History
In 1890, the Rev. Knickerbacker III Bishop of Indianapolis
commissioned the Rev. McGlone to investigate the possibility
of a mission at Anderson. A charter was granted in 1890 to
Trinity Church as Anderson joined several gas-belt
congregations scattered throughout neighboring central
Indiana cities.
One of the guiding lights who shared the mission vision
was Mrs. George Sefton, who walked the streets of Anderson
enrolling the names of Episcopalians in order to form an
official parish. Services were first held in 1889 in the old
Presbyterian Church on Ninth and Jackson Streets. The
congregation was formally organized in 1891 at the Doxey
Opera House on Meridian Street. After other moves, the
parishioners finally decided to move to the present site on
Eleventh and Delaware streets. The congregation was led by
Senior Warden Thomas W. Wright.
Groundbreaking for the new church building took place in
1909 with a consecration in 1911. During the pastorate of
the Rev. Dr. Henry Harris, the mortgage was burned in 1918.
The major problem for Trinity was not having a resident
clergy. In 1938, with the appointment of the Rev. Dr. Ivor
G. Hyndman, came a turning point and grown for the parish.
Another momentous step came on May 17, 1947, at the 100th
Annual Convention when Trinity made application to become a
parish effective by 1950. This status was not achieved,
however, until the 118th Annual Convention, when
Trinity became a nationally recognized parish on May 1,
1955.
Trinity continued to grow, first under the Rev. George A.
Burns and, then, the Rev. David Laird Barclay. The parish
added the Memorial Parish Hall in 1966-67.
Growth continued under the Rev. Richard Halladay and the
Rev. M.A. McClure, whose ministry spanned 26 years,
the longest of any of Trinity’s priests. Trinity Community
Services opened in 1984 and several additional outreach
ministries were instituted, including the sponsorship of a
Bosnian refugee family in 1998. A new organ was dedicated
with Dr. Marilyn Keiser as guest organist in 1997. Four new stained glass
windows for the parish hall were blessed in 1998. Trinity took a leadership role in bringing
the Irish youth program, the Ulster Project, to Anderson in
2002.
Trinity’s first deacon was the Rev. James Carter, whose
service began in 1982. The Rev. Charles F. Conover became
the second deacon in 1992. Trinity’s second parishioner to
enter holy orders, the Rev. David Bell, served at Trinity in
1998. The Rev. Norman L. Morford served as interim rector
from 1998 until 2000, when the Rev. Raymond Bradley became
rector. He retired in 2004.