C. Robins, selected in competition. It is a remarkably inexpensive
church. It provides accommodation for about 750 persons at a cost of
£4 10s. per head. The church received a grant from the Incorporative
Society for Building Churches upon one-third of the sittings being made
free. It is designed in the early English style, with nave, north and
south aisles and apsidal chancel, a small western gallery and two bell
turrets. Messrs. Sharpington and Cole were the builders, who executed
the work for the sum of £3,300. (St. John's Parsonage was built by the
same architect). The foundation stone of St. John's was laid August
6, 1862. The consecration and opening took place May 5th, 1863. The
living is a Vicarage in the gift of the Vicar of St. Mary's. The area
is 157 acres, and the population of the Ecclesiastical parish in 1871
was 7,839. The district assigned to the church was formed out of the
parishes of St. Mary's Battersea, and St. Anne, Wandsworth, by an
Order of Council bearing date July 27, 1863--(the register dates from
this period). The new parish was legally constituted and named the
Consolidated Chapelry of St. John, Battersea. The first Vicar of the
new parish was the Rev. Edwin Thompson, D.D., who from beginning his
work with services in a room in Price's Candle Factory, afterwards,
lived to be instrumental in building the two Churches of St. John and
St. Paul, together with the Schools in Usk Road, erected 1866, and
Parsonage House, Wandsworth Common; a noble monument of his untiring
energy and zeal. He died suddenly February 2nd, 1876, aged 51 years.
The present Vicar of St. John's is the Rev. William John Mills Ellison,
M.A., Wadham College, Oxford.
The windows in the chancel representing John the Baptist, St. Peter,
St. Andrew, St. John; the last supper and the ascension to the glory of
God, and in memory of Daniel Watney, departed March 16, 1874, aged 74,
are erected by his son John Watney.
On the south side of the church the Memorial Windows representing David
and Samuel to the glory of God, and in memory of W. H. Hatcher, at rest
August 2nd, 1879, aged 58. Erected by Friends and Sunday Scholars.
"Their works do follow them."--_Rev. xiv._ 13.
On the north side the Memorial Windows representing St. Paul and St.
Barnabas, in loving memory of a dear mother, Martha Colden, who died
August 25, 1880. Erected by her only child M. A. B. S. Estimated cost
of each window £15 15s. Guard and fixing to each £2 2s.
"Know ye that the Lord he is God: it is he that hath made us, and not
we ourselves; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture."--_Psalm
c._ 3.
ST. PAUL'S situated on St. John's Hill, is a Chapel-of-Ease to St.
Mary's Battersea, designed by Mr. Coe for the late Rev. Dr. Thompson.
It is a stone structure consisting of chancel, apsidal, nave, aisles
and tower with spire. It was built at a cost of about £6,300.
"Those that be planted in the house of the Lord shall flourish in the
courts of our God."--_Psalm xvii._ 13.
ST. PHILIP'S CHURCH, Queen's Road, is a Gothic stone building
consisting of chancel, nave, aisles and transept with tower, built
from the designs of Mr. James Knowles, Junr., at a cost of £13,000.
A considerable portion of this sum was given by P. W. Flower, Esq.,
the remainder was raised by public subscriptions. The church will
accommodate nearly 1,000 persons. The living is a Vicarage, yearly
value £200, in the gift of the Bishop of Winchester, and held by the
Rev. John Hall.
A Mission in connection with the Bishop of Winchester's Fund was
commenced in the month of June, 1869, in a house lent by the proprietor
for the purpose, in Queen's Road, Battersea Fields. Services and
Parochial Institutions were then established, which have become the
foundation of those now in active operation.
On July 13th, 1870, the New Church of St. Philip was finished, and
consecrated by Dr. Samuel Wilberforce, Bishop of the diocese, and who
also held his Trinity Ordination at the Church of St. Philip the year
before he died.[1] On May 16th, 1871, a District formed out of the
Parishes of St. Mary, St. George, and Christ Church, Battersea was
attached to the Church, and published in the "London Gazette." On the
6th July, 1871, an Endowment of £200 per annum, which had been promised
by the Ecclesiastical Commissioners, was legally secured to the Cure
of St. Philip, and published in the "London Gazette" on the 26th of
the same month. The payments were to date from the day on which the
District was assigned (viz., May 16th, 1871), and the first payment was
to be made on November 1st, 1871. The seats are free and the expenses
of the church have to be defrayed by the weekly offertory.
[Footnote 1: Bishop S. Wilberforce, born September 7th, 1805, died 19th
of July, 1873, through a fall from a horse.]
