St. John's Episcopal Church, Richmond, Virginia
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St. John's Episcopal Church
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St. John's Episcopal Church in Richmond, Virginia on a winter day
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| Location | Richmond, Virginia |
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| Coordinates | 37°31′53″N 77°25′11″W / 37.53139°N 77.41972°WCoordinates: 37°31′53″N 77°25′11″W / 37.53139°N 77.41972°W |
| Built | 1741/1611 |
| Part of | St. John's Church Historic District (#70000884) |
| NRHP Reference # | 66000920 |
| VLR # | 127-0013 |
| Significant dates | |
| Added to NRHP | October 15, 1966 |
| Designated NHL | January 20, 1961 |
| Designated CP | September 15, 1970 |
| Designated VLR | September 9, 1969 |
St. John's Church is an Episcopal church located at 2401 East Broad Street in Richmond, Virginia, United States. Formed from several earlier parishes, St. John's is the oldest church in the city of Richmond, Virginia. It was built in 1741 by William Randolph's son, Colonel Richard Randolph; the Church Hill district was named for it. It was the site of two important conventions in the period leading to the American Revolutionary War, and is famous as the location where Patrick Henry gave his memorable speech at the Second Virginia Convention, closing with the often-quoted demand, "give me liberty, or give me death!" The church is designated as a National Historic Landmark.
The earliest precursor of St. John's was Henrico Parish Church, initially located at Sir Thomas Dale's progressive development at Henricus (also known as the "Cittie of Henricus", "Henricopolis" or "Henrico Town"). When the colony was organized, the Anglican Church was the established church of the Crown.
Founded in the Virginia Colony in 1611, Henricus was notable for a number of "firsts". It was the first to allocate land to individuals and the site of the first "College" in the English colonies, a school modeled after those in England of that era. The College at Henricus was to include education for the children of the Native Americans.
It was at Henricus that colonists held Pocahontas captive; she was the daughter of Chief Powhatan, leader of the Powhatan Confederacy. During the year-long wait, the first rector of the church, the Reverend Alexander Whitaker, an Englishman, taught her about Christianity and helped her improve her fluency in English. She was baptized as "Rebecca". She married John Rolfe, who established Varina Farms, a plantation across the James River. Rolfe smuggled seeds of sweet Spanish tobacco into Virginia, where it rapidly replaced the much harsher local strains.
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