St Mary's Church, Summerstown

St Mary's Church, Summerstown, is the parish church of Summerstown, South London. It is also a Grade II listed building, having been designed by Godfrey Pinkerton and constructed in 1903–4.

St Mary’s Church, Summerstown
St Mary’s Church, Summerstown
St Mary’s Church, Summerstown
Location within London
51°25′56″N 0°10′59″W
LocationSummerstown, London
CountryEngland
DenominationChurch of England
History
Consecrated30 April 1904
Architecture
Heritage designationGrade II listed[1]
Architect(s)Godfrey Pinkerton
Groundbreaking4 April 1903
Construction cost£10,846 (equivalent to £1,177,200 in 2019)[2]
Specifications
Capacity800 persons
Administration
ParishSt, Mary, Summer Town
DeaneryTooting[3]
ArchdeaconryWandsworth
DioceseSouthwark

History

The parish was constituted in 1845 and there has been a church in this area for a number of years. In 1894, the old chapel, built in 1836 by William Moseley and extended in 1861 and 1870, was demolished for structural reasons, and was replaced by a temporary iron structure until a new parish church could be completed nearby. This iron structure served as a church hall from c.1925 until 1968, when it was sold by act of parliament (St. Mary, Summerstown Act 1968).[4]

The Incorporated Society for Promoting the Enlargement, Building and repairing of Churches and Chapels gave £250 towards the rebuilding.[5] The foundation stone was laid by Princess Helena, daughter of Queen Victoria on 4 April 1903[6] who was accompanied by an escort of the Surrey Imperial Yeomanry, and greeted at the site by a detachment of the 4th Surrey Volunteers. The Mayor of the Metropolitan Borough of Wandsworth, Mr Henry Kimber MP and the vicar, Revd. John Robinson were in attendance.

The church was consecrated by the Suffragan Bishop of Southwark, Huyshe Yeatman-Biggs, on Saturday 30 April 1904.[7]

It has been little altered over the years, with an addition of a new church hall around 1968, a (recently restored) lynch gate around 1930, and Summerstown's war memorial after the Great War.

Organ

The church contains a pipe organ by Henry Bevington. A specification of the organ can be found on the National Pipe Organ Register.[8]

Present Day

The church is open for public services every Sunday at 10:30am, and has a range of mid-week groups, including for children, students and young adults.

References
  1. Historic England. "Church of St Mary (Summers Town) (1065538)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 1 May 2020.
  2. UK Retail Price Index inflation figures are based on data from Clark, Gregory (2017). "The Annual RPI and Average Earnings for Britain, 1209 to Present (New Series)". MeasuringWorth. Retrieved 2 February 2020.
  3. "St Mary, Summer Town". A Church Near You. Archbishops' Council. Retrieved 1 May 2020.
  4. "Former places of worship in the Diocese of Southwark" (PDF). Southwark.anglican.org. Retrieved 2015-08-02.
  5. "Church News". Brighton Gazette. England. 22 March 1902. Retrieved 1 May 2020 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  6. "London Day by Day". Daily Telegraph & Courier (London). England. 6 April 1904. Retrieved 1 May 2020 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  7. "The Consecration of the new Church of St Mary, Summerstown, Tooting". London Evening Standard. England. 2 May 1904. Retrieved 1 May 2020 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  8. "NPOR R00507". National Pipe Organ Register. British Institute of Organ Studies. Retrieved 1 May 2020.
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