Christ Church
3rd and Church Sts., Milford, DEOne of the original Anglican parishes in Delaware, Christ Church Parish was established in 1704 by the missionaries of the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel in Foreign Parts . It was served by the Society until 1777. The first parish church was built between 1704 and 1720 on "Church Hill," about three miles west of present-day Milford. This frame church, called "Christ Church of Mispillion," was commonly known as "'Savannah Church" because of a swamp near the site.
In 1787 Joseph Oliver laid out his farm into town lots, forming the nucleus of Milford. He set aside two lots, and aided The Reverend Syndenham Thorne in the erection of the present Christ Church. Parson Thorne donated the timbers, sawn in his own mill, and paid for the bricks from Oliver's brickyards to erect the "Christ Church in
Milford." Begun in 1791, the church was yet unfinished in 1793 when Thorne died. In fact, the building was not fully completed until 1835, under the direction of The Reverend Corry Chambers; Christ Church was consecrated in 1836 by Bishop Henry U. Onderdonk.
Since its completion in 1835, Christ Church has undergone several alterations and additions. Between 1863 and 1894 various alterations were made under The Reverend J. Leighton McKim. Included among these were the removal of the gallery and box pews and the replacement of the two rows of plain glazed windows with pairs of lancet windows. A chancel, sacristy, entry porch, and bell tower were also added. Christ Church is notable as the parish of several outstanding persons. It was sometimes served by The Reverend Charles Inglis, rector of Christ Church Dover from 1759 to 1765, who was consecrated Bishop of Nova Scotia in 1787, thus becoming England's first colonial bishop. The Reverend Syndenham Thorne, builder of the present church, was one of the few Anglican rectors to continue services during the Revolution by officiating at services only when the liturgy did not
require state prayers.
In addition to Joseph Oliver, the co-founder of Milford, the churchyard contains the graves of two governors of
Delaware who were members of Christ Church parish: William Burton and William Tharp.
Listed in National Register of Historic Places in 1973.
The National Register of Historic Places is the official list of the Nation’s historic places worthy of preservation. Authorized by the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, the National Park Service’s National Register of Historic Places is part of a national program to coordinate and support public and private efforts to identify, evaluate, and protect America’s historic and archeological resources.