Saint Mark’s Episcopal Church

B.W.A. Historic Marker Series: Saint Mark’s Episcopal Church.

In this series, which will post on occasional Wednesdays, I populate the landscape of Wilson County with imaginary “historic markers” commemorating people, places, and events significant to African-American history or culture.

We been here.

SAINT MARK’S EPISCOPAL CHURCH

By 1886, Rev. John W. Perry of Tarboro, N.C., built a chapel at South and Lodge Streets in Little Washington community for Grace Mission. Later renamed Saint Mark’s Episcopal Church. Chapel rebuilt after fire in 1896. Adjoining parochial school operated for several decades. Church relocated to present location at 106 Reid Street SE in 1935.

Saint Mark’s expresses appreciation.

Wilson Daily Times, 23 December 1937.

Saint Mark’s lay leaders sent Rev. Frank D. Dean a lengthy letter of appreciation upon his resignation as rector of Saint Timothy’s Episcopal Church. 

The Women’s Auxiliary of Saint Mark’s Episcopal.

This folded sheet of paper contains minutes from meetings of Saint Mark’s Episcopal Church’s Women’s Auxiliary.

——

Wilson N.C. Sept. the 29 1909. The woman Auxilliary was open in a short way by the President Mrs Hill. The pastor & supt. gave an interesting talk. The following members paid monthly dews

Mrs Hill 5 cents for

” Perry 5

” Cherry 15

Miss Winstead 10

” Ward 10

Mrs. I.R.C. Clark 10

” Palmer 10     total of 75 c

” Mitchell

” Norood

” Green

” Taylor

” Jones

The meeting was closed by singing Hymn 672 Bless be the tide Benediction by the pastor.

Wilson N.C. Sept. the 6, 19[09?]  The woman Auxilliary met an St. marks Church

Wilson, N.C.

The Woman’s auxiliary of St. Mark’s church met Sept. Oct. the 6, 1909. Opened by singing hymn 582 prayer by the Supt. there were some very interestings things spoken of the following gave some talk about about the work of the woman auxilliary. Messes Mitchell, Hines, Winstead & Clark. Mrs. Mitchell apointed to intertain the Auxilliary by reading miss Winstead & others a few encurging words.

Mrs Perry 5 fo Oct   tots 20

Mrs. Mamie L. Taylor 15 for three monts

Closed by singing 504 hymn my soul be on thy gaurd. & prayer.

——

The final resting place of Rev. John Perry and family.

I’ve written here of Rev. John W. Perry, the Episcopal rector who served both Tarboro’s Saint Luke and Wilson’s Saint Mark’s for more than a decade beginning in 1889. 

I was headed out of Tarboro back toward Wilson yesterday when a sign at the edge of a somewhat shabby cemetery caught my eye — it was Saint Luke’s graveyard. The cemetery was established in the 1890s and likely contains many more graves than its headstones would indicate. Rev. Perry, his wife Mary Pettipher Perry, and several of their children are among the burials. 

The Perry family plot lies in the shadow of this impressive light gray granite marker. 

Rev. John W. Perry 1850-1918 He served St. Luke’s Parish for 37 years with honor to his Maker and himself.

Mary Eliza Pettipher Wife of Rev. J.W. Perry 1854-1929 Our lives were enriched because she lived among us.

Photos by Lisa Y. Henderson, March 2023.

Rev. John H.M. Pollard, rector of Saint Mark’s.

Rev. John H.M. Pollard.

Rev. John H.M. Pollard led the congregation at Saint Mark’s Episcopal for two years. Writes Patrick Valentine in The Episcopalians of Wilson County: A History of St. Timothy’s and St. Mark’s Churches of Wilson, North Carolina, 1856-1995:

“John Henry Mingo Pollard succeeded William Perry as minister in charge in 1900. Pollard, consecrated a priest in 1886 and noted for his work in Charleston, S.C., served as North Carolina’s Archdeacon of the Convocation Work Among Colored People (1900-1908). He took a sharp cut in pay to come to North Carolina but the field ‘is larger and the Church atmosphere more congenial.’ Pollard appears to have been a sincere, thoughtful, positive man of great energy. ‘Most people say that the Church is not making any progress …. The Church as she is, is good enough for me.’ ‘The fact [is] that this small work has a very large influence for the good in the diocese.’ In addition to at St. Mark’s, Pollard had charge of six other missions.

“Under Pollard’s direction the number of communicants increased to twenty-six. When he came to Wilson he cited the need for a missionary home and school house, estimated at $500, as one of three top priorities for colored missionary work in the diocese. Pollard was in charge for two years, then was succeeded by Basil B. Tyler who stayed two years. [… After Tyler left,] John Pollard returned briefly and was then succeeded in September 1905 by yet a third Reverend Perry, Robert Nathaniel Perry.”

Photo courtesy of “A Visual History of the Diocese,” https://www.episdionc.org/uploads/images/a-visual-history-of-the-diocese_580.pdf

Saint Mark’s Parochial School opening.

Wilson Daily Times, 26 September 1925.

In 1925, Saint Mark’s Episcopal Church, and its school, were on Lodge Street at the corner of South Street. The school offered kindergarten through elementary instruction. (This likely meant through fourth grade, as the Colored High School covered grades five and up.) The night school classes were aimed at adults or working children who had left regular school.

Per Patrick M. Valentine’s The Episcopalians of Wilson County (1996), “John Herbert Jones became minister in charge [of Saint Mark’s] on Sunday, October 12, 1924. Born in Sanford, Florida, and educated with private tutors in theology, he had married Bessie Bell in 1915. Together they had five sons and two daughters — all with biblical names. In 1921, Bishop E. Thomas Demby of Arkansas ordained Jones a deacon. When he was preparing for the priesthood under Bishop Cheshire, his committee ‘found him quite well prepared in all subjects, and unusually proficient in the Bible.’

“One reason for the long delay in bringing in a new clergyman was that St. Mark’s lacked a rectory. Jones found all the records carefully kept in correct order and no indebtedness, ‘to the praise of our faithful Lay Reader & clerk [John H. Clark],’ but that membership was ‘greatly scattered some having become members of sectarian bodies, and otherwise.’ Starting from a ‘few standing true to the faith,’ Jones canvassed former members to return to St. Mark’s. ‘Although some refused to come back[,] a goodly number returned.’

“Reverend Jones reorganized a number of activities and services in Rocky Mount and Wilson. St. Mark’s Sunday School was put under the care of long term member Walter A. Mitchell. ‘A marked improvement has been registered in our church school life[,] the same showing continued growth.’ With the permission of the suffragan bishop [Henry B. Delany], he and Robert A. Jackson of St. Augustine’s Church in Camden, Maryland, held a public mission in March 1925. ‘This was a success of no small propor[t]ions to say the least.’ Jones was also active in the Convocation. In 1928 he left for St. Stephen’s Mission, Winston-Salem.”

——

  • Rev. J.H. Jones — John H. Jones.

In the 1925 Hill’s Wilson, N.C., city directory: Jones Jno H Rev (c) pastor St Mark’s Episcopal Church h 201 N Vick. [As noted, Saint Mark’s had no rectory. The house at 201 North Vick Street was rented from Lydia Grissom Coley, who does not appear to have been an Episcopalian.]

Rev. Jones and family appear in Winston-Salem, N.C., in the 1930 federal census. All their children indeed bore biblical monikers, but the most remarkable thing is that they were Mary E., John H. Jr., John L., Mary L., John D., John R., and John B. Jones. John R. Jones was the only child born during the family’s brief stay in Wilson.

Clipping courtesy of J. Robert Boykin III.