St. Cross by-the-Sea Celebrates 101 Years

St. Cross by-the-sea Episcopal Church marked its 101st anniversary in Hermosa Beach on Thursday.

The church brought together early residents in the city, which was incorporated in 1907. Founded on July 8 in 1909, St. Cross was the first church to be built in the city, and has been organizing services for 104 years. 

According to newspaper articles from the early 1900s, the church organized its first services downtown in the old Hermosa Beach Post Office on Santa Fe Avenue, which is now known as Pier Avenue.

"Obviously it is magnificent that we predate the town," said the church's pastoral associate Rev. Mike Olsen. "When I walk into church on Sunday it's very normal to see three or four generations sitting in a pew together, and that just shows the history."

What started as a small Sunday school evolved into a large religious establishment, growing to 232 members in the 1930s. On its anniversaries, the church was known to host "elaborate dinner(s) honoring officers and founders," said a Los Angeles Times article published July 8, 1931.

The dinner would often take place in the parish hall and its special honoree was its founder, Sarah H. Beane, the "Mother of St. Cross." Beane was the first postmistress at the city post office and donated the space to St. Cross.

"It is a wonderful experience to grow with the town of Hermosa," Olsen said.

In 1934 the Los Angeles Times reported "confirmation of the largest class in the history of the church" at that time. Today the church congregation includes more than 1,000 members, and an average Sunday attendance of 300.