In the 1960s, St. Andrew\u2019s purchased the property where our church stands from the Episcopal Diocese of Tennessee with its own money. St. Andrew\u2019s also chose to have a relationship with the diocese. Because it is an Anglo-Catholic church, though, the relationship was never intended to be the same as other Episcopal churches. The diocese and its bishop at the time, John Vander Horst, not only knew this, they encouraged St. Andrew\u2019s and its rector, Edwin Conly, to grow their unique church.<\/p>\n
In exchange for the purchase price, Bishop Vander Horst gave us a warranty deed. The deed conveyed the property to St. Andrew\u2019s free and clear, with no trust in favor of the diocese. The diocese also asked St. Andrew\u2019s to formalize the parties\u2019 special relationship through modified language in its corporate charter.<\/p>\n
But the story does not end there. When St. Andrew\u2019s arrived at the property, it found a dilapidated mansion and other poorly maintained buildings. St. Andrew\u2019s parishioners built a new church building, later razed the mansion and built a new parish hall. Over the years, St. Andrew\u2019s alone has paid to maintain its buildings and operate its church.<\/p>\n