St Mary's Anglican Church is a heritage-listed

churchyard In Christian countries, a churchyard is a patch of land adjoining or surrounding a church (building), church, which is usually owned by the relevant church or local parish itself. In the Scots language and in both Scottish English and Ulster S ...

at 433, 447 & 449 Main Street, Kangaroo Point,

Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...

, Australia. It was designed by

Richard George Suter Richard George Suter (25 April 1827 – 22 July 1894) was an English architect who migrated to Queensland, Australia. Many of his buildings are now heritage-listed. Early life Suter was baptized on 6 July 1827 at Holy Trinity Church, Newin ...

and built in 1873 by Alfred Grant. It was added to the

Queensland Heritage Register The Queensland Heritage Register is a heritage register, a statutory list of places in Queensland, Australia that are protected by Queensland legislation, the Queensland Heritage Act 1992. It is maintained by the Queensland Heritage Council. As ...

on 21 October 1992.

History

The Church of St Mary's, Kangaroo Point was built in 1873 by Alfred Grant to a design by diocesan architect Richard G Suter. It replaced a timber structure built in 1849 on land closer to the river. The cornerstone of the present church was laid on 30 April 1872 by the

Queensland Governor The governor of Queensland is the representative of the monarch, currently King Charles III, in the state of Queensland. In an analogous way to the governor-general at the national level, the governor performs constitutional and ceremonial func ...

George Phipps, 2nd Marquess of Normanby George Augustus Constantine Phipps, 2nd Marquess of Normanby (23 July 1819 – 3 April 1890), styled Viscount Normanby between 1831 and 1838 and Earl of Mulgrave between 1838 and 1863, was a British Liberal Party (UK), Liberal politician and col ...

in the presence of the

Anglican Bishop of Brisbane Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protes ...

Edward Tufnell. The stone contains a

time capsule A time capsule is a historic treasure trove, cache of goods or information, usually intended as a deliberate method of communication with future people, and to help future archaeologists, anthropologists, or historians. The preservation of holy ...

containing a bottle with a parchment signed by the Governor, the Bishop and other church dignitaries, a copy of the plans of the church, a copy of the ''

Brisbane Courier ''The Courier-Mail'' is an Australian newspaper published in Brisbane. Owned by News Corp Australia, it is published daily from Monday to Saturday in tabloid format. Its editorial offices are located at Bowen Hills, in Brisbane's inner norther ...

'' and some coins of the realm. The church was officially opened and dedicated to St Mary the Virgin on Wednesday 5 November 1873 by Bishop Tufnell. The Sunday School building was opened on 30 November 1879 by Bishop Matthew Hale. In 1892 a cyclone caused considerable damage to the church's roof and bellcote. Stone structures on the northern external aspect of the

chancel In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar, including the Choir (architecture), choir and the sanctuary (sometimes called the presbytery), at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building. It may termi ...

indicate that the building is incomplete and a vestry or bell tower may have been intended for that site. The pipe organ is the oldest in Queensland, dating from the early nineteenth century. It was imported from a London church in 1876. It was built by H.C. Lincoln (1789-1864). and further stops were added in the 1961 by the Brisbane firm Whitehouse & Brothers. It is now maintained by Pierce Pipe Organs and plans are afoot for its complete restoration at some future date. The church hall was built in 1879. The rectory, designed by diocesan architect

John Hingeston Buckeridge John H. Buckeridge (1857–1934) was an English-born Australian architect, who built about sixty churches in Queensland and is also remembered for remodelling the interior of the Macquarie era church of St James', King Street, Sydney. Life J ...

, was completed in 1889. St Mary's was patronised by the governors when they resided at Old Government House. It has always been the naval chapel in Queensland and was once connected by stairs with the

Naval Stores Naval stores refers to the industry that produces various chemicals collected from conifers. The term was originally applied to the compounds used in building and maintaining wooden sailing ships. Presently, the naval stores industry are used to ...

below the quarry face. Following the death in 1926 of former rector and

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

army chaplain, the Reverend

William Maitland Woods William Maitland Woods (4 January 1864 – 6 February 1927) was an Anglican Church of Australia, Anglican clergyman and a military chaplain in Queensland, Australia. Early life William Maitland Woods was born on 4 January 1864 in Mayfair, Lond ...

, a bell tower (separate to the church building) was erected to his memory. The belltower is dedicated to Woods on a plaque and by inscriptions engraved on the bells. The Warriors' Chapel, dedicated in 1950, contains a memorial to those who died on in 1964. There are also a number of naval commemorative plaques and monuments in the church gardens.

Description

St Mary's is a Gothic style church built on a prominent riverside site above the Kangaroo Point quarries. Constructed of

Brisbane tuff Brisbane tuff is a type of rock, formed as a result of a volcanic eruption. As the name suggests, it is a type of tuff found in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. It is a form of welded ignimbrite. Brisbane tuff comes in a variety of colours: pin ...

