Show OLD BRUTON CHURCH LONGEST IN continuous USE IN UNITED STATES gifts from pres dent roosevelt and king edvard ed vard to mark celebration of three hundredth ann ver sary of estabi ashment richmond va october ot of the pres ent year will be memorable in the his tory of old bruton parish church in williamsburg va because of the an no made a year ago that king edward ot of england will present to the church a bible and president roosevelt a lectern in com memora tion of 0 the three hundredth annever sary of the establishment of perma nent english civilization with the eng lish church on this continent october has been chosen as the most appropriate month of the bercen tennial year for the presentation be cause the general episcopal conven tion will be held in this tills city that month dignitaries of the church will journey to the old capital on october 6 when the presentation ceremonies nil III take place the lectern which is to be the gift of president roosevelt has been corn com plated and accepted it is the work of J stewart barney of new york and Is to support the bible which will be the gift of king edward rising from a symbolic base is the angel of peace whose upraised hands and told fold ed wings support tho tha desk of the lee tern the figure stands on a globe with one foot resting on great britain and the other on the united states the globe li in turn Is supported by the british lion on one side and the amer lean eagle on the other between these fig ires is the coat of arms of the english washington family each of the three tablets at the base of the lectern bears an inscription the archbishop of canterbury was authorized to select the bible which will be especially and appropriately bound and inscribed this mark of royal esteem Is to be presented to bruton church in view of the tact fact that bruton Is the official successor of the church in jamestown ot of which until recently nothing was to be seen ex capt the old tower the old james town church has been completely re stored during the present summer as haa has also bruton parish church while the jamestown church in the course of the years had disappeared altogether except tor for the tower bru ton church remains today to day as it ap feared years ago the recent res to horation tor atlon being confined entirely to the inside of the edifice king edward will be personally rep resented at the presentation cere monies by the english ambassador to the united states the president will also attend bruton parish church Is the second oldest in the united states and the oldest in point of continuous use it was as the cour court c church ure 0 of colonial 0 on vir ginia enla from 1699 to the revolution here in silk pews worship ed the colonial governors two of whom lie ile buried burled in the aisle of the church and heie here in that part ot of the church bought and laid i aid for by tie tt e virginia house of burgesses worship I 1 ed washington ashington jefferson monroe 0 ea j lectern presented to bruton parish church by president madison henry marshall mason ty ler bland lee and many others the present church was built la in 1715 during the of the rev commissary blair official cepres re presenta enta tive alv in N virglnia of the lord bishop ot of london and the founder and first president of the college of william and mary the work of which 1 Is now completed leaves un changed the exterior of the church but the interior which was changed and distorted by architectural and so cial conditions condl tlona which no longer exist has been restored td its ancient form and architecture the present ed church conforming as nearly as may be both inside and outside to the exact appearance the structure presented years ago the whole Is intended to be transmitted to the following generations as it was plan ned and used by the founders of the colony |