The Episcopal Diocese of Central Pennsylvania was one of the dioceses of the Episcopal Church in the United States of America."Diocese of Central Pennsylvania: Episcopal Appointments by Bishops Howe and Rulison." Reading, Pennsylvania: The Daily Times and Dispatch, March 6, 1886, p. 3 (subscription required)."Central Diocese of Pennsylvania." Reading, Pennsylvania: Reading Times and Dispatch, June 15, 1881, front page (subscription required). It was established in 1904 as the Diocese of Harrisburg, separating from the original Diocese of Central Pennsylvania formerly known as the Episcopal Diocese of Bethlehem.Journal of the Proceedings of the Thirty-Eighth Annual Convention of the Protestant Episcopal Church, Diocese of Central Pennsylvania Wilkes-Barre, Pa; The E.S. Yordly Co. title page, p.50. It reunited with the Diocese of Bethlehem in 2026 to form the Diocese of the Susquehanna.
The seat of the bishop and home of the diocesan offices was St. Stephen's Episcopal Cathedral at 221 North Front Street in Downtown Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.
In 2024, the diocese reported average Sunday attendance (ASA) of 2,770 persons.
History In 1871, the original Diocese of Central Pennsylvania was established. In 1904, the Diocese of Harrisburg split off from the old Diocese of Central Pennsylvania, leaving the remainder to rename itself the Diocese of Bethlehem in 1909. In the 1970s, the name of Central Pennsylvania was re-adopted by the Diocese of Harrisburg. In October 2022, the diocesan conventions of Central Pennsylvania and Bethlehem initiated the process for exploring reunification. On October 19, 2024, the conventions of the two dioceses both voted to unify as the Episcopal Diocese of the Susquehanna, effective January 1, 2026. On the predetermined date, the dioceses reunited to form the Diocese of the Susquehanna.
In the 1880s, the first boys' choir in the diocese was established at Christ Church in Reading, Pennsylvania."Training Boy Choirs: The First Boy Choir in the Diocese of Pennsylvania." Reading, Pennsylvania: Reading Times, July 5, 1889, front page (subscription required).
From October 2006 until May 2014, Nathan D. Baxter was the bishop of the diocese. Following Baxter's retirement Robert R. Gepert was named as provisional bishop of the diocese. On 14 March 2015, Audrey Scanlan was elected to become the next bishop of the diocese; she was consecrated in September 2015.
List of Bishops Bishop Dates 1st Mark Antony De Wolfe Howe 1871-1891 (First Bishop of Central Pennsylvania, present day Diocese of Bethlehem) 2nd Nelson Somerville Rulison 1891-1897 (Second Bishop of Central Pennsylvania, present day Diocese of Bethlehem) 3rd Ethelbert Talbot 1898-1904 (Third Bishop of Central Pennsylvania, present day Diocese of Bethlehem) 4th James Henry Darlington 1905- 1930 (First Bishop of Harrisburg after diocese was created in 1904) 5th Hunter Wyatt-Brown 1931-1943 (Second Bishop of Harrisburg) 6th J. Thomas Heistand 1943-1966 (Third Bishop of Harrisburg) 7th Dean T. Stevenson 1966-1982 (Forth and Last Bishop of Harrisburg & First Bishop of Central Pennsylvania after name was changed in 1971) 8th Charlie F. McNutt 1982- 1995 (Coadjutor Bishop 1980–1982) 9th Michael W. Creighton 1996-2006 10th Nathan D. Baxter 2006-2014 11th Audrey Scanlan 2015–2025
See also Christ Episcopal Church (Reading, Pennsylvania)
References
External links Episcopal Diocese of Central Pennsylvania official website Episcopal Diocese of the Susquehanna official website Journal of the Proceedings of the Annual Convention of the Protestant Episcopal Church, Diocese of Central Pennsylvania from 1871 to 1909 Journal of the Annual Convention, Diocese of Harrisburg from 1905 to 1922