St James' Church in
Handsworth,
Birmingham
Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1. ...
, England was erected as an
Anglican church
Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of the ...
in 1838–1840
(Handsworth was at that time in the county of
Staffordshire) on land given by John Crockett of the nearby New Inns Hotel.
The architect was
Robert Ebbles of
Wolverhampton
Wolverhampton () is a city, metropolitan borough and administrative centre in the West Midlands, England. The population size has increased by 5.7%, from around 249,500 in 2011 to 263,700 in 2021. People from the city are called "Wulfrunians ...
,
who specialised in
Gothic Revival churches.
[Ebbles is given as architect o]
St Paul's Church, Wolverhampton (1833-34, demolished 1960s)St Peters Church, Charles Street, Coventry (1840)St Pauls, Tipton
and other churches around Wolverhampton as well as in Surrey and the Isle of Wight
. A new chancel was added in 1878
and the building was rebuilt in 1895,
to designs by
J. A. Chatwin.
The original chancel thus became the north chapel, the original nave became the north aisle, and the original western tower was redesignated as the north-west tower.
The additions were a new chancel, a nave, and a south aisle.
Chatwin's
Decorated style
English Gothic is an architectural style that flourished from the late 12th until the mid-17th century. The style was most prominently used in the construction of cathedrals and churches. Gothic architecture's defining features are pointed a ...
, red-brick features contrasted with the
Early English style
English Gothic is an architectural style that flourished from the late 12th until the mid-17th century. The style was most prominently used in the construction of cathedrals and churches. Gothic architecture's defining features are pointed ar ...
stonework of the original building.
The church's parish was created out of that of
Saint Mary's in 1854.
Portions were ceded to become parts of the parishes of
St Peter in 1907, and
St. Andrew
Andrew the Apostle ( grc-koi, Ἀνδρέᾱς, Andréās ; la, Andrēās ; , syc, ܐܰܢܕ݁ܪܶܐܘܳܣ, ʾAnd’reʾwās), also called Saint Andrew, was an apostle of Jesus according to the New Testament. He is the brother of Simon Peter ...
in 1914.
From 1883, the vicar was the Rev.
Thomas Smith Cave.
The noted composer
Theodore Stephen Tearne Mus Bac, L. Mus, F.S.Sc. (born 1860) was an organist at the church from 1904 to 1908, immediately prior to his emigration to Australia.
The famous tenor Leslie
Webster Booth
Webster Booth (21 January 1902 – 21 June 1984) was an English tenor, best remembered as the duettist partner of Anne Ziegler. He was also one of the finest tenors of his generation and was a distinguished oratorio soloist.
He was a chorister ...
(born 1902) was a chorister at the church from 1909 to 1911, before he was accepted as a chorister at Lincoln Cathedral.
The church's early baptism, marriage, and burial registers, and various parish meeting minutes, are in the archives of the
Library of Birmingham.
As of May 2014, the vicar is the Reverend Dr David Isiorho, a former social worker and a member of the editorial board of the journal ''
Black Theology''.
Worship is conducted in the Liberal High Church tradition.
The church sits on the corner of Saint James Road, to which it gives its name, and Crocketts Road, just off the
A41 Holyhead Road, and is in the
Anglican Diocese of Birmingham
The Diocese of Birmingham is a diocese founded in 1905 in the Church of England's Province of Canterbury, covering the north-west of the traditional county of Warwickshire, the south-east of the traditional county of Staffordshire and the nort ...
.
References
External links
Entry on Birmingham Churches siteImages on 'Digital Handsworth'
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint James Church Handsworth
Handsworth
Churches completed in 1840
Churches completed in 1895
19th-century Church of England church buildings
Handsworth, West Midlands