History

In 1857 a Sunday School was started on what is now Gowen Avenue. By 1859 Grace Church was built. After early struggles, the church flourished during the 1880s. By 1887 a larger church was needed, to be built on land donated by Franklin Gowen, for whom Gowen Avenue is named. The cornerstone was laid at the present location in 1888.

In 1898 a new mission began meeting in a home on Carpenter Lane. The cornerstone for their new Church, called Epiphany, was laid on Lincoln Drive in 1901. The building was added to in 1905 and in 1907. Epiphany was instrumental in helping to integrate the community in the 1950s, and African Americans became involved in the life of the parish. By the mid-1960s the parish was 50% black and 50% white. During that same period African American families also began joining Grace Church.

By 1991 the two congregations were worshipping together in Grace Church's building, under the leadership of the priest from Epiphany, and the merger of the two congregations was completed by 1994. In June 1998, the Rev. James Taylor was called as the second rector of the merged church. Fr. Taylor resigned in 2005 to pursue another strong call to service in elementary school teaching. In the fall of 2007, the Rev. Thomas Eoyang, Jr. was called as third rector of Grace Epiphany, which continues as a vital, diverse congregation welcoming all people regardless of race, color, or sexual orientation.