St George's Town Travel Guide

St Peter's Church

St Peter's Church is one of Bermuda's most cherished landmarks. It is the oldest Anglican Church outside Britain. The original wooden structure was built in 1612 and its roof thatched with palmetto. Among St Peter's many treasures are a mahogany altar, the oldest piece of Bermudian furniture on the Island, the St George's chalice that was presented in 1625, a Bible from 1594, Charles I silver, open cedar timber beams, beautiful chandeliers, and marble memorials to some of the Island's earliest governors. St Peter's served as the only public meeting place in Bermuda until the State House was built. The churchyard is also well worth walking around in. Tombstones tell of epidemics, shipwrecks and war. The grave of Sir Richard Sharples, Bermuda's governor who was assassinated in 1973, lies on the east side; on the west side is a collection of unmarked stones, poignant testimony to the segregated slave section.