Emmanuel Episcopal Church

Emmanuel - "God with us" in the Heart of Hailey since 1883

For over 125 years, people have gathered in the heart of Hailey at Emmanuel Episcopal Church to give thanks to God and celebrate the blessings of Christian community.

Today, young and old, newcomers and long-time members are all part of the caring family of Emmanuel Church.

Wherever you are on your journey of faith and life,we invite you to join us and find a welcoming spiritual home.

There is a place for you!

Emmanuel Episcopal Church in Hailey, ID was started in 1885.  The building was added to the National Register of Historical Sites in 1977.  The architectural style of the church is Gothic Revival. 

From prehistoric times until well into the 20th century the Wood River Valley was visited in the warm weather months by Native Americans. Fur trappers roamed the inter-mountain Rockies in the early 1800s and Alexander Ross led a band of trappers into the area for a look-see in 1824. The first mining claim was filed in the Gold Belt west of Hailey in the summer of 1865.

Settlers and miners, however did not come to the area in earnest until 1879. Things got really serious in 1881, when on July 1 the first shipment of ore left Hailey. It weighed 22,000 lbs. (11 tons) and contained 154.5 ounces of silver to the ton. The mining boom continued until the mid-1800s when many of the veins played out and the bottom fell out of the silver market.

The town's founder, John Hailey, was an early pioneer in the Northwest who took part in the Boise Basin Gold Rush in 1862. He established an extensive stage and freight line and at one time controlled 2,000 miles of service.

Betting the Wood River Valley was going to be a center of mining and commercial activity, Hailey filed a homestead on the future townsite in 1879. The next year, he increased his holding with a desert land claim of 440 acres. Calling themselves the Hailey Town Company, Hailey, A. H. Boomer, U. S. Marshal E. S. Chase and W. T. Riley had the townsite surveyed April 20, 1881 and officially platted at the county seat in Rocky Bar, May 10, 1881. The speculation paid off. By July 6, $30,000 worth of lots had been sold.

The town John Hailey and his friends laid out is the quintessence of a 19th century town. In the residential part the wide tree-lined streets provide an open inviting avenue for course and discourse. The long narrow lots march back to alleys – an added living space, and by common agreement (before planning and zoning directives) homes were set back 25 feet from the street.