St Mary's Church, Timaru
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St Mary's Church is a heritage-listed
Anglican Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...
church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a place/building for Christian religious activities and praying * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian comm ...
located in
Timaru Timaru (; ) is a port city in the southern Canterbury Region of New Zealand, located southwest of Christchurch and about northeast of Dunedin on the eastern Pacific Ocean, Pacific coast of the South Island. The Timaru urban area is home to peo ...
, in the
Canterbury Canterbury (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and UNESCO World Heritage Site, in the county of Kent, England; it was a county borough until 1974. It lies on the River Stour, Kent, River Stour. The city has a mild oceanic climat ...
region on the
South Island The South Island ( , 'the waters of Pounamu, Greenstone') is the largest of the three major islands of New Zealand by surface area, the others being the smaller but more populous North Island and Stewart Island. It is bordered to the north by ...
of New Zealand. One of the defining landmarks in Timaru, the present church was built in three stages in 1880,
consecrated Sacred describes something that is dedicated or set apart for the service or worship of a deity; is considered worthy of spiritual respect or devotion; or inspires awe or reverence among believers. The property is often ascribed to objects (a ...
in 1886, with the distinct tower added in 1910.


History

The land where St Mary's Church stands was sold to the Anglican diocese by brothers
William Barnard Rhodes William Barnard Rhodes (1807? – 11 February 1878), casually referred to as Barney Rhodes, was a New Zealand landowner, pastoralist, businessman and politician. He was probably born in Lincolnshire, England, but took up a career at sea at an ...
,
Robert Heaton Rhodes Robert Heaton Rhodes (1815 – 1 June 1884) was a New Zealand politician who represented the Akaroa electorate from 1871 to 1874, when he resigned. He was elected unopposed in 1871. Biography Born in 1815 in Rotherham, in the English county ...
, and George Rhodes. The grounds of the Anglican church were consecrated by bishop Henry Harper in 1861. On 9 September 1880,
Henry Jacobs Henry Sandy Jacobs (October 9, 1924 – September 25, 2015) was an American sound artist and humorist. Early life and education Jacobs was born in Chicago, Illinois. After a tour in the United States Army Air Corps, Air Corps —during which time ...
, the Dean of Christchurch, laid the foundation stone for a replacement church, designed by William Armson in
Gothic Revival Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic or neo-Gothic) is an Architectural style, architectural movement that after a gradual build-up beginning in the second half of the 17th century became a widespread movement in the first half ...
style. Jacobs stood in for Harper who was ill. Henry William Harper, Harper's son, was the Archdeacon of Timaru at the time. The contract for the construction of the first stage was undertaken by Mr McGill. The contract for the second stage was let, in early 1881, to R. B. Sibly. The quality of Sibly's work was found wanting by an arbitration court and he cancelled his contract. Re-tendering the second stage contract was delayed by a lengthy illness of Armson. Francis John Wilson was the architect for the
parsonage A clergy house is the residence, or former residence, of one or more priests or ministers of a given religion, serving as both a home and a base for the occupant's ministry. Residences of this type can have a variety of names, such as manse, pa ...
that was tendered in July 1881. Soon after, the second part of the church construction contract was let to P. Clayton. Armson died in 1883. It took more than three further years before the church was consecrated by Bishop Harper on 26 August 1886. The 1880s church had cost
NZ£ The pound (symbol £, £NZ. for distinction) was the currency of New Zealand from 1933 until 1967, when it was replaced by the New Zealand dollar. Prior to this, New Zealand used the pound sterling since the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840. Like t ...
10,000, the adjacent school NZ£1,950, and the vicarage NZ£2,200. In a storm on 9 September 1889, the
belfry The belfry /ˈbɛlfri/ is a structure enclosing bells for ringing as part of a building, usually as part of a bell tower or steeple. It can also refer to the entire tower or building, particularly in continental Europe for such a tower attached ...
was blown over and the bell cracked, which thus had to be recast. The architectural firm of Collins and Harman provided an alternate design for the square tower. By 1901, chancel, vestries, tower, spire and bells were yet to be added. Plans for the completion of the church were presented to the public in 1906 for fundraising purposes. The church expansion required the removal of the original 1860s church. The foundation stone for the church completion was laid on 14 July 1907 by Archdeacon Harper. The builder for the work was Samuel McBride. Walter Panton from Timaru acted as the supervising architect for Collins and Harman. The distinct tower makes the church a landmark in Timaru. On 4 April 1985, St Mary's was registered by the
New Zealand Historic Places Trust Heritage New Zealand Pouhere Taonga (initially the National Historic Places Trust and then, from 1963 to 2014, the New Zealand Historic Places Trust; in ) is a Crown entity that advocates for the protection of ancestral sites and heritage bui ...
as a Category I building, with registration number 328. St Mary's Church is located on the corner of Church and Sophia streets. In 2011, during the
Christchurch earthquake A major earthquake occurred in Christchurch on Tuesday 22 February 2011 at 12:51 p.m. local time (23:51 UTC, 21 February). The () earthquake struck the Canterbury Region in the South Island, centred south-east of the centr ...
, one of the tower's four
pinnacles A pinnacle is an architectural element originally forming the cap or crown of a buttress or small turret, but afterwards used on parapets at the corners of towers and in many other situations. The pinnacle looks like a small spire. It was mainly ...
fell down, prompting the removal of the other three for safety reasons. All four pinnacles were restored in 2023 after a long period of repairs and restoration.


Notable weddings

* 17 July 1873: Henry Sealy married Emma Askin * 21 December 1898: Violet Sealy (daughter of Edward Sealy) married Charles James Peter (son of
William Spence Peter William Spence Peter (1818 – 23 May 1891) was a pioneer pastoralist of South Australia and New Zealand, and a member of the New Zealand Legislative Council from 1868 to 1891. Early life and arrival in Australia Peter was born in Perthshire, Sc ...
) * 15 July 1926: Pat Ward (All Black #335) married Jessie Macpherson


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Mary's Church, Timaru Religious buildings and structures in the Canterbury Region
Timaru Timaru (; ) is a port city in the southern Canterbury Region of New Zealand, located southwest of Christchurch and about northeast of Dunedin on the eastern Pacific Ocean, Pacific coast of the South Island. The Timaru urban area is home to peo ...
Heritage New Zealand Category 1 historic places in the Canterbury Region Churches completed in 1886 Listed churches in New Zealand 1880s churches in New Zealand Timaru Stone churches in New Zealand Gothic Revival church buildings in New Zealand