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THE HISTORY OF ST. MARK'S EPISCOPAL CHURCH

          Erected in 1870, St. Mark’s Protestant Episcopal Church is the oldest existing house of worship in the Town of Millsboro, but the history of its congregation is older still.  Prince George’s Chapel had been established on Pepper’s Creek near Dagsboro in 1717, itself a branch of the even older St. Martin’s Parish of Worcester County, Maryland, of which lower Sussex County was then a part.  Though Dagsboro is a far older town than Millsboro, its importance declined as the thriving commercial center at Millsboro grew up around the Head of the River Mills, Waple’s Tannery, and Wright’s Ironworks during the early 1800’s.  Finally, by the early 1840’s, the Prince George’s congregation had largely relocated at Millsboro and, seeking to worship nearer their homes, they helped to establish the new parish of St. Mark’s there in 1847.

  The first church structure was erected on the present church grounds in 1848 and 1849.  The land for the parish had been donated by Miers S. Burton.  The new church was officially consecrated in October of 1849 by The Right Reverend Alfred Lee, Bishop of the Diocese of Delaware.  It served the parish for only a generation before being replaced in 1870 with the present church building, a much more elegant structure built in the then popular Victorian Gothic style.

          In the 127 years since it was built, the present St. Mark’s has undergone considerable change, beginning with the erection of the church steeple in 1880.  A new altar and other interior improvements were added in 1895.   In 1896, the prominent churchman and merchant, Jacob Reese Godwin, contributed funds to have a full brick foundation built under the church, which had formerly rested on brick piers.  The present church pews were added in 1901, and a cast-iron fence was added around the church yard in 1903.  This was replaced in the early 1940’s by the present brick wall.

           A vesting room was added to the side of the building by I. John Collins, a member of the church, who also served as contractor for the 1963 construction of the St. Mark’s Parish Hall to the rear of the church.  The church steeple was replaced in 1991 with a replica of the original steeple.  In 1993, a Memorial Garden and Columbarium were added to the grounds.

         The St. Mark’s Rectory was built as a private home by the Rev. Robert Ellis during his long tenure as rector from 1864 to 1887.  When the Rev. Lewis Wheeler Wells came to St. Mark’s as rector following the Rev. Ellis’ death, he purchased the home and enlarged it greatly, using it as a site for many church activities.  Following the death of the Rev. Wells in 1923, his family gave the old home to the parish as a permanent rectory. Several priests lived there and it was later rented.  In 1996, when the house needed costly and extensive repairs, the parish regretfully had it demolished.  The property sat vacant until 2006 when the Labyrinth & Meditation Gardens were completed on the site.

            In 2006, the church received a historical marker from the State of Delaware.  This record of the physical changes to St. Mark’s over the years is a record really of the love its parishioners have had for the old building and, more importantly, for the Heavenly Father that so many generations have gathered there to worship.  As St. Mark’s celebrates the 160th year of  its life as a parish, that spirit of worship, like the church, stands strong.

Original History by Dick Carter in 1981
Revised in 1997 & 2007