MIDDLETOWN – Grace Episcopal Church in Middletown will receive
a $4,000 grant from the New York Landmarks Conservancy through its Sacred
Sites program.
The funds will be applied toward roof and chimney repairs.
“Religious institutions are often the most beautiful and complex
buildings in their communities,” said Peg Breen, president of The
New York Landmarks Conservancy.
“We are pleased to be able to help preserve these important institutions
for their architecture, history and community service.” A total
of 23 Sacred Sites grants were awarded totally $240,000.
Grace Episcopal Church exemplifies the mid-19th century Gothic Revival
style of church architecture and is a prominent architectural landmark
in downtown Middletown.
The church is characterized by Gothic detailing, an offset, four-stage
bell tower with a soaring and attenuated spire, stepping buttresses, and
handsomely rendered stonework.
The first section of the building was constructed between 1846 and 1847.
Between 1866 and 1868 the church was enlarged with the addition of the
north and south transepts and 225-foot, off-set bell tower and spire.
The last major construction occurred with the attached brick parish house,
completed in 1913 with its façade featuring an understated Collegiate
Gothic-style design.
