Organized in 1927, we are the oldest continuously operating Lutheran church in Tampa, the “Mother Church” of eleven others. Our first home was Room 303 at the YMCA building in downtown Tampa. Sixty-six people attended the first service in December of 1926. At our seventh service in January 1927, we were formally organized as a church.
After investigating several possible homes—and asking Peter O. Knight to donate a lot on Davis Island!—our church leaders decided in 1930 to purchase a lot in Seminole Heights, across the street from Hillsborough High School, at the corner of Wilder and Central. At the time, this 145′ X 275′ lot contained a large two-story frame farmhouse in the middle of an orange grove.
We took out a mortgage, purchased the property, and began re-modeling the house. Our first worship service at our new home was held on Pentecost Sunday, 3 June 1930. The brickwork from the front porch of that original farmhouse has been preserved behind the sanctuary.
We struggled, as did the rest of the country, during the Depression, but by 1942 we began a “Buy a Brick” campaign to raise money for a permanent church building. In addition, during the war years, St. Paul sponsored a Thursday evening social night for soldiers at the USO. By 1942, our membership had grown to 181 members.
The Building Fund campaign launched in 1943 was generously supported; and by 1946, we had purchased the lot adjoining our property. We hired an architect and by 1949 obtained bids for construction. The cornerstone for the Sanctuary was laid on 22 January 1950, as construction started. The completed building, furnished and landscaped, was dedicated 3 September 1950 at a cost of $79,889.29. The oak pews were fashioned in Hickory, North Carolina, and kneelers were later installed in the early 1980’s. Our carved oak altar, which matches the pulpit and lectern, dates back to the original design and construction of the building.
In 1953, we purchased the house and lot adjoining the expanded church property for $15,000. The ‘50s were a time of great growth for St. Paul.
We saw our Sunday School enrollment grow to 260 people, underscoring the need for an education building. We broke ground for the Snyder Memorial Building (behind the sanctuary) on 24 March 1957. It was completed at a cost of $44,998.29.
The parsonage, just north of the church, was built in 1967 for $32,000.
The steeple was painted and repaired in 1960, the tenth anniversary of the sanctuary. Then, in 1988, extensive refurbishing was done in preparation for the installation of the freestanding Heissler pipe organ. A tile floor was laid in the chancel, the nave was painted, and a contrasting accent line was added. As the organ was installed, the altar was moved further away from the rear wall and now occupies a central position in the chancel.
St. Paul celebrated its 50th anniversary in 1977. By this time we had a stong history in Seminole Heights. In the 1980’s we ran a day care center, and continue to serve our community by allowing our buildings to be used by many groups – for example, neighborhood organizations, other church groups, Boy Scouts and Narcotics Anonymous groups. We have been a precinct-polling place since 1978, and are proud to be one of the founding churches of Metropolitan Ministries.
The antique stained glass windows in the nave were cleaned, restored and re-leaded in 2002. The window colors of red, blue, green, gold and purple are liturgical colors of the church year. The Trinity stained glass windows, high in the east wall, carry the Christian symbolism of Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending of the Greek alphabet.
In 2010 we designed, planted and dedicated a Memorial Garden. It is a beautifully landscaped private area in the back with an outdoor lectern, benches and room for remembrance plaques. Also, in 2010 we installed in our sanctuary an Allen Renaissance digital computer organ with oak cabinets and a façade of gold tone organ pipes. We love the new look of our chancel area!