Category St John’s

Jun 18 2012

26-07-1885: St John’s Anglican Church, Port Albert, Victoria.

On the 14th of January 1884 the tiny wooden church of St John’s at Port Albert was burnt to the ground as a result of a bushfire. Less than a month later a tender of £262 was accepted for its re-construction with the official opening ceremony taking place on the 26th of July 1884.

The Ferguson & Urie three light stained glass window in the chancel is dedicated to Foster Griffiths, the infant son of Griffith Griffiths and Charlotte McCall, who died in October 1872. Griffith commissioned Ferguson & Urie of Melbourne to create a memorial window to his son with the intention of it being installed at a church in the nearby town of Foster but at that time a church had not yet been built at the town. After many years had passed without any action to have one erected it was eventually passed to the Reverend Betts who had it installed in the new St John’s Church at Port Albert in 1885. As at 2012 this is the only Ferguson & Urie window known to still exist in a wooden building.

Photos taken 24th April 2011.

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The text in the ribbons of the central window reads: “I KNOW THAT MY REDEEMER LIVETH Job 19-25”.

The scene depicting the empty tomb has the text below: “HE IS NOT HERE”. The scene does not specify a particular verse and could be one of four accounts of the resurrection written by Matthew, Mark, Luke or John.

Church Booklet – St John’s Anglican Church Port Albert – Melva F. James, Yarram & District Historical Society 2011, page 20.

“Stained Glass Window – In the Chancel of the Church is a magnificent stained glass window, the principal subject of which is the Saviour’s Resurrection.  The inscription on the bottom states “In Memory of Foster Griffith, died October 5th 1872.” Foster Griffiths was the infant son of Griffith Griffiths who was a prospector at Foster. On the death of his son at the age of six months, Griffiths obtained this window for the nearby town of Foster, but as there was no church in Foster, it was given to Rev. Betts, (who conducted services in the Foster Mechanic’s Hall), and was placed in the Port Albert Church when it was re-built after the fire.”

The window was restored in 1999 and a brass plaque to the left of the window reads:

“This window was restored in memory of Maud Robinson by the ladies guild and her family, in recognition of her service to this church”.

After the restoration of the windows, the memorial text at the bottom of the left lancet no longer has the first few words “In Memory of”, and instead, a duplication of the windows border colours were filled in its place which leads me to assume that this was not any kind of professional restoration but more like a local lead light enthusiast who merely filled the broken gap.

If Griffith had possibly commissioned Ferguson & Urie to create the window in 1873, but not installed until 1885, there would appear to be a 12+ year gap missing in the windows history. The design and grisaille pattern work employed in the window is typical of Ferguson & Urie’s early 1870’s work with the floriated cross. Other extant examples of the floriated cross in Ferguson & Urie windows can be seen at St Luke’s at Yea, St Barnabas at Balwyn, St John’s at Port Fairy, and St James at Drysdale.

Gippsland Times, Vic, Wednesday 29th July 1885. Page 3

“The opening of the new Church of England at Port Albert, which was built to replace the structure that was destroyed by fire in January, 1884, took place on Sunday last, when sermons were preached morning and evening by the Rev. C. P. Thomas, of Rosedale. The choir sang Jackson’s service and hymns appropriate to the occasion in a highly finished manner. There was a large congregation, filling the church both morning and evening to its utmost capacity. Next Sunday the Rev. Mr Groundwater will preach”.

Gippsland Times, Vic, Wednesday 16th January 1884, page 3.

EXTENSIVE FIRES
(BY ELECTRIC TELEGRAPH)
(FROM OUR OWN CORRESPONDENTS)

“PORT ALBERT, Tuesday Evening.

The most destructive fire that has ever occurred in this district was burning from about ten o’clock until sundown yesterday. The fierce north wind commenced to blow early in the morning, and a small fire that sprung up early in the day in the vicinity of the Old Port, increased in power, and came rushing madly on towards Port Albert, sweeping over many miles of country. Mr George Hastings and Mr John Rossiter, of the Standard office, had narrow escapes of losing their houses, situated on the Alberton road, as the wind kept veering round at intervals. However, owing to the timely assistance of a number of residents who turned out, the only loss sustained there was that of a fence enclosing one of Mr Rossiter’s paddocks, the fire being prevented from reaching a stack of hay and house close at hand. From here the fire crossed a metal road, destroying a wooden culvert, and making towards the township. The bells of the English Church were rung as an alarm, but a spark caught the wooden blocks and then the shingle roof, and in less than half an hour the church was completely demolished. The harmonium and seats were saved. The police buildings at Palmerston also caught fire, but they were with great difficulty saved. The escape of the township and the residences in the vicinity of Palmerston is hard to be accounted for”.

