Old St. Luke's Church is still owned by the Episcopal Diocese of Pittsburgh, but nowadays it's really more of a museum than a parish church. It doesn't have a congregation or a clergyperson, and the only "regular" service of worship that is still conducted there is an annual Easter "sunrise service" at 6:30am.
Click on photos to enlarge them. This historic church--founded in 1765--stands above the valley of Chartiers Creek, just opposite Woodville Plantation. Of course, the Neville Family of Virginia were Episcopalians (Church of England).
It's the oldest Episcopal church in the region, though the hardier Scotch-Irish founded many Presbyterian churches that are even older and still home to active congregations.
Looking from the peaceful churchyard out across the valley of Chartiers Creek, the scene is far from bucolic. You see I-79 screaming in the distance, and at the bottom of the valley, the worst kind of suburban development: a Wal-Mart, a Ford dealership, acres of parking lots, a busy tangle of streets. There are bland housing subdivisions on the hills opposite.
And yet, you can see what a beautiful area this once was, overlooking the broad valley with wooded hills on the opposite shore of the meandering creek. The church has a website with some interesting historical information. The cemetery is old and quite interesting, and apparently people still choose to get married here.
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