The newly renovated Rectory, Georgian-style historic residence has been awarded the Newport Preservation Society's award for 2000 in recognition of excellence in period restoration. In the 1920's, S. John's purchased the colonial house on the corner of Washington and Poplar Streets for use as its rectory. The house had been built in the mid-18th century for William Grafton, a sailmaker. The Dennis family owned the structure in the late 18th century, and for this reason it is called Dennis House. The house is a large, gambrel-roofed, 2«-storey structure that has undergone numerous changes in its more than 250 years. In the latter half of the 19th century, its owner, Benjamin Smith, moved the house from its position next the sidewalk to a location nearer the center of the lot. The Smiths also added an ell and replaced the Washington Street entrance door with the refurbished doorway from the well known Hunter House (also known as the Jonathan Nichols House). They also engaged the young Charles Follen McKim, later famous as the head of the architectural firm of McKim, Mead, and White, to make some interior alterations. McKim lived in the house for a time and supervised the creation of a new parlor in place of the old kitchen and the movement of the main stairway. In 1927, soon after S. John's purchased the house, the elegant Hunter House door pediment was moved from the Washington Street to the Poplar Street entrance.In keeping with its long support of historic preservation on the Point, S. John's has continually worked to restore and maintain this elegant house in the manner that it deserves.