South Australian Register, Adelaide, Tuesday 15th January 1884, page 5.

“A destructive bush fire is now raging in the neighbourhood of Port Albert, South Gippsland. The English Church, a wooden building, was seized by the flames and burned to the ground in spite of the great exertions made to save it by the inhabitants.”

The Maffra Spectator, Vic, Thursday 7th February 1884, page 3.

“A special collection will be made at St. John’s, on Sunday evening, to assist in the rebuilding of the church burnt at Port Albert.”

Gippsland Times, Vic, Friday 13th February 1885, page 3.

“The tender of Mr. J. Avery, jun, has been accepted for the erection of the new church of England at Port Albert, the price being £262”.

Gippsland Times, Vic, Friday 29th February 1884, page 3.

“It will be very gratifying to our readers (says the Standard) to learn that the Rev Canon Chase, incumbent of St John’s Church, Melbourne, (acting of course in conjunction with the committee) has paid a very graceful compliment to the Rev. H. A. Betts, who formerly filled the office of curate at St. John’s. Since the destruction of the Port Albert Church by fire Mr Betts has exerted himself in various ways to aid the building fund, and he wrote to some old friends who attended St. John’s Church in Latrobe street during his curacy, asking them for a little private help. But this request appears to have been the signal for combined action, and on Sunday evening last, at a full choral service and harvest thanks-giving, a special collection was made “in aid of the building fund of the rev. H. A. Betts Church at Port Albert,” and the sum of £12 2s was the result. This agreeable surprise comes to us all the more acceptably on account of it’s warm-hearted and spontaneous mode of inception and consummation, and a word of commendation is due to the rev. Canon Chase and his committee (as also to the congregation as a whole) for this proof of good fellowship and kind remembrance towards their late curate, in the practical step they have taken to help a small congregation in the country to erect a building to take the place of that which was reduced to ashes by a bush fire on the 14th ultimo.”

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Apr 21 2012

03-12-1871: St John the Divine, Anglican Church, Avoca, Victoria.

The township of Avoca lies at the cross roads of the Sunraysia and Pyrenees Highways in the North West of Victoria.

The foundation stone of St Johns was laid in the 21st of October 1869, the first service was held on the 3rd of December 1871 and the church was Consecrated on the 18th of October 1893.

This Ferguson & Urie stained glass window was only found by chance during one of my Western Victorian trips in early June 2011 and although it is no doubt an early Ferguson & Urie window, no newspaper articles of the time have been found mentioning the church or windows.

Photos were taken 11th June 2011.

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On close inspection of the digital  photos of the window, the bottom right lancet indicated that there was restoration work completed in 1993. The restorer had written names and dates on the outside edge of the window, which means that it can only be read back to front from the inside the church. A digitally enhanced mirror image of the text revealed that the restoration work was done by the church Organist, Mr Peter Lucey, whom I later tracked down to the “Mt Lonarch,  Fine Bone China, Gallery and B&B at Avoca”. I contacted Peter in in June 2011 and he indicated that the restoration  of the Ferguson & Urie window took him over a year to complete.

The window is typical of Ferguson & Urie’s early 1870’s Grisaille stained glass work and elements of this window are nearly identical to the east and west windows of St John’s church at Heathcote and the nave windows at St George’s Presbyterian Church at St Kilda.

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Apr 5 2012

05-01-1889: St John’s Anglican Church, Port Fairy, Victoria, Australia.

St John’s Anglican Church in Port Fairy was designed by Nathaniel Billing and was built of bluestone between 1854‐1856. It was supposedly the first church in Victoria with a full chancel. The two largest stained glass windows were made by Ferguson & Urie of North Melbourne.

Photos were taken 7th Jan 2011.

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Australian Town and Country Journal, NSW, Saturday 5th January 1889, page 26.

