in Swanwyck, near New Castle
New Castle, Delaware
New Castle is a city in New Castle County, Delaware, six miles south of Wilmington, situated on the Delaware River. In 1900, 3,380 people lived here; in 1910, 3,351...
about 1662 which was replaced by a combined church and fort at Crane Hook in 1667.
In 1958 the historic Hendrickson House
Hendrickson House
Hendrickson House is one of the oldest houses in the U.S. state of Delaware and one of the oldest surviving Swedish-American homes in the United States....
was moved to the grounds of the church. The church building was declared a National Historic Landmark
National Historic Landmark
A National Historic Landmark is a building, site, structure, object, or district, that is officially recognized by the United States government for its historical significance...
in 1961.
Trinity Parish operates two church buildings in Wilmington, both listed on the NRHP: the main building
Trinity Episcopal Church (Wilmington, Delaware)
Trinity Episcopal Church is a historic church at 1108 N. Adams Street in Wilmington, Delaware.It was built in 1890 and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1984....
on North Adams, and Old Swedes at East 7th and Church Streets.
Burials in churchyard
Notable burials include:- Alexis Irenee du Pont Bayard (1918–1985), Lieutenant Governor of Delaware
- Elizabeth Bradford du Pont Bayard (1880–1975)
- James A. BayardJames A. Bayard, Jr.James Asheton Bayard, Jr. was an American lawyer and politician from Wilmington, in New Castle County, Delaware. He was a member of the Democratic Party, who served as U.S. Senator from Delaware.-Early life and family:...
(1799–1880), U.S. Senator - Richard Bayard (1796–1868), first Mayor of Wilmington, U.S. Senator
- Thomas F. BayardThomas F. BayardThomas Francis Bayard was an American lawyer and politician from Wilmington, Delaware. He was a member of the Democratic Party, who served three terms as U.S. Senator from Delaware, and as U.S. Secretary of State, and U.S. Ambassador to the United Kingdom.-Early life and family:Bayard was born in...
, Sr. (1828–1898), Secretary of State under President Cleveland - Thomas F. Bayard, Jr.Thomas F. Bayard, Jr.Thomas Francis Bayard, Jr. was an American lawyer and politician from Wilmington, in New Castle County, Delaware. He was a member of the Democratic Party, who served two terms as U.S. Senator from Delaware.-Early life and family:...
(1868–1942), U.S. Senator - Dr. Joseph Capelle, a Revolutionary War veteran
- Catharina and Britta Cock (d. 1726)
- Frank Martine Heal
- Major Peter Jaquett, a Revolutionary War veteran
- The Right Reverend Alfred LeeAlfred Lee (bishop)Alfred Lee was an American Episcopal bishop. He was born in Cambridge, Massachusetts, graduated from Harvard in 1827, and after three years practicing law in New London, Connecticut, he studied for the ministry, graduating from the General Theological Seminary, New York, in 1837...
, first Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Delaware - Ignatius GrubbIgnatius Cooper GrubbIgnatius Cooper Grubb was a Delaware politician, jurist and historian who served as an Associate Justice of the Court of Errors and Appeals from 1886 to 1897 and as the Associate Justice at large of the Delaware Supreme Court from 1897 to 1909. As Secretary of State under Governor John P...
(1841–1927), Justice of Delaware state supreme court. - Captain Hugh MontgomeryHugh MontgomeryHugh Montgomery is an American mathematician, working in the fields of analytic number theory and mathematical analysis. As a Rhodes scholar, Montgomery earned his Ph.D. from the University of Cambridge...
, Captain of the Brig Nancy, first ship to fly the American Flag in a foreign port - Elizabeth Montgomery, daughter of Capt. Hugh Montgomery
- Charles Springer, first Warden
- William Vandever (d. 1718), grave marked with the oldest legible stone
- Mary Vining, Belle of the American Revolutionary period
- Samuel White (1770–1809), U.S. Senator
- James Harrison Wilson (1837–1925) Union general in the Civil War
See also
- National Register of Historic Places listings in Wilmington, DelawareNational Register of Historic Places listings in Wilmington, DelawareThis is a list of properties listed on the National Register of Historic Places in Wilmington, Delaware:This page was transferred for reasons of size from National Register of Historic Places listings in New Castle County, Delaware, of which it is an integral part...
- New SwedenNew SwedenNew Sweden was a Swedish colony along the Delaware River on the Mid-Atlantic coast of North America from 1638 to 1655. Fort Christina, now in Wilmington, Delaware, was the first settlement. New Sweden included parts of the present-day American states of Delaware, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania....
- List of the oldest buildings in Delaware
- Oldest churches in the United StatesOldest churches in the United StatesThe designation of the oldest church in the United States requires careful use of definitions, and must be divided into two parts, the oldest in the sense of oldest surviving building, and the oldest in the sense of oldest Christian church congregation...
External links
- Old Swedes website
- Trinity Parish website
- Swedish Colonial Society
- History of Holy Trinity (Old Swedes) Church 1697-1773
- Historic Churches of American by Nellie Urner Wallington, 1907.
- Holy Trinity Church, Seventh & Church Street, Wilmington, New Castle County, DE: 8 photos, 7 drawings, 6 data pages and supplemental material, at Historic American Building Survey