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Public Notice

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Quatrefoil_WideSt. George’s will host a public meeting May 7, 2025 at 5.30 pm in the nave to inform the parish and community about our projects to build an accessibility ramp and a columbarium and how we are caring for our historic graveyard in the midst of construction. This meeting is part of how we are working with the Virginia Department of Historic Resources and Dovetail Cultural Resources as we show respect for our ancestors and past while addressing the needs of the present.

Below is the full public notice as well as information on how to provide comments on this project. A PDF download link is also included below.

Public Notice of Intent to Relocate Interments within the St. George’s Episcopal Church Cemetery in Fredericksburg, Virginia

View PDF of Public Notice Here.

 

Public Notice of Intent to Relocate Interments within the St. George’s Episcopal Church Cemetery in Fredericksburg, Virginia

  1. APPLICANT:
    St. George’s Episcopal Church
    905 Princess Anne Street
    Fredericksburg, Virginia 22401
  2. PROPOSED WORK AND NEED FOR RELOCATION: The applicant proposes to perform three modifications to the church property located at 905 Princess Anne Street (GPIN #7789-14-3959) in Fredericksburg, Virginia. Proposed improvements include a handicapped access ramp, a new columbarium, and a walkway railing installation. All will take place within the Church cemetery, which contains numerous burials dating to the eighteenth and nineteenth century; some burials are marked with headstones and others are not. It is believed that approximately 16 burials are located in the improvement areas.

The Applicant has determined that disturbance of the cemetery cannot be avoided due to necessary work on the parcel to accommodate the improvements. Pursuant to the requirements of VA Code §10.1-2305, the Applicant intends to apply for a burial permit through the Virginia Department of Historic Resources (DHR) to allow the archaeological excavation and relocation of the aforementioned burials within the footprint of the ramp, columbarium, and railing. A copy of the completed application may be requested from DHR.

The exhumed human remains and funerary objects will be temporarily curated in a secure location at Dovetail Cultural Resource Group (a Mead & Hunt company) located in the City of Fredericksburg and will be respectfully reburied in an alternative location within the St. George’s Episcopal Church Cemetery, unless otherwise requested by interested parties.

  1. COMMENT PERIOD: Comments on this project should be made in writing, addressed to the following:

Kerri Barile Tambs, Dovetail Cultural Resource Group (a Mead & Hunt company)
11905 Bowman Drive, Suite 502
Fredericksburg, Virginia 22408 or by email at kerri.bariletambs@meadhunt.com

Joanna Wilson Green, Virginia Department of Historic Resources
2801 Kensington Avenue
Richmond, Virginia 23221 or by email at burialpermits@dhr.virginia.gov

Written comments should be received by the close of business on May 11, 2025. A public hearing may be requested by any respondent to this notice.

  1. CONTACT INFORMATION
    If you have any questions about this project, please contact Kerri Barile Tambs at kerri.bariletambs@meadhunt.com

Caring for Our Graveyard

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St. George’s beloved historic graveyard has recently received some much needed TLC. Recently, we had a special Graveyard Care Day to clean our historic stones. We have also been working with an expert in stone care and preservation to provide some additional care.

Our First Ever Graveyard Cleanup Day

On Saturday, October 28, 2023, about thirteen St. Georgians showed up to provide care for our historic graveyard. Volunteers used water, soft brushes, and plastic palette scrapers, to clean nearly half of the stones in the graveyard. Thanks to St. Georgians Gina Moriarty, Brenda Hynson, and Shannon Lee, everyone used the proper techniques to carefully do the cleaning. Gina, Brenda, and Shannon have each taken classes through the Fredericksburg City Cemetery on how to care for historic gravestones.

The Graveyard Care Day was all part of St. George’s celebration of Hallowtide – the time leading up to and including All Saints and All Souls. During Hallowtide, we sit in the space between death and rebirth, remembering saints and sainted loved ones, and praying for those who have gone before and are in between. Caring for some of our oldest and most beloved saints in our graveyard is one such way we are intentionally remembering we are all part of a larger Body of Christ and each of us belongs to the Communion of Saints.

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Calling in the Experts

Additionally, we have been working with Robert Mosco of Mosco Cemetery Monument Repair for ongoing maintenance and preservation older stones in need of additional care. Shortly before our Graveyard Care Day, Robert Mosco and his associate, Tom Reger worked to:

  • Correct the mortal color and inscribe missing lettering on the stone for Elizabeth Lyons
  • Add mortar and complete preservation work on the stones for Charles Colson, Michael Jackson, John Pearson, and Henry Garett White.
  • Reassemble the stone for Mrs. M.J. Carlin
  • Add mortar and provide preservation work for the footstones of Elizabeth Lyon and S.W. Fry.

 

300th Anniversary Celebrations

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Neither power outage, nor poor WiFi connectivity, nor traffic jam on I-95 could keep St. Georgians from celebrating the 300th Anniversary of the Parish of St. George’s April 30 – May 2, 2021! A big thank you to the Rev. Deacon Ed Jones for capturing the spirit of these celebrations. He wrote an article in The Free Lance-Star. You can read the article here.