“… the Anglican Church, with its ivy-clad walls, presents a picturesque appearance. The interior is beautified by a splendid stained glass memorial window, representing Faith, Hope, and Charity. This was presented by Mr. A. H. Knight, of Koorongah, in memory of his wife, who died in England in 1886. The chancel window displays most artistic workmanship, and was the gift of Mr. Lydiard. The church is substantially constructed of bluestone, and was erected as a cost of £14,000…”

The Lydiard memorial window:

The three light chancel window is a memorial to Cecilia Lydiard (nee Wooldridge 1848-1871). She was the daughter of Henry Wooldridge and Sarah Anne Buckland and died at the age of 31 in Belfast (Port Fairy) in 1871. The centre light of the stained glass chancel window has the memorial text:  “IN MEMORY OF CECILIA WIFE OF G. LYDIARD”.

George Fletcher Lydiard (1833-1925) was the son of Admiral George William Charles Lydiard (R.N) and Mary Sturt. After Cecilia’s death George married Adelaide Frances Campbell (1856-1901) on the 2nd August 1877[1]. In 1877 George Lydiard was unanimously elected as president of the shire of Belfast (Port Fairy)[2] and re-elected in 1878[3]. He was also appointed Vice President of Belfast Farmers Union 11th October 1879[4]. Lydiard was also a long-time friend and business partner of Andrew Halley Knight (see below) in the Koorongah Estate sheep station and in 1881 it was Knight, whilst in England, who relayed to Lydiard his findings, for a cure of Lungworm in Sheep and subsequently the estate was one of the first in Victoria to install a Carbolic acid fumigating room for the treatment[5]. G. F. Lydiard died at Euroa in 1925[6] aged 93.

The Knight Memorial window: c.1887.

The three light stained glass window of Faith Hope & Charity is a memorial to Elizabeth Hawkins Knight (nee Grylls, 1827-1886) and possibly made c. 1887.

The lower edge of the window can’t be seen to ascertain if there is any text but the subject of the memorial was Elizabeth Hawkins Knight (nee Grylls, 1827-1886) who was the daughter of the Rev John Crouch Grylls of Sydney and Sarah Richards. She married Andrew Halley Knight at St James Cathedral in Melbourne on 22 Aug 1848[7]. Her husband, Andrew Halley Knight (1813-1904), had arrived in Port Phillip from Edinburgh in 1838 and started business as ‘Alison & Knight’ merchants in Collins Street Melbourne. He owned extensive sheep runs around Kalkallo and Koorongah Estate near Port Fairly. After Elizabeth died in England in December 1886 he then married Ada Jane Atwood (1847-1941)[8] in Sussex in 1888.  A. H. Knight died at Croydon on the 6th July 1904.

Footnotes:

[6] Victorian Births, Deaths & Marriages (Vic BDM): 5153/1925

[7] The Maitland Mercury & Hunter River General Advertiser, NSW, Saturday 9 September 1848, page3.

[8] Vic BDM: 8703/1941, Ada Jane Halley Knight, died Toorak, age 94 in 1941.

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Mar 10 2012

1889: St John’s Church of England, Sorrento, Victoria.

St John’s Anglican Church at Sorrento was built of local Limestone in 1874. It was used by the Presbyterian and Anglicans for services and other community functions and later, solely by the Anglican’s. The transepts were built in 1889 by George Morse who was the original architect/builder of the church.

The “Prince Consort” stained glass window, made by the Ferguson & Urie stained glass company of North Melbourne, was installed in the South Transept at this time. The window was originally installed in St Paul’s Anglican Church on the corner of Swanston and Flinders street Melbourne which was demolished in 1889 to make way for the new St Paul’s Cathedral.  Canon Chase was the original Donor of the stained glass window for St Paul’s and when it was decided that the original stained glass was not applicable for the new Cathedral it was returned to him for his decision to donate it elsewhere as he saw fit. Despite the intimations of the tabloids that it would be installed in the “Working Men’s College”, he eventually chose St John’s Anglican Church at Sorrento where it has resided for the past 125 years.

Australian Heritage database, Place ID: 5797, File: 2/18/021/0004, Registered 21/03/1978.

 “… St John’s Church of England, Nepean Highway, Sorrento, was commenced in 1874, the transepts being added in 1889 and the chancel during 1908-11…”

 “… The transepts were built in 1889, presumably also by Morce. The stained glass windows in the easterly transept were donated by St Paul’s Anglican Church in Melbourne which was demolished in 1889.…”

Photos were taken on 25th September 2010.

