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St. Peter's Church Has A Moving History

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By CHERYL KUCK

Tribune correspondent

Published: December 31, 2008

PLANT CITY - St. Peter's Episcopal Church's historical sanctuary turned a century old this year.

But the building - at least its core - wasn't always at 302 N. Carey St.

It was built at Wheeler and Mahoney streets, near the site of the modern-day City Hall. The building was hauled by a tractor more than 50 years ago to its current location to make way for a hotel's expansion.

Members of the congregation celebrated the building's anniversary Oct. 26 with a walk that retraced the move.

During the procession, prayers and psalms were offered in thanksgiving for a century of blessings.

The procession included a parishioner carrying a cross; torchbearers with candles; the adult and children's choirs of St. Peter's; its rector, the Rev. Thomas Thoeni; former rector, the Rev. Grayson Garvin; the Rev. Robert Martin, assistant to the current rector; and church members.

The Right Rev. Gabney T. Smith, bishop with the Diocese of Southwest Florida, led the procession into the picturesque church and officiated at a consecration service and communion.

St. Peter's parishioners Elizabeth B. Cloen and Mary E. Kafka researched the history of the church and compiled it in a book, "The First Hundred Years." Their work was a challenge because parish records were destroyed in a fire in 1920.

According to their book, the 300-member church's roots date to the late 1800s. The church congregation met in several locations until the move in 1908 to a sanctuary built for $2,500 at Mahoney and Wheeler streets.

In 1953, C.H. Moorman, owner of the old Hotel Plant, on the same block as the church, offered to exchange the block of land on Carey Street for the church lot downtown because he needed parking space for his hotel and the church needed room for expansion. Moorman paid to have the entire church building moved.

The continued growth of the congregation resulted in the last major renovation at St. Peter's in 1984 and caused great concern as to how expansion could be accomplished while still maintaining the integrity of the original Carpenter-style structure.

Carpenter style uses elements of Gothic architecture such as pointed arches, steep gables and towers. The additions in 1984 continued in that style to create a seamless blending of old and new. Under the direction of Garvin, transepts were added, transforming the building into the shape of a cross.

Thoeni presented Garvin with a special award at the Oct. 26 ceremony. The former rector tearfully accepted the honor, named for Col. William T. Whitney, a senior warden of the church for 32 years.

"My heart will always be here, and I will be buried here because this St. Peter's is where my heart is," Garvin said.

The book chronicling the church history and a cookbook, "100 Years of Cooking at St. Peter's Episcopal Church," are available in the church offices. For information, call (813) 752-5061.

Correspondent Cheryl Kuck can be reached at wkuck@tampabay.rr.com.

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