St. Paul's Episcopal Church
Cheltenham Township, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania
Marker Inscription
Oldest church building in Cheltenham Township, consecrated 1861. Founder was Jay Cooke (1821-1905), "financier of the Civil War." Cemetery, laid out 1879 and enlarged 1905, contains his mausoleum and graves of prominent area residents. Church originally designed by the firm of Sidney & Merry. Noted architect Horace Trumbauer was responsible for many later additions.
Erected by Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission
The Story
Consecrated in 1861, St. Paul's is the oldest church building in Cheltenham Township, founded by Jay Cooke, the banker whose bond-selling campaigns earned him the nickname "financier of the Civil War." Its cemetery, laid out in 1879 and enlarged in 1905, holds Cooke's mausoleum among the graves of prominent residents. The original design by Sidney & Merry was later expanded by the celebrated Gilded Age architect Horace Trumbauer.
Why it matters
The church ties a small Pennsylvania township to the financing of the Union war effort and to the grand architectural ambitions of America's Gilded Age.
Plan your visit
NearbyMake a day of it — museums, food, and places to stay near this marker.
Museums & culture
- National Constitution Center8.2 mi away · 525 Arch Street, Philadelphia, PA
- African American Museum in Philadelphia8.2 mi away · 701 Arch Street, Philadelphia, PA
- Betsy Ross House8.3 mi away · 239 Arch Street, Philadelphia, PA
- Illadelph Glass Gallery8.3 mi away · 68 North 2nd Street, Philadelphia, PA
- Muse Gallery8.3 mi away · 52 North 2nd Street, Philadelphia, PA
- Larry Becker Contemporary Art8.3 mi away · 43 North 2nd Street, Philadelphia, PA
Attractions
- Harbison's Dairy Milk Bottle6.2 mi away
- Discovery Center at East Park Reservoir6.9 mi away
- Pennsylvania Railroad, Connecting Railway Bridge7.3 mi away
- Philadelphia Zoo7.6 mi away
- Philly Gun Range7.6 mi away · North Percy Street
- Rocky Steps7.8 mi away
Food & drink
- Independence Mall Cafe8.3 mi away · 50 North Independence Mall East, Philadelphia
- Bubble Tea Room8.4 mi away · 319 Market Street, Philadelphia, PA
- 3J's Cafe8.4 mi away · 317 Market Street, Philadelphia, PA
- Dunkin'8.4 mi away · 634 Market Street, Philadelphia, PA
- La Colombe Coffee Roasters8.4 mi away
- Burger King8.4 mi away
Places to stay
- Four Points by Sheraton Philadelphia City Center8.1 mi away · 1201 Race Street, Philadelphia
- Days Inn Philadelphia Convention Center - Philadelphia8.1 mi away · 1227 Race Street, Philadelphia, PA
- Clarion Suites Philadelphia8.1 mi away · 1010 Race Street, Philadelphia
- Sleep Inn Center City8.2 mi away · 1020 Cherry Street, Philadelphia, PA
- Holiday Inn Express Philadelphia E - Penns Landing8.2 mi away · 100 North Christopher Columbus Boulevard, Philadelphia
- Home2 Suites by Hilton Philadelphia - Convention Center, PA8.3 mi away · 1200 Arch Street, Philadelphia, PA
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Related people
- · Jay Cooke
- · Horace Trumbauer
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
Whitaker Mill Cedar Grove
Philadelphia, PA · est. 2006
When Henry Whitaker raised a waterwheel-powered textile mill on this spot in 1813, he was joining the young republic's first great industrial wave, when running water was the engine of American manufacturing. Whitaker's mill proved remarkably long-lived, operating for 157 years and turning out canvas and wool blankets for Union soldiers during the Civil War, the nation's first mill-made bed ticking, and patented chenille processes. Production ended in 1970, and arson claimed the buildings in 1975, though several originals still stand nearby.
Camp William Penn
Cheltenham Township, PA · est. 1999
Established in 1863 in Cheltenham Township, Camp William Penn was Pennsylvania's only training camp for African American soldiers and the largest of eighteen such camps in the nation. Over 10,000 men in eleven regiments of United States Colored Troops trained here before shipping out to fight in Virginia, South Carolina, Florida, and beyond; the camp closed in August 1865 as the war ended.
Village of La Mott
Cheltenham Township, PA · est. 1973
Laid out at the close of the Civil War, the village originally called Camptown rose on the grounds of Camp William Penn. From 1863 to 1865 the camp trained African American soldiers—among the largest such training stations in the North—preparing thousands of United States Colored Troops for service in the Union Army. The community that grew here carried forward the legacy of those who fought for freedom and their own citizenship.
Cyrus H. K. Curtis (1850-1933)
Cheltenham Township, PA · est. 2005
Drawn to Philadelphia by the 1876 Centennial, Cyrus H. K. Curtis stayed and built a publishing empire, the Curtis Publishing Company, whose Saturday Evening Post and Ladies' Home Journal reached millions of American households. From 1891 until his death in 1933 he lived nearby at Lyndon, an estate whose Frederick Law Olmsted-designed grounds now form the public Curtis Arboretum. Only Curtis Hall, the home's music room, still stands.