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The Australasian Sketcher with Pen and Pencil, Melbourne, Monday 27th July 1885, page 115.

“OLD MELBOURNE.
REMOVAL OF ST. PAUL’S PRO-CATHEDRAL”.

“ST. PAUL’S PRO-CATHEDRAL., which is being pulled down to make room for the new cathedral, has an interesting history. It was the third church built in Melbourne, St. James’s and St. Peter’s being the other two older edifices, and the date of it’s inception takes us back to the early days of the colony…”

“…The window in the chancel is a beautiful work of art, illustrative of the ancestry and life of the Prince Consort. The design has been most carefully studied, and every detail is in harmony with and descriptive of some national emblems or traits of Prince Albert, and only that the chancel is in an unsuitable place to disclose the beauties of the window, it would have been far more noted and prized than it is. The window was at first intended to be the gift of the public, and one of the lady members of St. Paul’s Church collected £50 towards paying for it, but the Rev. Canon Chase at that stage presented the window, and at his request the subscriptions were devoted to the general building fund. Now that the church is being pulled down, the Building Committee have placed the window at the disposal of the donor, as the subjects of the windows of the new cathedral have already been chosen; and the Rev. Canon Chase is willing to present his gift to the Working Men’s College, which it is thought it would most appropriately adorn, considering how actively the Prince Consort exerted himself in the cause of social progress. The other memorial window at the east end of the north aisle was erected by the Sunday School of St. Paul’s Church as a mournful token of the esteem in which the wife of the incumbent, the Rev. Canon Chase, was held. There are also decorative windows in the galleries which would have been spared if the ephemeral nature of the career of the church could have foreseen, but no doubt other parishes will be eager to acquire them and replace them in their mullions, which are to be carefully preserved…”

In 1984 Melbourne University Student G. Marie Moore wrote in her thesis;

“One of this firm’s better known works is the three-light Albert Memorial window of 1877, now in the south transept of St. John’s church Sorrento. It was originally designed and made by the company for the chancel of the old St. Paul’s church in Swanston Street, together with two smaller windows, depicting. Peter and Paul. The Church of England Messenger described the memorial in glowing terms:

“…the middle portion of the window is filled by three crowned figures under canopies. The central king holds a sceptre. Above his head is the inscription ‘Oh Lord, in Thee have I trusted’. Beneath his feet, ‘Hezekiah Rex’. The Royal figures on his right and left hand hold respectively a harp and the book of the Law. The inscriptions above them are, ‘Praise the Lord’ and ‘In Thy Law is my delight’. Beneath them, ‘David Rex’, ‘Josiah Rex’. The upper portion of the window is divided (in the middle) into four small compartments, containing the emblems of England (lion), Scotland (crown held by a lion), Wales (three feathers), Ireland (harp). An aval on either side displays a cherub holding a scroll lettered in black on a white band, ‘When the righteous are in authority the people rejoice’. The lower portion beneath the kings has three large compartments. That in the centre displays the arms of the late Prince Consort resting on those of the Queen. On the right, the lion of England, in gold on crimson; on the left the unicorn, in silver on crimson. At the foot of the window, lettered in white (mediaeval) on black ground ‘In memory of His Royal Highness, Franc is Albert Augustus Charles Emmanuel, Prince Consort, died Dec. 1861. A brass plate under the window is inscribed in old English and carries the inscription:

“Fear God, Honour the King”. It is more than likely that David Drape was the artist responsible for this spectacular piece, as Lyon had already left the partnership in 1873 and moved to Sydney. Drape as an architect, was fully aware of the differences of our climate from that of European countries, and this is readily apparent in the brilliant colouring of the glass manipulated to cope with the high lights of our country…”[1]

The Prince Consort window at Sorrento was restored by Geoffrey Wallace’s Stained Glass studios in 2011.

The most recent historical event associated with this stained glass window was celebration of the life of Geoffrey ‘John’ Nathan (1931-2013). John died on the 28th June 2103. and his service was held at  at St John’s Anglican Church at Sorrento on the 12th of July 2013. John was the grandson of ‘James Urie’ of the stained glass firm ‘Ferguson & Urie’ who had originally created the masterpiece in stained glass.

