All Saints' Episcopal Church - Texas Historical Markers on Waymarking.com

A brief history of the church, per its own website: www.allsaints-austin.org:

"All Saints' was established and the present building constructed in 1899. Originally called All Saints' Chapel, it was to be part of Grace Hall (officially the Young Ladies' Church Institute), a residence for women students of the University of Texas, which had grown considerably since its opening in 1882. The Chapel was dedicated to the Glory of God and to the memory of Bishop Alexander Gregg, the first bishop of Texas. The moving spirit behind this undertaking was his successor, Bishop George Herbert Kinsolving.

Bishop Kinsolving chose to live in Austin because of his deep interest in working among the students, faculty, and administration of the University of Texas. From that time and for many years afterward, All Saints' and the University maintained a close association. The Bishop's chair and crosier stood in All Saints' chancel until Kinsolving's death in 1928. Although the episcopal residence moved to Houston about 1930, Bishop Kinsolving's chair, which had been a personal gift from his former church in Philadelphia, remains at All Saints'.

The Rev. Harris Masterson came as chaplain to All Saints' Chapel in 1909 and was elected as rector when All Saints' became a parish that same year. In the following year, a parish house was built. This was named Gregg House after Bishop Alexander Gregg. During the next three decades, parishioners began coming from all parts of Austin and its environs, and the work of the parish broadened to embrace the community at large, as well as the University.

Fifteen rectors have served All Saints' to-date. Three of these later served as bishops: James P. Clements (1914-1932), Suffragan Bishop, Diocese of Texas; Joseph M. Harte (1943-1951), Suffragan Bishop, Diocese of Dallas, and Bishop, Diocese of Arizona; and Scott Field Bailey (1951-1961), Suffragan Bishop, Diocese of Texas, and Bishop, Diocese of West Texas.

The Rt. Rev. John E. Hines, later Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church of the United States, lived in Austin as Bishop Coadjutor from 1945 to 1955, and All Saints' was his parish home during that period. Bishop Hines was instrumental in establishing the Episcopal Theological Seminary of the Southwest (now called Seminary of the Southwest) and St. Stephens Episcopal Coed Boarding School, both in the Austin area.

In 1975, on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of the founding of All Saints', the church was granted an Official Texas Historical Marker by the Texas Historical Commission. The historical marker at the door of the narthex recognizes the architectural and historical significance of the chapel and All Saints' parish to the City of Austin and to the State of Texas.

In 2000, All Saints' celebrated its centennial year with a series of special gatherings and events, and the renovation of the Chapel building."

Marker Number: 15108 Marker Text: This edifice stands on the mid-1840s land grant of former Republic of Texas President Mirabeau B. Lamar, and near the official residence of the second Bishop of the Diocese of Texas, the Rt. Rev. George Herbert Kinsolving (1849-1928). Aided by the Bishop and his wife Grace, the Diocese of Texas bought this land as site for a residence for women students of the University of Texas. Built in 1897, that structure called "Grace Hall" was in use for nearly 70 years. All Saints’, erected in 1899 as a chapel for Grace Hall, was dedicated to the memory of the Rt. Rev. Alexander Gregg (1819-93), first Episcopal Bishop of Texas. Austin architect A.O. Watson designed the Gothic Revival structure of native limestone. Its stained glass windows of Medieval Mosaic style are recognized as fine examples of American art. By 1910, All Saints’ had become a parish in the growing university neighborhood. In time, three of its Rectors became Bishops. The crozier of office of Bishop Kinsolving stood in the chancel for 35 years. He was revered as the founder, benefactor, and lifelong friend of the parish. As he had wished, his body was buried beneath the altar in 1939. (1975)

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