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The History of St. Mark's Episcopal Church, Waupaca Wisconsin.
Episcopal missionary workers came to the Wisconsin Territory beginning in the late 1820s, following Native Americans who had been converted to the Church of England in the East and were moving into Wisconsin. By 1847 there were 25 Episcopal congregations in Wisconsin with 969 members. The Reverend Jackson Kemper (who established the Waupaca church in 1856) traveled an area covering Indiana, Missouri, Iowa, Minnesota, Wisconsin, and parts of Nebraska and Kansas. From 1856 to 1863 the Waupaca community was small and public meeting places were scarce. Homes and the Methodist Church provided space to hold services when a rector was available, that is. St. Mark's has a prominent place in local history. Founded by early Yankee settlers, the church was a leading social institution for some the prominent residents of the city. In the century the enduring names of Browne, Truesdell, and Hobart (among many others) were prominent in the Waupaca Episcopal Churchs survival.
The Little Brown Church
The first uniquely Episcopal structure, the Little Brown Church, was completed in 1863 and served the congregation (unknown exactly how many) until it and the opera house were destroyed by fire in 1904. The then newly constructed (and still in current use) building was consecrated in 1905 and described in the Waupaca Republican as follows:
The building is made of concrete Bedford stone with a battlement tower surmounted with a gold cross. The building will be lighted by electricity everything being ready. The interior wood work is polished oak and hard birch floors. There are in addition to the altar alcove a rector's room and choir room In fact it is a most beautiful and serviceable (sic) chapel. To this day the same sanctuary serves as our Sunday worship center.