Cathedral Church of St. Luke and St. Paul records
Collection Overview
Collection consists of administrative records, financial records, office files, meeting minutes, bulletins, scrapbooks, photograph albums, and loose photographs documenting the history and daily operations of the Cathedral Church of St. Luke and St. Paul. Administrative records include parish records, membership lists, correspondence, and miscellaneous organizational files relating to various church events and diocesan conventions, as well as files concerning the church building’s 1989–1991 restoration. Audiovisual materials, including CDs, a DVD, and a videocassette, are also present and relate to church building restoration, community events, choral services, and bishop consecrations. Financial records include contribution ledgers, pew rental ledgers, registers, and cash books. Office files are arranged alphabetically and contain general subject files related to church operations and activities. Meeting minutes document the proceedings of parish and organizational meetings. Bulletins, arranged chronologically, document worship services from 1948 to 2008. Scrapbooks, photograph albums, and loose photographs document church events and celebrations, including religious holidays, summer retreats, and Episcopal Youth Community (EYC) meetings.
Dates
- Creation: 1851-2011
Creator
- Cathedral Church of St. Luke and St. Paul (Charleston, S.C.) (Organization)
- St. Luke's and St. Paul's Episcopal Cathedral (Charleston, S.C.) (Organization)
Language of Material
Materials in English.
Access Restrictions
This collection has been minimally processed but is open for research.
Copyright Notice
The nature of the College of Charleston's archival holdings means that copyright or other information about restrictions may be difficult or even impossible to determine despite reasonable efforts. Special Collections claims only physical ownership of most archival materials.
The materials from our collections are made available for use in research, teaching, and private study, pursuant to U.S. copyright law. The user must assume full responsibility for any use of the materials, including but not limited to, infringement of copyright and publication rights of reproduced materials. Any materials used for academic research or otherwise should be fully credited with the source.
Biographical Note
The Cathedral Church of St. Luke and St. Paul was founded as the “Third Episcopal Church” in 1806 and later consecrated as St. Paul’s, Radcliffeborough, in 1816. The church, originally built in 1811, is one of the oldest buildings in the United States to have continuously served as an Episcopal Cathedral. In 1949, the parish of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church merged with the neighboring St. Luke’s Episcopal Church. In 1963, the combined parish was designated a cathedral church for the Episcopal Diocese of South Carolina. Following the 2012 split within the Diocese of South Carolina, the cathedral was formally received into the Anglican Church of North America in 2017.
Full Extent
24.0 linear feet (13 cartons, 5 document boxes, 4 index card boxes, 30 ledgers, 6 photograph albums, 4 scrapbooks, 2 registers, 2 cash books, 1 minute book, 14 CDs, 1 DVD, 1 videocassette, 1 oversize folder)
Abstract
Assorted records of the Cathedral Church of St. Luke and St. Paul, including administrative records, financial records, office files, meeting minutes, bulletins, scrapbooks, and photograph albums. Materials relate to church history, daily operations, building restorations, and diocese conventions.
Collection Arrangement
- Scrapbooks, photograph albums, and loose photographs, 1894-2009
- Administrative records, 1851-2011
- Meeting minutes, 1868-1946
- Office files, 1950-2007
- Bulletins, 1948-2008
- Financial records, 1882-1978
Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements
COLLECTION CONTAINS UNPROCESSED AUDIOVISUAL AND BORN DIGITAL MATERIALS: Audiovisual and born digital materials are not currently available for access and require reformatting prior to researcher use.
Acquisitions Information
Materials donated in 2011 by the Cathedral Church of St. Luke and St. Paul.
Processing Information
Minimally processed by Sarah Meyer, April 2026. For preservation purposes, the collection was re-housed by transferring materials into acid-free boxes. Original folder titles have been retained where possible. This finding aid may be updated periodically to account for new acquisitions to the collection and/or revisions in arrangement and description.
Source
- Cathedral Church of St. Luke and St. Paul (Charleston, S.C.) (Donor, Organization)
Subject
- St. Luke's Episcopal Church (Charleston, S.C.) (Organization)
- St. Paul's Episcopal Church (Charleston, S.C.) (Organization)
- St. Luke's and St. Paul's Episcopal Church (Charleston, S.C.) (Organization)
- St. Luke's and St. Paul's Episcopal Cathedral (Charleston, S.C.) (Organization)
- Cathedral Church of St. Luke and St. Paul (Charleston, S.C.) (Organization)
- St. Paul's Episcopal Church (Charleston, S.C.). Ladies Christian Hanckel Association (Organization)
- Episcopal Church. Diocese of South Carolina. Episcopal Youth Community (Organization)
Genre / Form
- CD-Rs
- DVDs
- Administrative records
- Bulletins
- Cashbooks
- church records
- Clippings files
- Correspondence
- Financial records
- Genealogies (histories)
- Ledgers (account books)
- Photocopies
- Photograph albums
- Photographs
- Publications (documents)
- Registers (lists)
- Scrapbooks
- Videocassettes
Geographic
Topical
- Title
- Inventory of the Cathedral Church of St. Luke and St. Paul Records, 1851-2011
- Status
- Minimal Record
- Author
- Minimally processed by: Sarah Meyer; finding aid created by: Sarah Meyer
- Date
- 2026
- Description rules
- Dacs
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Repository Details
Part of the Special Collections Repository
Special Collections
College of Charleston Libraries
66 George Street
Charleston South Carolina 29424
(843) 953-8016
(843) 953-6319 (Fax)