St. Mary's Episcopal Church

St. Mary’s Partnership with St. Stephen’s

ST. STEPHEN’S EPISCOPAL CHURCH

318 BOUCHELLE STREET

MORGANTON, NORTH CAROLINA

St. Mary’s shares in ministry with St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church. St. Mary’s and St. Stephen’s are united in worship, fellowship and corporation.

St. Stephen’s is a historic African-American parish located at 318 Bouchelle Street in Morganton.

St. Mary’s and St. Stephen’s share in the ministry of The Rev. Francis King who serves as priest and pastor of both parishes. Both parishes join each other for worship, fellowship, and study.

All are warmly invited to worship at St. Stephen’s.

St. Stephen’s Weekly Schedule

9:30 AM Sunday Worship

10:00 AM Wednesday Bible Study

St. Stephen’s Vestry

Ms. Bernadette Moore - Senior Warden

Ms. Mary Chambers - Junior Warden

Ms. Pam Hemphill - Treasurer

Ms. Ann "Mia"  Vaughters - Vestry Clerk

Ms. Donna Brown

Mr. Tommy Tapp

Mr. Jimmy Fleming

Ms. Jeanne Fleming

Committee Members

Bernadette Moore, ECW President/ New Jerusalem Music Center Director

Ann "Mia" Vaughters, Parish Secretary

Mary Chambers, Altar Guild

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ST. STEPHEN’S EPISCOPAL CHURCH,  MORGANTON, NORTH CAROLINA

St. Stephen's Episcopal Church was organized in 1889 as an Episcopal Mission,.  Meetings were first held in a downtown Morganton building.  Rev. McDuffey, priest-in-charge at St. Matthias, Asheville traveled to Morganton each week to help organize the group. In 1891, the Church was consecrated and nine men and women, the Averys, Lytles and Woodards were confirmed.

In 1892, the first church and parish all, wooden buildings near Grace Church, were constructed.  The Parish Hall housed the Episcopal Academy for Black Students, the only school for blacks in Morganton at that time.  The Parish Hall was also used by community organizations, social clubs and athletic groups.

In 1907 Rev. John Logan became the priest-in-charge and was assisted by lay readers from Grace Church.  In the 1930’s the Rev. Eugene Avery, a son of one of the first founding families, became priest-in-charge.  While in the 1940’s Rev. James Walter Edwards of Kingston, Jamaica was ordained to the Diaconate at Grace Church and became priest-in-charge at St. Stephen’s.

A ground breaking ceremony was held on Sunday, September 19, 1948 at our present site.  The Building Committee included:  Mr. Fred O'Neill, Mrs. Kathleen Harbison Young, Mrs. Augusta Wilson and Mrs. Belle Happoldt.  E.P. Dale Construction Company served as the general contractor.

On Sunday, August 7, 1949 the Consecration of a Church was held at St. Stephen’s Mission on Bouchelle Street, Morganton, North Carolina .  Priests-in-charge at time of the consecration were Rev. Ven James T. Kennedy and Rev. Charles G. Leavell of Grace Church.   Rev. Frank McKenzie became priest-in-charge later that year.

Some of the memorable priests who served at St. Stephen’s on Bouchelle Street through  the years are: Revs. Delmus Haire, James Bigham, Alex Viola, Eugene Avery, Roy Summerfield, David Williams, Linda Hawkins, Peter Ouzts, Cristina Condit, Harlie Bemis and Deacon Crisler Greer.

St. Stephen's is blessed to have Rev. Francis King serving as our current Priest-in-Charge.

St. Stephens Episcopal Celebrates 60 years Sunday

By Tracy Farnham | The News Herald

Published: October 15, 2009

MORGANTON - Dr. John Fleming will speak during a special 60th anniversary celebration for St. Stephens Episcopal on Sunday during the regular service at 1:30 p.m. with a dinner to follow. Fleming grew up in Morganton and attended St. Stephens.
This year St. Stephens welcomed a new priest in April, the Rev. Francis King from the New Orleans

area."I am having a great time in Morganton. The people are open and kind," he said. King also is the priest of St. Mary's Church. "We have a covenant relationship with St. Mary's," he added. "St. Stephen's is a very unique church and it is really known for its warmth and friendliness. It is a family place and people have roots here," King said. 

The family history is evident among Sunday's guest speaker whose brother Jimmy still attends St. Stephen's, King added. "John grew up in Morganton and went off to school. He is an accomplished historian and teacher," he said. Following his graduation from Berea

College in Kentucky, John Fleming went on to receive his PhD in American History in 1974 from Howard University. Fleming served on the Peace Corp and various commissions for human and civil rights. In 1988, the National Afro-American Museum and Cultural Center in Ohio opened with Dr. Fleming as Founding Director.  Fleming has been awarded lifetime achievement and distinguished service awards as well as appointed by governors and former President Bush to serve on historical commissions and boards. Currently, Fleming serves as the consulting director of the International African American Museum Project in Charleston, S.C. He is married to Barbara Fleming, a psychologist and author. They have two daughters. The Episcopal Bishop of the Diocese of Western North Carolina, Bishop Porter Taylor, also will attend Sunday's special service. "Bishop Taylor will be here to lead the service on Sunday," King said.

St. Stephen's Episcopal Church was established in 1889 and held meetings as a Mission in the upstairs of Philo Harbison's building located on West Union Street. Later on the Mission moved behind where Grace Episcopal Church is located today. The church located at 318 Bouchelle St. in Morganton was built in 1949.