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Built in 1898–1899. The origins of St. Peter’s Church can be traced back to 1857, when it was largely a preaching outpost. It was the third site of worship built in Shanghai by the American Episcopal Church (after the Church of Our Savior and Christ Church). In 1897, Bishop Frederick Graves (1858–1940) hired the London Missionary Society professor John Lambert Rees to manage the new parish’s religious activities. Rees oversaw the purchase of the land, and on October 28, 1899, the building was completed and named St. Peter’s Church. The church's board of directors was intent on it becoming a self-governing and self-supporting Chinese church led by Chinese Christians themselves. From 1914 onward, it was part of the Kiangsu (Jiangsu) Diocese of the Chung Hua Sheng Kung Hui (CHSKH) 中华圣公会.After the Japanese armed attack on north Shanghai in January 1932, St. Peter's organized help for the refugees from the war-torn districts by raising funds and distributing food and basic necessities.