Our history
founded in 1858
Our parish began over 150 years ago
But this place has a history that predates our church.
Indigenous communities inhabited the area for over 12,000 years. Prior to European settlement by members of the Plymouth Colony in 1640, Barrington was a primary village of the Pokanoket tribes that are now part of the federally recognized Wampanoag Nation. The Pokanoket peoples, under Massasoit Sachem, knew this region as Pokanoket (“land at the clearing”) and named the area around where our parish now sits, Popanomscut. Plymouth proprietors referred to what is now Barrington as "the garden of the patent and the flower in the garden." Massasoit, in alliance with Plymouth Colony, began to sell parcels of the land to the English settlers and, in 1653, sold the Popanomscut region in a parcel that would later be defined as Bristol County. We at St John's honor the Pokanoket and Wampanoag peoples, their relationship with this land, and their tremendous contributions to Plymouth Colony that laid the foundation for our presence here. We encourage you to learn more about the history of these peoples and this land at the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe site and the Pokanoket Tribe site.
The history of St John's Episcopal Church
thank you to the Rhode Island Historical Preservation Commission for their work researching and compiling our history (1)
mid 1850s
1858
1866-1867
1885
1887
1891
Barrington government began dissolving its previously strong religious affiliations. The Congregational meeting house was the sole place of worship in Barrington since the town was incorporated in 1717 and, up until 1856, the meeting house served as town hall. With the Barrington government separating from the Congressional church, Barrington Episcopalians who had been worshiping across the water at St. Mark's in Warren, saw an opportunity to establish an Episcopalian footprint in their home town.
Barrington Episcopalians took the first steps towards erecting an Episcopal worship space. They held their first service in town at Forest chapel and, by August, had started construction on St. John's. They commissioned architect Clifton A. Hall to design a building worthy of their faith, one that would proudly be built with Barrington bricks. In 1859, our beautiful gothic revival church was completed.
Land, generously donated by Henry Staples, was developed into a rectory.
Our building expanded with the construction of the memorial chapel, currently our Choir Room, in remembrance of John C. Burrington. The project included the installation of three incredible stained glass windows above the alter, representing the Trinity.
Our iconic crenelated tower was erected in memory of Allen C. Mathewson.
As a mission to serve mill workers of Barrington Lace Works, St. John's founded St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church in 1891. The chapel on what is now Chapel Road, was designed by the architects at William R. Walker & Son and is listed on the National Register of historic places. St. Matthew's has been independent since 1911.
Rectors
We've had 16 rectors since the founding of St. John's and only seven since 1931 (click HERE for a list of our previous rectors). We couldn't be more thrilled to have Fr. Patrick Greene at the helm of our religious ship, honoring the legacy of his 15 predecessors, building on their incredible work, and guiding us as a congregation as we navigate the ever changing tides of 21st century life!
What our future holds
During the last decade, St. John’s has experienced a sustained growth in membership and a deepening involvement of many parishioners. We are filled with faith and inspiration and we see no limit to what our members and community can accomplish. Our laity is talented, generous, and active and we believe, together, there is no limit to the amount of good we at St. John's can do . Put simply, we're really excited to see what the future holds!