A New Organ has been built by Messrs. Hill and Son and placed in the
north chancel aisle; the cost with the platform is £516 1s. 11d. If,
when the Church of St. Philip was erected, the original design of
having a lofty spire with flying buttresses had been carried out, St.
Philip's Church would have been the most magnificent Ecclesiastical
structure in Battersea.--Churchwardens, W. G. Baker, A. W. Wilkinson.
"They continued stedfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship,
and in breaking of bread and in prayer."--_Acts ii._ 42.
"Blessed is the man that heareth me, watching daily at my gates,
waiting at the posts of my doors."--_Proverbs viii._ 34.
We'll crowd Thy gates with thankful songs,
High as the heavens our voices raise;
And earth with her ten thousand tongues
Shall fill Thy courts with sounding praise.
Wide as the world is Thy command,
Vast as eternity Thy love;
Firm as a rock Thy truth must stand,
When rolling years shall cease to move.--_Watts._
The construction of Queen's Road, etc., on Park-town, Battersea Estate,
cost Mr. Flower about £3,000.--C. Merrett, Clerk of the Works for the
Estate.
A New Railway Station has been erected in the Queen's Road, on the
South-Western Line.
[Illustration]
ST. MARK'S, Battersea Rise, is a Gothic building, and consists of
chancel, nave, aisles, transept with porch, and western vestibule and
handsome crypt. The corner-stone was laid by the Right Rev. Dr. Harold
Browne, Bishop of Winchester, November 11th, 1873, and it was dedicated
by his Lordship September 30th, 1874. The Architect is Mr. William
White, F.S.A., and the total cost has been £6,500. It is seated for
600, with backs and kneelers throughout. Mr. T. Gregory, of Battersea,
builder. The living is a Vicarage, in the gift of the Vicar of St.
Mary's.
"The rich and the poor meet together; the Lord is the Maker of them
all."---_Proverbs xxii._ 2.
The dedication festival of this church, in which the late Philip
Cazenove took so warm an interest, was agreeably marked by the placing
of a stained window of two lights, representing St. Philip and St.
James, in the north transept. The name of Mr. Cazenove is inscribed
on the tablet of a glass mosaic, set in alabaster, and sunk in the
brick-work of the wall beneath the window. The tablet is a material
much used for church purposes by the executants, Messrs. Powell,
Whitefriars, and called "opus sectile." The design is simple and
chaste, as befitted one whose unostentatiousness was one of his leading
characteristics. The window was placed in the transept by his two
daughters.--_South London Press_, May 15th, 1880.
[Illustration]
ST. LUKE'S CHAPEL-OF-EASE, Nightingale Lane, is a pretty Iron Church,
originally erected on Battersea Rise in 1868, was moved in September,
1873, to the adjacent plot, and used by the congregation while St.
Mark's was being built. On November 14, 1874, having been once more
removed to its present site it was dedicated anew in the name of St.
Luke by the Bishop of Guildford.
"O come let us worship and bow down, let us kneel before the Lord our
Maker."--_Psalm xcv._ 6.
ST. MATTHEW'S, Rush-hill Road, Lavender Hill, is a Chapel of Ease to
St. Mary's, it is built in the Early English Style of Architecture,
has vaulted roof and sacristy, seats 550, and cost about £3,000. Mr. W.
White, F.S.A., Architect; Mr. W. H. Williams, Builder. The Dedication
Service was conducted by the Right Reverend J. S. Utterton, D.D.,
Bishop Suffragan of Guildford, on Saturday, 28th of April, 1877, at 3
p.m. The Rev. W. B. Buckwell is the Officiating Minister.
"Blessed are they that dwell in thy house; they shall be still praising
thee."--_Psalm lxxxiv._ 4.
[Illustration]
ST. SAVIOUR'S CHURCH, Lower Wandsworth Road, now called Battersea Park
Road, erected by Messrs. Lathey Brothers at a cost of £4,000 from
the designs of Mr. E. C. Robins. It accommodates 700 persons and is
designed in the early French Gothic style faced with Kentish rag and
Bath stone dressings. It consists of a nave with clerestory, north
and south aisles and rectangular chancel with small western gallery
over the entrance lobby. There is a bell turret at the east end. The
chancel has been decorated in color by Messrs. Heaton and Butler. The
glazing is of cathedral glass. The living is a vicarage in the gift
of the trustees. The population of the district is about 11,500. The
foundation stone was laid by H. S. Thornton, Esq., January 4th, 1870.
