The Archdeacon, the Venerable Louis C. Washburn of Rochester,
laid the cornerstone for the Parish House and Chapel in 1897. This
achievement was the result of the formation of the Parish House
Society in 1891, which provided the basis for fund raising, and the
development of the building plans. The Parish House followed plans
by Heins & La Farge architects, to which her mother, Mrs. Nancy
Wadsworth Rogers, attached the larger chapel as the result of a
memorial to Rita R. Rogers.
The Chapel was completed in January 1898. The Vestry resolved
that it should stand open at all times for the purpose of public
worship and private devotion, a tradition that continues today.
Dedication of the new building by Bishop Walker was held on St.
Michael’s Day, 1898.
