GRACE EPISCOPAL CHURCH

Originally part of a 1790 Spanish land grant, the settlement now known as Port Orange began in 1885. The 1888 Diocesan Journal listed the church as a mission church, and the Bishop of Missionaries, the Rt. Rev. William C. Gray, consecrated it in 1894. The church was a mission for 92 years before it was granted full parish status in 1982. The Vicar, Bishop Gray, became the first Rector to serve the church. In 1893, a 65-feet-long and 33-feet-wide Florida Carpenter Gothic style chapel, with white batten framing and a tall bell tower with a cross, was built of native cypress and heart pine. Dr. Charles Meeker and his wife, Mary, donated the bell and hanger, both ordered from Europe. The Meeker family donated a three-part signed Tiffany window, which hung behind the altar and depicted Jesus as The Good Shepherd watching over the sheep. This window dramatically changes color each afternoon. In 1902, Mary Meeker donated another three-part Tiffany window in honor of her husband. Located on the east side of the chapel, it portrays St. Luke the beloved physician. It is the only one depicting St. Luke that Tiffany made. Grace Episcopal chapel was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1998.