Peter Quire (June 15, 1806–May 5, 1899) was an American abolitionist, community leader, cobbler, and church founder.[1][2] He a member of the Underground Railroad in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania as a child; and later with his wife Harriet, he was a founder of St. John the Evangelist Church (now known as the Zabriskie Memorial Church of Saint John the Evangelist) in Newport, Rhode Island.[3][4]
Peter Quire | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | June 15, 1806 Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Died | May 5, 1899 (aged 92) Newport, Rhode Island, U.S. |
| Burial place | Common Burying Ground and Island Cemetery |
| Occupation(s) | Abolitionist, church founder, community leader, cobbler |
| Spouse(s) | Maria Quire, Sarah Quire (?–1870; her death), Harriet Frances Rodman (m. 1870–1883; her death) |
Biography
editPeter Quire was born on June 15, 1806, in Pennsylvania, U.S..[3] As a child, he worked as a Chaise driver for Joseph Parrish (1779–1840), a white Quaker physician and the president of the Pennsylvania Abolition Society.[3] The Parrish house basement was a stop on the Underground Railroad, and Quire worked on the related rescue missions.[3]
Quire married Maria Quire, and moved to Chester, Pennsylvania where he worked as a shoemaker.[3] In 1831, they moved to Timbuctoo, New Jersey after receiving a gifted plot of land from the Atkinsons, another Quaker family.[3] Timbuctoo was a newly formed Black, emancipated community, and it was in need of a school. The Quires donated their Timbuctoo deed of land for the creation of a new Black school, which it specified in the grant it was to be led by Black teachers.[3] It is unknown what happened after they left Timbuctoo.
By 1865, Quire was living in Newport, Rhode Island with his new wife Sarah.[3] Sarah died by 1870, and sometime after he re-married Harriet Frances Rodman.[3] They were active in the Trinity Church in Newport, which was segregated.[3] At this time period there was only one Black church in the state, the African Union Meeting and Schoolhouse.[3]
On July 11, 1875, the rector from Trinity Church and several of the churchgoers meet for worship in the home of Peter and Harriet.[1][3][5] Months later they built St. John’s Church (the building is now St. Johns’ Guild Hall) at 61 Poplar Street in the Point neighborhood, and featured a racially diverse congregation.[1][3][4] By 1885, the church was accepted into the Episcopal Diocese of Rhode Island, and continued to be mostly self-funded.[3]
In the 1890s, the church was struggling financially.[4] In 1893, Sarah Titus Zabriskie donated money to the church in the memory of her mother inspiring the new name Zabriskie Memorial Church.[4]
See also
edit- John Johnson House (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania)
- Mother Bethel A.M.E. Church in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
References
edit- ^ a b c "St. John's Founder Peter Quire". Newport This Week. February 18, 2021. Retrieved 2024-09-28.
- ^ Wharton, Susanna Parrish, ed. (1925). The Parrish Family: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Including the Related Families of Cox, Dillwyn, Roberts, Chandler, Mitchell, Painter, Pusey, by Dillwyn Parrish, 1809-1886. With Special Reference to Joseph Parrish, M.D., 1779-1840, with Sketches of His Children, by Members of the Family and Others. G. H. Buchanan Company. p. 258 – via Google Books.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Boussayoud, Imen. "Peter Quire and St. John the Evangelist Episcopal Church of Newport". Rhode Island Slave History Medallions. Retrieved 2024-09-28.
- ^ a b c d "St. John the Evangelist – The Legacy of Peter Quire". Newport This Week. September 3, 2015. Retrieved 2024-09-28.
- ^ Stokes, Keith (2023-01-10). "300-Year Newport African Heritage Timeline (1639–1939)". Newport Life Magazine. Retrieved 2024-09-28.