Dates in red belong to Christ Church and Georgetown; dates in blue belong to the wider Anglican and Episcopal story. Follow the links for the full account on each history page. With JavaScript on, you can show one story at a time.
Christ Church and Georgetown The Anglican and Episcopal story
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597 Anglican and Episcopal
Augustine arrives in Kent
Sent by Pope Gregory the Great, Augustine becomes the first Archbishop of Canterbury.
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1521 Anglican and Episcopal
Henry VIII named “Defender of the Faith”
Pope Leo X honours the king for his book against Martin Luther.
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1534 Anglican and Episcopal
Act of Supremacy
Parliament recognises Henry VIII as Supreme Head of the Church of England. More
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1539 Anglican and Episcopal
The Great Bible
An English Bible is ordered for every parish church.
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1544 Anglican and Episcopal
The English Litany
Cranmer's Litany, the first official service in English. It is still in our Prayer Book.
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1549 Anglican and Episcopal
The first Book of Common Prayer
Cranmer's Prayer Book puts the whole of public worship into English. More
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1552 Anglican and Episcopal
The second Prayer Book
A more thoroughly Reformed revision.
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1556 Anglican and Episcopal
Cranmer burned at Oxford
Under Mary I, papal authority and the Latin Mass are restored (1553–1558).
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1559 Anglican and Episcopal
The Elizabethan Settlement
Elizabeth I becomes Supreme Governor; a revised Prayer Book is restored. More
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1563 Anglican and Episcopal
The Thirty-Nine Articles
Agreed by Convocation; given force by Parliament in 1571.
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1593 Anglican and Episcopal
Hooker's Laws of Ecclesiastical Polity
The first four books are dated 1593 (issued early in 1594); Book V follows in 1597. More
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1607 Anglican and Episcopal
Jamestown
The Church of England comes to America with the first permanent English settlement.
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1611 Anglican and Episcopal
The King James Bible
The Authorised Version is published.
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1662 Anglican and Episcopal
The 1662 Book of Common Prayer
Still the official Prayer Book of the Church of England.
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1701 Anglican and Episcopal
The SPG is founded
The Society for the Propagation of the Gospel sends clergy to the colonies.
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1751 Christ Church
Georgetown laid out
The Maryland Assembly authorises a town on the Potomac, which becomes a busy tobacco port.
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Anglican and Episcopal
Samuel Seabury consecrated
Scottish bishops in Aberdeen consecrate the first American bishop. More
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Anglican and Episcopal
White and Provoost consecrated at Lambeth
The first bishops of Pennsylvania and New York.
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1789 Anglican and Episcopal
General Convention adopts a constitution and Prayer Book
Meeting in Philadelphia, the Protestant Episcopal Church adopts its constitution and the first American Book of Common Prayer.
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1791 Christ Church
Georgetown in the new federal district
Georgetown becomes part of the District of Columbia, keeping its own town government.
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1792 Anglican and Episcopal
Thomas John Claggett, first Bishop of Maryland
The first bishop consecrated in America. Georgetown is in his diocese.
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Christ Church
Christ Church organised
Members of St. John's, Georgetown, found a new Episcopal parish. More
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Christ Church
First cornerstone laid
On 12 May by parish tradition (the Masonic lodge minutes suggest 11 May), at the corner of today's 31st and O Streets.
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Christ Church
First church consecrated
The first church is consecrated, by Bishop James Kemp of Maryland according to the parish's history. Its first service was held at sunrise on Christmas Day.
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1820 Christ Church
Charles P. McIlvaine becomes rector
Later Chaplain of the Senate and Bishop of Ohio. Rectors
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1833 Anglican and Episcopal
The Oxford Movement begins
John Keble preaches on “National Apostasy”. More
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1834 Anglican and Episcopal
Newman's “Via Media” tracts
John Henry Newman gives the Anglican middle way its Latin name. More
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1862 Christ Church
A Civil War prayer
The rector, Mr. Harris, reads Bishop Whittingham's prayer of thanksgiving for Union victories.
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1867 Christ Church
The first church enlarged
The church is remodelled and a squat tower replaces the 1835 steeple.
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Christ Church
Cornerstone of the present church
Laid by Bishop William Paret on the site of the old church. More
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1886 Anglican and Episcopal
The Chicago Quadrilateral
The House of Bishops sets out four essentials for Christian unity; the Lambeth Conference adopts them in 1888. More
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1887 Christ Church
Linthicum Hall built
Built in memory of Edward Magruder Linthicum, for the free school he endowed.
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Christ Church
The present church consecrated
Designed by Cassell & Laws (Henry Laws); reopened for worship in October 1886.
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1895 Anglican and Episcopal
Diocese of Washington formed
Christ Church becomes a parish of the new diocese, created from the Diocese of Maryland.
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1907 Anglican and Episcopal
Washington National Cathedral begun
The foundation stone is laid on 29 September; the cathedral is completed in 1990.
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1928 Anglican and Episcopal
The 1928 Prayer Book
The third American revision.
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1957 Christ Church
Christ Church acquires Linthicum Hall
The building becomes the parish hall after renovation in 1958.
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1964 Christ Church
A designated landmark
Named to the DC Inventory of Historic Sites; listed on the National Register in 1972.
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1967 Anglican and Episcopal
“The Episcopal Church”
General Convention adopts the shorter name as an official alternative to “the Protestant Episcopal Church in the United States of America”.
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1968 Christ Church
150th anniversary
The 1818 cornerstone is set into the west wall of the nave.
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1979 Anglican and Episcopal
The 1979 Book of Common Prayer
The Prayer Book in use at Christ Church today, with Rite One and Rite Two.
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2017 Christ Church
The bicentennial
An 18-month celebration of the parish's 200th anniversary, through January 2019. More
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2025 Christ Church
Linthicum Hall reopens
Renovated through the Third Century Campaign, with the C. Boyden Gray Auditorium; a new organ is installed in the church. More
Sources
Parish dates come from the parish's own records as published on this website (the Bicentennial page, the bicentennial article on Francis Scott Key, the Third Century Campaign binder and the 2025 Annual Report) and from the sources listed on the parish history page. Anglican and Episcopal dates come from the sources on the Anglican tradition, Episcopal Church and via media pages.
Thumbnail images are credited on the history page where each one appears. All are public domain, CC0 or CC BY-SA, or are the parish's own photographs.