Related posts: 27-07-1885: St Paul’s Pro Cathedral, Flinders St, Melbourne, Victoria.

Footnotes:

[1] Antipodean Gothic – Melburne University Thesis 1884, G. Marie Moore.

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Feb 24 2012

03-07-1869: St. John’s Anglican Church, Ross, Tasmania.

St John’s Anglican Church in Ross, Tasmania, was erected to the designs of architect Henry Hunter using some of the sandstone from the original church built in 1835.  The building was completed in 1868 and consecrated the following year on the 14th of May 1869  by the Bishop of Tasmania, Charles Henry Bromby (1814-1907).

Launceston Examiner, Tasmania, Saturday 3rd July 1869, page 4.

“THE NEW CHURCH AT ROSS.- From the Church News..”

 “… The nave is lighted on each side by cusped lancet windows, placed in couplets. The west end has three plain lancets, over which is a circular window filled with geometrical tracery; and a small circular window is placed in the gable of the transept. The east window is of three lights, the head being filled with rich tracery. The masonry throughout is of fine Ross free-stone. The roofs are of high pitch, finished internally with pine boarding, panelled and moulded. All the windows are filled with stained pattern-glass, manufactured by Ferguson & Urie, of Melbourne…”

 “… Everything was done by workmen employed by the chief benefactor of the church, Mr. Kermode, under the general direction of its designer and architect. Mr. Hunter…”

Photos: (updated) taken 12th August 2012. There are also some photos of restoration work, by Gavin Merrington. between June 2006 and Jan 2007. The August 2012 photos were taken during an awesome historical stained glass road trip with Gavin on the 12th Aug 2012.

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Note: Robert Quayle Kermode (1812-1870) also owned the mansion “Mona Vale” near the town of Ross in Tasmania, and it also contains stained glass windows made by Ferguson & Urie.

The Mercury. Hobart, Tas, Wednesday 12th May 1869, page 2.

“CONSECRATION OF ROSS’ CHURCH.- The Lord Bishop of Tasmania is to consecrate the new church at Ross on Friday, 14th inst., when divine service will be held at 11 o’clock. The clergy are invited to meet in the vestry at half-past ten and to bring their surplices”.

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Feb 21 2012

26-06-1868: St. John’s Anglican Church, Toorak, Melbourne, Victoria.

The liturgical east window of St John’s in Toorak is a memorial to William Crocker Cornish who died in 1859 and his wife Jane (née Rowell), who died in 1867.

The four light window represents the Nativity, Baptism, Crucifixion and Resurrection and was made by Ferguson & Urie of North Melbourne in 1868.

In 2010, the Verger of St. John’s church told me that the window was restored sometime c.1960’s and when it was reinstalled the lower panels of two windows were installed out of sequence. The verse, “John, Chapter, 19, Verse 16” (The Crucifixion) is installed beneath the scene of the Baptism and the verse “Mark, Chapter 1, Verse 10” (The Baptism) is installed beneath the Crucifixion scene.

In 1984 Australia Post issued a prepaid Aerogram envelope for Christmas that depicted the Nativity scene from this window at St. John’s. I obtained a mint specimen of it from a collector in 2010 and a copy is shown in the slide show of photos. In Feb 2013 one of Ferguson & Urie’s original designs was found for this window amongst the State Libraries Collections and a copy of the design is also included along with its comparison to the window as seen in 2010.

Photos – 31st October 2010.

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The Cornish family are buried at the Melbourne General Cemetery. Their monument is amongst the more elaborate gravestones in the cemetery and as can be expected it has degraded significantly over nearly a century and a half. Photos of the monument were taken 19th October 2014 and these maybe the last images of it before the spire topples and the memorial text can no longer be read. Hopefully their memorial stained glass window at St John’s in Toorak will be looked after better and last for many more centuries.

Significant transcriptions:

The Argus, Melbourne, Friday 26th June 1868, page 5.

