Saint Peter’s Episcopal Church

Saint Peter’s Episcopal Church was organized in McKinney in 1876 and was originally designated a mission by Bishop Alexander Garrett of the diocese of Dallas. Because the church owned no property, members gathered in offices and private homes for many years under the leadership of priests Edward Wilkins, J. B. Fitzpatrick, and G. B. Gibbs. The Sunday school was organized in 1883, and in 1890 the mission was elevated to parish status. Three years later a frame building was erected on this site to house the congregation, built at a cost of $1,350 and designed in the shape of a cross with an entrance on Lamar Street. The first full-time priest to serve Saint Peter’s was the Rev. H. K. Grouse, who served from 1893 to 1895. He was followed by a number of dedicated rectors, both full and part-time, who have been credited with holding the church community together. In 1926, architect C. W. Beagle of Denison patterned a new church building for Saint Peter’s based on his own design for a Denison Episcopal church, and Cecil Hight, a local contractor, was the builder. In 1959 and 1960, the church complex suffered three fires, one of which destroyed the sanctuary. A Dallas architect designed the new, modern building, completed in 1961 for $88,000, and church members filled the sanctuary with memorial gifts. From its original membership of 35 in 1899, Saint Peter’s Episcopal Church grew into a large parish offering a variety of programs to its members and the community.

McKinney, Texas · United States