On Friday, we began our celebrations with An Evening with Bishop Curry. This Zoom conversation was moderated by our Rector, the Rev. Joe Hensley, and the Rev. Deacon Ed Jones. The Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church – the Most Rev. Michael B. Curry – spoke about love and the Episcopal Church. Additionally, he challenged us as Christians to be imitators of Christ. It was a truly unforgettable evening. You can view a video of the conversation below.

Next, on Saturday, we celebrated the Commemoration of the 300th Anniversary of St. George’s. Mayor Mary Katherine Greenlaw attended and read a proclamation. The Rt. Rev. Susan Goff, Bishop of the Diocese of Virginia, also provided a special blessing. St. Georgians young and old – and some with four paws! – gathered on the street outside our building for the special service. We also unveiled the plaque which honors our designation on the National Register of Historic Places. Below is a video of the celebrations.

St. Georgian Earl Baughman was onsite to take photographs of the celebrations.

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Our Sunday morning worship included a special sermon from Bishop Curry.

Thank you to everyone who helped make these celebrations possible!

Announcing St. George’s 300th Anniversary Commemoration Events

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Fredericksburg, VA – St. George’s Episcopal Church announces two upcoming events as part of their 300th Anniversary celebrations. On Friday, April 30 at 7 pm, they will host The Most Reverend Michael B. Curry, Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church, for a Zoom conversation. On May 1 at 11 am, St. George’s will welcome The Rt. Reverend Susan Goff, Bishop of the Diocese of Virginia, and Mary Katherine Greenlaw, Mayor of Fredericksburg, for a special commemoration. ASL Interpretation will be provided for both events.

Hosted by Rev. Joe Hensley, Rector of St. George’s, and Rev. Deacon Ed Jones, former Editor of The Free Lance-Star, An Evening with Bishop Curry on April 30 will explore how we are called to be bridge-builders and people of faith, hope, and love as we look to the future of the church and nation. The evening will include a Q&A with Bishop Curry. Advance registration is required at: https://bit.ly/stgbishopcurry.

Bishop Curry will also preach at the 10 am livestream service on Sunday, May 2.

May 1 marks the 300th anniversary of when the legislation which created St. George’s parish officially went into effect. To celebrate, Bishop Susan Goff will provide a special blessing and Mayor Mary Katherine Greenlaw will issue a proclamation. The outdoor ceremony in front of the church at 905 Princess Anne Street will include an unveiling of the parish’s new National Register of Historic Places plaque. This event will be livestreamed on YouTube Live: https://bit.ly/StGYouTube.

For more information about St. George’s Episcopal Church, visit www.StGeorgesEpiscopal.net.

 

 

Historian David Marsich to Present for St. George’s 300th Anniversary Lecture Series

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David_Marsich

Historian David Marsich of Germanna Community College will present a live stream webinar on Tuesday, July 21, 2020 at 7:00 pm ET as part of St. George’s 300th Anniversary celebrations. The webinar is offered free of charge with donations gladly accepted. Advance registration is required at: https://bit.ly/stg300thMarsichLecture.

David Marsich is the Assistant Professor of History at Germanna Community College. His lecture is entitled “St. George’s in Context: A Primer on Early American Religious History”.  The lecture will examine the history of the parish in the context of colonial American religious history; including the religious history of the colonial church as a supporter of slavery. Marsich is a Ph. D student at George Mason University. He holds a bachelor’s degree in history from St. Mary’s College of Maryland and a master’s degree in history from the University of Kentucky. Prior to joining Germanna, he worked at historical sites, including Jamestown and the Shaker Village of Pleasant Hill, Kentucky. He has published peer-reviewed scholarship and is a frequent speaker on early American history.

The July 21 webinar is the first of a three-lecture series. Dr. Erin Devlin of the University of Mary Washington will look at the history of the church amidst racial strife and the civil rights era. John Hennessy, chief historian at Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park, will close the series by examining the role St. George’s played during the Civil War years.

“An important part of our 300th Anniversary celebrations is examining our history,” explained the Rev. Joseph H. Hensley, Jr., the twenty-seventh rector of St. George’s Episcopal Church. “Our goal is to look at the whole story, celebrating the faith, love, and good works of the generations before us while being honest that faith was used as justification for works that were the opposite of love.”

Older than the town of Fredericksburg, the congregation of St. George’s Episcopal Church was established in 1720 as “St. George’s Parish” by an act of the House of Burgesses when Virginia was still a colony. St. George’s played an important role in early American history, counting several notable revolutionaries as parishioners, including the families of George Washington, John Paul Jones, and Patrick Henry. White clergy and parishioners participated in the enslavement of African-Americans until the Civil War. A century later, the parish gradually abandoned racial segregation and has become more known for its support of equity and inclusion. From its iconic downtown steeple and clock tower ringing the hours, to its many acts of service in the community, to the prominent role of clergy and parishioners in the events of each generation, St. George’s has been at the heart of the Fredericksburg community for three centuries.

To register for the July 21 webinar, visit https://bit.ly/stg300thMarsichLecture. To learn more about St. George’s 300th Anniversary, call 540.373.4133 or visit https://bit.ly/stg300th.