 “MEMORIAL WINDOWS”

 “…The window in the church at Toorak has been raised to the memory of the late Mr. Cornish, by Mr. and Miss Cornish. It is the work of Messrs. Ferguson, Urie, and Lyon, of this city, and does high honour to their skill and art. The architecture of the window, being of the decorated Gothic style, is eminently favourable to the development of a rich and harmonious style of colouring. The design of the stained glass is to illustrate the principal events in our Saviour’s life – the nativity, baptism, crucifixion, and resurrection. In the first, we have the Virgin with the child in her arms, Joseph hanging over her, and the shepherds looking intently at the babe. The second represents the baptism at the Jordan, and the third the crucifixion. The latter is peculiarly well treated, and the figures of St. John at the one side, the Virgin at the other, and Mary Magdalene at the foot of the cross, are full of mingled sorrow and affection. In the last, the resurrection, the Saviour is represented emerging from the tomb, while an astonished soldier falls down before him. The figure is full of majestic dignity, and the folds of the mantle in which he is enveloped hang about him with natural grace. In the top tracery is the ascension witnessed by St. John and the Virgin. The last two are in medallion form, and are exceedingly well executed; the softness and heavenliness of expression in the Virgin’s face almost approaching that of some of the pictures of the Madonna. In the trefoil pieces are signs of the four evangelists, and in other parts of the tracery the “Agnus Dei,” and certain scripture texts. The colours of the picture are exceedingly well chosen; brilliant and effective, as all glass painting ought to be, but at the same time harmoniously and tastefully blended. A process of colouring has been adopted more suitable to the clear light of our atmosphere, and the consequence is that the window possesses a richness of tone, which agrees well with the style of art to which it belongs. We may add, that the chancel of the church in which this window is placed promises to be one of the most richly-decorated in the colony. At each side of the central window are two tablets of the law, in a highly illuminated style of writing; underneath are to be three tablets – one with a Calvary cross, and the other two with texts in scroll work; and the remainder of the space is being covered with an ornamental design in stencilling – the last work being performed by the ladies of the congregation. The side windows are also to be filled with stained glass representations of Faith, Hope, and Charity. A very fine altar-cloth has been recently received, as a present, from Mr. John King. It is made of rich Utrecht velvet, and has a large cross, studded with precious stones, in the centre.”

Illustrated Australian News for Home Readers, Melbourne, Friday 10th October 1873, page 170.

“The Church of St. John the Evangelist, Toorak, is erected on a site given by Mr. Alfred Ross, forming part of the Orrong estate, at the angle formed by the Gardiner’s Creek and Clendon roads. The foundation-stone was laid by Sir Henry Barkly in April, 1860. The designs were made by Mr. W. W. Wardell, architect, presented to Mr. Henry Dauglish, one of the trustees, and carried out by Mr. F. M. White, architect. Messrs. Gosling Brothers were the contractors. The opening services were celebrated on Sunday, 13th July, 1862, by the Rev. Dr. Bromby, who continued as officiating minister during a period fifteen months, until the arrival from England of the Rev. Walter Fellows, B.A., of Christ Church, Oxford, since which time the congregation has steadily increased…”

“…The chancel is 20 feet deep, having a four-light window, enriched with tracery and filled with stained glass representing the Nativity, Baptism, Crucifixion and Resurection of our Lord; also on the north side is a smaller two-light window…” 

The Argus, Melbourne, Vic, Friday 1st April 1859, page 4.

“DEATH of MR. CORNISH. – We announce with great regret the death of Mr. Cornish, of the firm of Cornish and Bruce, the contractors for the Melbourne and Murray River Railway. Mr. Cornish expired yesterday afternoon at his residence, at Brighton, after a lengthened illness, at the age of 44 years. The medical gentlemen in attendance upon him (Drs. Motherwell, Ford, and Brownless) ascribe his death to a complication of maladies, arising from disorganisation of the heart, the liver, and the lungs, and there is no doubt that these have been aggravated to a very considerable extent by the mental harassment and anxiety which are inseparable from the important business responsibilities in which he has been involved. The immediate cause of death, however, is said to be effusion into the pericardium – water on the chest – from which complaint he has for several months been a sufferer. The death of Mr. Cornish, in the midst of the vast undertaking in which he has been actively and successfully engaged, must be regarded as a great calamity, and will excite feelings of deep regret throughout the community. We believe that the funeral will take place on Monday.”

The Argus, Melbourne, Vic, Saturday 2nd April 1859, page 8.