The consecration of the church on the 19th October, 1871, by the late
Samuel Wilberforce, D.D., Lord Bishop of Winchester. The offertory
amounted to the sum of £40, which was added to the Church Building
Fund. The Petition to consecrate was read by the Rev. C. E. Ince, Vicar
of Christ Church, Battersea, and the deed of conveyance was presented
to the Bishop by W. Evill, Esq., one of the most generous and zealous
friends of the undertaking. The litany was read by the Rev. J.
MacCarthy. At the evening service an appropriate sermon was preached by
the Rev. E. C. Ince, and at the opening services on Sunday, the 22nd,
the morning sermon was preached by the Rev. J. MacCarthy, and that in
the evening by the Rev. E. Daniel. The Rev. J. MacCarthy was the first
Vicar.
The institution of the present Vicar, the Rev. Samuel Gilbert Scott,
M.A., Magdalen College, Oxford, took place on Sunday, April the 29th,
1877. The Bishop of Guildford instituted the Vicar after the Nicene
Creed. At the close of the sermon the Bishop celebrated Holy Communion;
there were 55 communicants. The offertory on the day amounted to nearly
eight pounds. Curate, the Rev. W. J. Harkness, B.A., Emmanuel College,
Cambridge. Churchwardens, John Elmslie, John Merry. Lay Readers, with
Episcopal sanction, Mr. Hussey, 32, Chatham Street; Mr. Hann, 2,
Millgrove Street. Mission Women, Mrs. Wootton, 23, Warsill Street; Mrs.
Collins, 5, Chatham Street.
"Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with
praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name for the Lord is
good; his mercy is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all
generations."--_Psalms c._ 4-5.
Mr. Crosby, a Missionary in this district, held Evangelistic Services
at a Mission Hall in Arthur Street, Battersea Park Road.
ST. PETER'S CHURCH, Plough Lane, is a beautiful Gothic structure built
of red brick, with chancel, nave, aisles, and lofty tower with spire
pointing like a finger to the sky as if to remind man that when the
Saturday night of this world shall arrive and earth's trials are o'er
"there remaineth a rest for the people of God."--_Hebrews iv._ 9.
In the tower are four illuminated dials, by Messrs. Gillett & Bland
of Croydon. The Church has sittings for about 820. The top-stone of
the spire of St. Peter's Church was laid about 5 p.m., on the 24th of
April, 1876, by Mr. Toone, in the presence of Mr. White the Architect,
Mr. Carter the Builder, Mr. Williams the Clerk of the Works, and a few
others, with the formula "In the faith of Jesus Christ and to the glory
of His Holy Name we lay the top-stone of this spire of St. Peter's
Church, in the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy
Ghost, Amen." A crowd of well-wishers below watched the ceremony with
interest. The corner-stone of this church was laid by the Bishop of
Winchester, on St. Peter's Day of 1875, and on the same festival, June
29th, 1876, it was Consecrated by the same prelate. At the Consecration
Service the Bishop of Guildford read the Gospel, the Rev. S. Cooper
Scott the Epistle, and the Bishop of the Diocese preached the Sermon
from the words of the Gospel "Thou art Peter and on this rock I will
build my Church." There were 120 communicants. The Bishop of Guildford
preached in the evening to an overflowing congregation.
The interior of St. Peter's Church is spacious. The rich carving of
the capitals has been executed by Mr. Harry Hems, of Exeter, as also
the pulpit and font. The pulpit is of stone with alabaster figures
introduced in the panels representing St. Peter, St. Paul, St.
John, Isaiah, King Solomon, Moses and Noah. The bowl of the font is
also of alabaster supported by angels carved in the same material.
The pavement is beautifully tessellated and has several scriptural
illustrations. The seats are fixed--these and all the internal
wood-work are varnished. The cost of erection was about £10,500. The
belfry at present contains one bell only, a tenor of six, it cost £120,
and cast with the words on it, "_When I do call, come serve God all!_"
It was rung on St. Peter's day, 1876. The Register dates from 1876. The
living is a Vicarage, in the gift of the Vicar of St. Mary, and held by
the Rev. John Toone, B.A., of St. John's College, Cambridge.
"I was glad when they said unto me let us go into the house of
the Lord. Peace be within thy walls, and prosperity within thy
palaces."--_Psalm cxxix._ 1-7.
St. Peter's Temporary Church and School-room was completed in 1874, at
a cost of £1,200. St. Peter's Vicarage was formerly the residence of
Mr. Burney.
TEMPORARY CHURCH OF THE ASCENSION, Lavender Hill.--A permanent church
adjacent is now in course of erection, and being raised by voluntary
contributions. The Rev. J. B. Wilkinson is the Officiating Minister.
The foundation stone of this church was laid by the Earl of Glasgow,
1st of June, 1876. This structure is being built of Bath stone and red
bricks, and is groined throughout with stone ribs and brick panels.