, it is cruciform in shape, but with shallow

transepts A transept (with two semitransepts) is a transverse part of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In cruciform ("cross-shaped") churches, in particular within the Romanesque and Gothic Christian church architectu ...

and a faceted

sanctuary A sanctuary, in its original meaning, is a sacred space, sacred place, such as a shrine, protected by ecclesiastical immunity. By the use of such places as a haven, by extension the term has come to be used for any place of safety. This seconda ...

bay. The

gable A gable is the generally triangular portion of a wall between the edges of intersecting roof pitches. The shape of the gable and how it is detailed depends on the structural system used, which reflects climate, material availability, and aesth ...

roof, originally timber shingled, is now in ribbed galvanized iron. It is surmounted by a small stone

bellcote A bellcote, bell-cote or bell-cot is a small framework and shelter for one or more bells. Bellcotes are most common in church architecture but are also seen on institutions such as schools. The bellcote may be carried on brackets projecting from ...

at the front gable. In the interior, the

nave The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-type ...

is unlined, and timber

trusses A truss is an assembly of ''members'' such as beams, connected by ''nodes'', that creates a rigid structure. In engineering, a truss is a structure that "consists of two-force members only, where the members are organized so that the assembla ...

, resting on small masonry pillars, support the roof. The sanctuary is lined with plaster and its ceiling features three paintings by the noted artist R. Godfrey Rivers. The hall is a timber structure on concrete stumps. Cruciform in shape with a proscenium stage, it has a gabled

corrugated iron Corrugated galvanised iron (CGI) or steel, colloquially corrugated iron (near universal), wriggly tin (taken from UK military slang), pailing (in Caribbean English), corrugated sheet metal (in North America), zinc (in Cyprus and Nigeria) or ...

roof surmounted by a central ventilation lantern. The rectory is a large single-storey brick residence with verandahs on three sides. It stands on brick piers with honeycomb infill. Entry is through a gabled frontispiece. The verandah has timber posts and

balusters A baluster () is an upright support, often a vertical moulded shaft, square, or lathe-turned form found in stairways, parapets, and other architectural features. In furniture construction it is known as a spindle. Common materials used in its c ...

. A number of bays on the rear verandah add to the complexity of the corrugated roof which is a series of hips and gables.

St Mary's Studio

Located in the hall basement, St Mary's Studio was host to many artists, art classes, and arts groups from 1950 until 2010, and played a significant role in the development of the cultural landscape in Brisbane. Artists such as

Betty Churcher Elizabeth Ann Dewar Churcher (''née'' Cameron; 11 January 193131 March 2015) was an Australian arts administrator, best known as director of the National Gallery of Australia from 1990 to 1997. She was also a painter in her own right e ...

, Roy Churcher, Margaret Cilento, Jon Molvig, and Mervin Moriarty taught classes at the Studio. The Half Dozen Group of Artists used the space as a studio from 1975. The group is now located in Sherwood.

Heritage listing

St Mary's Anglican Church was listed on the

on 21 October 1992 having satisfied the following criteria: The place is important in demonstrating the evolution or pattern of Queensland's history. St Mary's Anglican Church is significant as having always been the naval chapel in Queensland. St Mary's Anglican Church contains the oldest pipe organ in Queensland and the religious art of Godfrey Rivers. The place demonstrates rare, uncommon or endangered aspects of Queensland's cultural heritage. St Mary's Anglican Church is an early and intact religious precinct of church, hall and rectory and is one of the only two surviving stone churches designed by RG Suter. The place is important in demonstrating the principal characteristics of a particular class of cultural places. St Marys Anglican Church is an early and intact religious precinct of church, hall and rectory and is one of the only two surviving stone churches designed by RG Suter. The place is important because of its aesthetic significance. The building remains as an historical and visual landmark in Kangaroo Point. The place has a strong or special association with a particular community or cultural group for social, cultural or spiritual reasons. St Mary's Anglican Church is significant as having always been the naval chapel in Queensland. The place has a special association with the life or work of a particular person, group or organisation of importance in Queensland's history. St Mary's Anglican Church is an early and intact religious precinct of church, hall and rectory and is one of the only two surviving stone churches designed by RG Suter.

References

Attribution

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Marys, Saint, Anglican Church Kangaroo Point Queensland Heritage Register Kangaroo Point, Queensland Articles incorporating text from the Queensland Heritage Register Anglican church buildings in Brisbane John H. Buckeridge church buildings Richard George Suter church buildings Gothic Revival church buildings in Australia 19th-century Anglican church buildings in Australia Churches completed in 1873 Gothic Revival architecture in Queensland