On June 7, 1870, Judge Lewis Wythe generously deeded four lots in Guntersville to the Baptist, Methodist, Presbyterian, and Episcopal churches.
On September 11, 1905, Bishop Charles Beckwith came to Guntersville to create interest in the Episcopal Church. At that time the Methodist's had the only church in town. The Albert Ayres family were the only Episcopalians living in Guntersville, but several families expressed interest. The first meetings were held on Sunday afternoon in an old wooden school house. Mr. Ayres was the layreader and held services regularly even though at times only two or three families might attend. The priest in charge was Reverend Claybrook from Huntsville. Later the meeting place was a room over the Citizens Bank in the very heart of town.
As attendance and interest grew, it was decided that a church building was needed. In 1917 the members began to make preparations for a new building. The valuable downtown lot given by Judge Wythe was sold and a less expensive one further South of town was purchased. The church was built in 1918 at a cost of $1,000.
Perhaps the ladies provided the impetus needed to build the church. The "guild" which they organized on January 21, 1918, had four members: Mrs. Margaret Farrow, who helped in the actual manual labor of building the church; Mrs. Bessie Samuels who embroidered all the altar cloths; Mrs. Lane Moss and Mrs. Hodge Alves.
The congregation was not financially able to have a resident minister, and until 1931 the need was supplied by layreaders and visiting priests, primarily from Gadsden. In 1931 Captain Charles Conder of the Church Army was sent to do the work in Jackson and Marshall Counties. After Captain Conder, other Church Army men worked in Guntersville until 1939. Under this group the church began its active growth. By 1938 there were 46 confirmed members, and the church school had an enrollment of 23. Still, the Episcopalians could not be called well to do by any stretch of the imagination. Plate collections according to the Treasurer's Report for that year, amounted to $97.25 and pledges figured exactly $58.97.
By 1941 the church was strong enough to take steps toward becoming an Organized Mission. It did this under the leadersip of Reverend Robert Marlow of Gadsden, Alabama. For the next ten years, layreaders, visiting ministers and students filled the pulpit from Sewanee Theological Seminary in Sewanee, Tennessee.
The Sunday School was improved in 1947 through the addition of a room in the undercroft of the church. Until then, the Sunday School had no place of its own to meet. Since an adjoining kitchen was built at the same time, the Sunday School room served as a convenient place for church suppers.
In 1952 the Reverend Allen Sykes, who had been a student minister, became the church's first residential minister. In the same year a pipe organ was purchased and installed in the church. This was the first real pipe organ in Marshall County.
Under the leadership of Reverend Sykes, plans were made for the building of a parish house. Rev. Sykes left Guntersville before the building was completed. The parish house was finished and formally dedicated by the Right Reverend George M. Murray, Suffragan Bishop of Alabama, in 1957. The Reverend Jonas White was currently the resident minister. The church had reached an enrollment of 75 communicants, and there were 45 children attending the Sunday School.
In 1957 the church had taken a big step and applied for Parish Status. Parish Status was approved and granted by the Diocesan convention meeting in Birmingham on January 12, 1958.
The Reverend Charles K. Horn was Epiphany's first parish priest. He and his family were at Epiphany from 1958 to 1962. Other priests were the Reverend Hoyt Winslett, 1963-1970; the Reverend John G. Martin, 1971-1975; the Reverend John W. Groff, Jr., 1976-1982; the Reverend Joseph W. Sanderson, 1983-1999. In 1998 the Reverend Louie D. Skipper was hired as the Assistant to the Rector and then was hired as an Interim Rector from 1999-2000. Also serving as Interim Rector during the year of 2000 was the Very Reverend C. Edward Reeves. Dean Reeves stayed at Epiphany until the Very Reverend William M. Winters became Rector in September of 2000. The Reverend Jennifer Riddle began her ministry as Curate at Epiphany July 1, 2001.
In 1976 Epiphany witnessed the departure of the Sand Mountain Episcopalians to their long-planned and anticipated Christ Church in Albertville, Alabama. In 1980 Epiphany celebrated its 75th anniversary.
In 1984, this parish had grown to 101 families. In anticipation of the time when a new church would be needed, a three acre site was purchased at the corner of Sunset Drive and Lusk Street which overlooks the beautiful Lake Guntersville and its shoreline park.
Ground was broken for Epiphany's new building on Palm Sunday, April 8, 1990. The parish moved in to the new building in December 1990 and the first service was held the Fourth Sunday of Advent, December 23, 1990.
The Dedication and Consecration of the new building was held on the The Feast of Epiphany, January 6, 1991. The Right Reverend O. Miller, Bishop of Alabama celebrated the Eucharist and confirmed Epiphany's largest confirmation class of 24.
In 1998, Epiphany completed the second phase of the building which included a state of the art parish hall kitchen, facilities and additional classrooms. The third phase, renovating the original classrooms will begin in the near future.
In 2001, the "Backyard" was begun to insure play and recreation space for the entire parish.
We are pleased to announce that plans are now underway to build a Youth Center!. | 