The foundation stone is situated under the "altar." James Brooks,
Architect, 35, Wellington Street, Strand; Mr. Chessam, Builder,
Shoreditch.
"A day in thy courts is better than a thousand; I had rather be a
door-keeper in the house of my God, than to dwell in the tents of
wickedness."--_Psalm lxxxiv._ 10.
ST. MICHAEL'S CHURCH, Chatham Road, Bolingbroke Grove, Wandsworth
Common--the Memorial to the Rev. H. B. Verdon and Mr. Philip Cazenove,
the eminent and successful merchant. The Temporary Iron Mission Church
which for the last nine years had been used as a Chapel-of-Ease to
the Mother Church of St. Mary, Battersea, and the site on which the
present edifice is erected were the gifts of the latter gentleman.
Henry Boutflower Verdon was born December 8, 1846. Himself the son
of an excellent clergyman was educated at the Clergy Orphan School,
Canterbury, from which he went to Jesus College, Cambridge, as Rustat
Scholar and took his degree in 1868. After a period of study at
Cuddensdon Theological College he began clerical work as a curate under
the Rev. Aubrey Price, M.A., Vicar of St. James', Clapham, where the
poor speak in affectionate terms of his memory. In the Spring of 1872
he became curate of Battersea, a few weeks after the appointment of the
present Vicar. From the first Mr. Verdon took special interest in the
district known as Chatham Road, Bolingbroke Grove, and the residents
there were very much attached to him. The Sunday evening services
and Sunday Schools held in St. Michael's Chapel were objects of his
unremitting care. He acted as the Secretary of the Committee during
the time St. Mark's Church was being built. He was an active member
of the Charitable Organization Committee--he promoted the work of the
Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and established
a mission Branch in Battersea. His marriage in January, 1879, to
Miss Wheeler, was the cause of much congratulation; but before the
expiration of many months this conjugal relationship was to be severed.
Had he lived the Incumbency of St. Mark's Church would have been
transferred to him. He died of a rapid consumption October 10, 1879.
The two Memorial Stones were laid in the Chancel of the Church (which
is now completed) by the Archbishop of Canterbury. "The Archbishop
after tapping them with the mallet saying at each 'In the faith of
Jesus Christ we place this stone for a memorial of thy faithful servant
whose name is written thereon and in the name of the Father and of the
Son and of the Holy Ghost,' and the choir chanting Amen. The stone on
the south side of the chancel bore the inscription carved in antique
on a gilt ground, 'Henry Boutflower Verdon, M.A., Æt. 33 obt. X. Oct.
A.D. 1879,' and that on the north side, the words, 'In mema. grata
Philip Cazenove, Æt. 81 obt. XX. Jan. A.D. 1880.' After laying the
stones the Archbishop delivered a short address in the course of which
he said that the two servants of God whose names were on the memorial
stones worked hand in hand together for good though separated from each
other by fifty years of life; one dying almost in his prime and the
other living on to a long old age but each dedicated to the service
of God, one ministering in the sanctuary and daily officiating in the
house of God, the other taking part during a long life in the trade
and exchange of this great city, busy with the arrangements by which
human industry is promoted. Both different yet wonderfully alike, and
both judicious servants bearing the stamp of their heavenly Master and
serving Him bravely, faithfully and laboriously. Let them be thankful
that this space of fifty made no difference in the two men. As we got
old we began to think that wisdom and goodness were with the old only,
but he thanked God that in His Church there never had failed and never
would fail a succession of faithful servants century after century to
carry on the work which the Lord loves and which will make the world
at last ready for His second coming. The name on the one stone might
be little known beyond his own neighbourhood or the name of the other
beyond the city of London, but they were known to their heavenly Master
whom they served faithfully, and in His book are the names of both
written. The memory of the young man whose name was on the one stone
would linger long among those whom he loved and the poor and the sick
to whom he had endeared himself and for whom he faithfully laboured,
but for the speaker his thoughts and friendship were with the old man
whose name was on the other stone. Five and twenty years ago when the
speaker entered on the laborious work of the See of London, the first
to welcome and assist him was Mr. Cazenove. He belonged to the noble
band who helped Bishop Bloomfield from the very first. Those five
and twenty years had been as laboriously spent in doing good as the
years that had gone before. When those men first entered on the work
how different was this suburb of London to what it is now. Great wars
had absorbed the attention of men, and a large population had grown
up before people knew it, and before men had thought of the duty of
meeting the spiritual wants of the new suburbs. If it had not been for
the noble band who gathered round Bishop Bloomfield what a different
account would have had to be rendered now. Let us trust and believe
that when all of us have passed away it will be found that God has
raised up a succession of faithful servants; men of every business and
profession who will still regard the profession of Jesus Christ as the
most noble of all, for no profession was more noble than the service of
the Heavenly King. Let us trust that with dangers around us the spirit
of vigorous Christianity may continue to be triumphant as it had been
in so many instances already. Let us trust to the good work begun and
carried forward during the last fifty years will flourish with God's
blessing for many years to come."
