A BRIEF HISTORY OF ST. PETER'S BY-THE-SEA

A Christian community 100 years young.

When incorporated in 1898, Gulfport was the newest and largest town on the Mississippi Gulf Coast. During the years 1898 to 1900, interdenominational services in Gulfport were held in an empty boxcar on a railroad siding. The Rev. Irenaeus Trout, rector of Christ Church in Bay St. Louis, began St. Peter's in 1899. After conducting services in the boxcar, he described Gulfport, in a letter to the bishop, as "wild and wooly." As each denomination found its own church site, the "Boxcar Church" dissolved.

In 1902, St. Peter's was recognized by the Diocese of Mississippi as an organized mission. The first St. Peter's, a white wooden frame building located on 31st Avenue, was built on land donated by Joseph T. Jones, the founder of Gulfport. In 1911, that building was enlarged and moved to face north on 13th Street between 30th and 31st Avenues. Father Trout's child died and was buried under the chancel. The child's grave was moved in the 1911 relocation, and finally moved to Evergreen Cemetery in 1954.

On January 21, 1921, St. Peter's became a parish. One of the growth factors that justified parish status was the closing of All Saints Mission, Long Beach, and the transfer of some of its members to St. Peter's. They brought with them their bell and five stained glass windows which were incorporated into St. Peter's building. Later, the bell was donated to St. Mark's Mission in Mississippi City, when the Sunday School Class donated a new bell in honor of a longtime member, Mr. F.W. Dorhauer.

Throughout its life, St. Peter's By-the-Sea has been involved in the community. In the 1930's, the Gulfport Little Theatre presented plays in the Parish Hall. In the early years of the Depression, the rector's wife fed about 30 hungry people a day from her own kitchen. During World War II, St. Peter's made special efforts to minister to the students at Gulf Coast Military Academy and Gulf Park College.

After the war years, the congregation embarked on a building program. On April 24, 1949, the entire congregation marched from the 13th Street location to a new location on the corner of 31 st Avenue and Beach Boulevard. By 1953, a new parish hall was completed, and services were held there for the 350 communicants until November 18, 1956, when the new St. Peter's BytheSea, constructed by George P. Hopkins, Sr., and George P. Hopkins, Jr., was completed. Bishop John M. Allin, later Presiding Bishop, ECUSA, consecrated the new building on the last Sunday in 1968.

On August 17, 1969, Hurricane Camille, the most severe storm on record, hit the Mississippi Gulf Coast. Although badly damaged, St. Peter's quickly reopened its doors to feed and shelter as many survivors as possible. Sister churches along the Coast had suffered complete destruction. The Parish Hall became a headquarters for distribution of information and relief. Funerals were a regular occurrence.

After recovering from the devastation of Hurricane Camille, St. Peter's continued to grow and prosper throughout the 1970's and 1980's. Many renovations were made to the contemporary brick church, including a prayer garden between the church and the parish hall, highlighted by a statue of St. Francis of Assisi commissioned for the parish. Because the second church had no bell tower, a detached bell tower, designed by Tim Barrineau, was consecrated by Bishop Duncan Gray, Jr., for the parish's 75th anniversary. A rich musical identity also began to emerge at St. Peter's. The parish has continued its musical interests and artistic offerings to the community, aspiring to be "the arts church" for Gulfport.

In the mid 1990's, Mississippi Gulf Coast voters approved casino gaming and a large casino was soon built directly across the street from St. Peter's. The nature of the neighborhood changed dramatically, and "the sea" could no longer be seen from the church. In 1997, the Grand Casino bought St. Peter's property and the Building Committee looked ten blocks east and found a site for a new, gothicstyle church. On June 26, 2000, St. Peter's newest location, constructed by George P. Hopkins, Jr., and George P. Hopkins, III, was consecrated by Bishop A. C. Marble. The Dorhauer bell was once again hung in a tall bell tower atop the church. The old chancel cross was hung in the new parish hall and the statue of St. Francis, originally placed in the second church's prayer garden was prominently displayed in the Owen Thackara Palmer, Jr., Memorial Garden (designed by Mrs. Joanne Palmer, who also designed the original prayer garden).

St. Peter's, a 100 year young Christian community, relies on its rich history and memories to meet the challenges of the 21st Century and its second hundred years in a glorious new setting, "By the Sea."