"The new church is a plain Gothic structure built of red and stock
bricks, and is 90 feet long by 70 feet wide. It consists of a nave,
chancel, and two aisles, surmounted with a timber roof of three spans
covered with red tiles. There are two entrances, one in Chatham Road
and the other in Darley Road; the former surmounted by a figure of
St. Michael in conflict with the serpent. There is also a small tower
containing a bell weighing 2 cwt. There is a commodious crypt beneath
the chancel. The latter contains three rows of stalls for the clergy
and choir, and is lighted by six small windows of stained glass, in
each of which there is an angel exquisitely executed from the Studio
of Messrs. Lavers, Barraud and Westlake. It is also intended to place
a reredos of white marble here. The altar is approached from the nave
by nine steps. The nave communicates with the aisles by large Gothic
arches supported on octagonal pillars of 'granolith'--a material
composed of granite chips and Portland cement. The floor is of blocks
of wood and the building is 'pewed' with open benches to accommodate
about 750 worshippers. The pulpit (a memorial gift by Mr. Verdon's
widow) is of carved oak with a base of Caen stone, and is reached by
a short flight of stone steps. Behind the pulpit in the south aisle
is the organ, which has been brought from St. Luke's church, Derby,
and was built by Mr. Abbott of Leeds. At the west end of the church
is a font (which is in memory of a loved grandchild of Mr. Cazenove)
of veined marble supported by nine columns of polished granite and
Caen stone. It is surmounted by a polished oak cover and is a gift 'to
the glory of God and the memory of Philip Henry Hessey.' The church
is warmed with hot air. It has been erected by Mr. J. D. Hobson, from
the designs of Mr. White, F.S.A. The total cost is £4500, which (with
the exception of £800 unpaid at the commencement of the dedication
services) had all been contributed by the relatives and friends of the
late H. B. Verdon and Philip Cazenove. The church is provided with
prayer books, hymn books, and kneelers throughout."
The Dedication of St. Michael's Church was on September, 10, 1881, by
the Right Rev. The Lord Bishop of Rochester--the service commenced at
11.30 a.m.
Lord of hosts, to thee we raise
Here a house of prayer and praise!
Thou thy people's hearts prepare
Here to meet for praise and prayer.
O King of glory come,
And with thy favour crown
This temple as thy dome,
This people as thy own!
Beneath this roof, O deign to show,
How God can dwell with men below.
Here may thine ears attend
Our interceding cries,
And grateful praise ascend,
All fragrant to the skies!
Here may thy word melodious sound,
And spread celestial joys around!
Here may thy future sons
And daughters sound thy praise,
And shine like polish'd stones,
Through long succeeding days!
Here Lord, display thy sov'reign power,
While temples stand, and men adore!
ALL SAINTS' TEMPORARY IRON CHURCH, is situated in Victoria Bridge Road,
near the south-eastern gate of Battersea Park. It will accommodate 200
persons. All seats free and unappropriated. It was opened for Divine
Service Saturday, Sept. 6th, 1879, at 3.30 p.m. The Rev. Canon Clarke,
Vicar of Battersea, and Rural Dean, preached the first sermon. His text
was:--"Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this
seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his."--II. Timothy ii. 19. An
income of £200 a year from the Rochester Diocesan Fund has been granted
to the clergyman of the district, the Rev. A. E. Bourne, formerly
Curate of St. Peter's, Battersea. The new provisional district of "All
Saints," Battersea, has been formed out of three parishes, viz., St.
Mary's, St. Saviour's and St. George's, to meet the requirements of the
rapidly increasing population of the neighbourhood. Roughly speaking
the boundaries of the new district are the London, Chatham and Dover
Railway from the river to the London and South Western Railway, along
the London and South Western Railway to Park Grove; down Park Grove,
across the open land to the Park round the north corner. The only
exceptions are the streets between Queen's Road and Russell Street
which remain part of St. Philip's parish.
"God is greatly to be feared in the assembly of His saints and to be
had in reverence by all them that are about Him."
Let us then with gladsome mind
Praise the Lord for He is kind;
For His mercies shall endure
Ever faithful, ever sure.