“THE Friends of the Late WILLIAM CROCKER CORNISH, Esq. (of the firm of Cornish and Bruce, railway contractors), are respectfully invited to follow his remains to the place of interment, in the Melbourne General Cemetery. The funeral procession is appointed to move from his late residence, Myrtle Grove (opposite the residence of J. Bignell, Esq.) Brighton, at 1. and pass the Prince’s Bridge about 3 o’clock, on Monday, April 4. JOHN SLEIGHT, undertaker, 71 Collins-street east.”

The Argus, Melbourne, Vic, Tuesday 5th April 1859, page 4.

“FUNERAL OF THE LATE MR. CORNISH. – The remains of this gentleman were yesterday consigned to their resting-place in the New Cemetery, Melbourne. The cortége left the residence of the deceased, at Brighton, at 1 p.m., arriving at Prince’s Bridge shortly after 3 o’clock. At this portion of the route the procession was joined by a large number of friends of the late Mr. Cornish in vehicles and on horseback, also by a party of work- men employed by Messrs. Cornish and Bruce, on foot. The religious services at the place of burial were performed by the Rev. S. L. Chase, the principal mourners being the three sons of the deceased and his late partner, Mr. Bruce.”

The Sydney Morning Herald, NSW, Wednesday 8th May 1867, page 1.

“On the 7th instant, at Petty’s Hotel, of paralysis, JANE, widow of the late W. C. CORNISH, of Melbourne, aged 44 years.”

St John’s – its story for seventy years, 1860-1930, page 23.

“THE EAST WINDOW is an old Melbourne work by Fergusson and Ure [sic], and was erected in memory of William and Jane Cornish, who died in 1859 and 1867 respectively. It represents the leading incidents in the Life of Christ. Like the West Window, it has latterly been “graded” with a tinted glass outside to protect it, and also to lower the primary colouring.”

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Feb 20 2012

13-08-1867: James Urie visits Tasmania on Ferguson and Urie business.

In August 1867, James Urie of the Melbourne stained glass firm ‘Ferguson & Urie’, traveled to Tasmania with a portfolio of the companies designs for ecclesiastical and secular stained glass. As of May 2013, over twenty-five Tasmanian buildings have been identified as having one or more extant stained glass windows by the firm. The newspaper article below contains a gold mine of clues for Ferguson & Urie windows erected in Tasmania and in Victoria and I have included my comments as to what have found on each clue.

The Mercury, Hobart Tasmania, Tuesday 13th August 1867, page 5.

 “STAINED WINDOWS – A few days since we stated that Mr. Urie of the firm of Ferguson, Urie, and Lyon, glass stainers, &c, Melbourne, was on a professional visit to Hobart Town. This gentleman is now in Launceston, and we were much gratified yesterday by inspecting a large portfolio of designs for church and other windows which his firm has executed or has in hand. Amongst the most elegant we may mention the chancel window of St. George’s Church, Queenscliff, the subject being taken from the Litany, whilst the side lights represent the twelve Apostles and the west window other emblems; chancel window of St. Peter’s, Wooloomooloo (Sydney), embracing nine events in the life of St. Peter; Roman Catholic Church of St. Peter and St. Paul, Geelong; St Joseph’s Roman Catholic Church, Collingwood; St. Patrick’s Church, Duneed; the Melbourne Convent; the Presbyterian Churches at West Melbourne and Ballan; the Wesleyan Churches at Daylesford and Kent Town (S. Australia). They have also erected some very elegant memorial windows including one for the late Prince Consort at Kew; Rev. R. W. Needham, at Mount Gambier; Dr. Peck, at Sale; Judge Pohlman’s wife, and wife of Mr Stoddart both in Melbourne. We have already referred to Dr. Moore’s at New Norfolk, and the two windows in St. John’s, Launceston. One of the most elegant windows is in the house of Mr. George Stevenson, at Toorak; it represents the four seasons with figures of Art, Science, Agriculture, and Commerce, with Faith and Hope, coat of arms, and crest. This window cost £250. This firm also supplied a staircase window for the new mansion of the Hon. R. Q. Kermode at Mona Vale, but it has been decided to substitute one much more elaborate. They are also to fit up two windows for the new Wesleyan Church of this town – one at either end, which will be very handsome. Several private homes in this town, and a large number in Victoria, have been ornamented in this way, and no doubt the practice will extend when it is known how skilfully the art is carried out by Messrs. Ferguson & Co.”

Notes:

1. Queenscliff, Victoria, St Georges, All windows extant.
Related posts: 22-02-1864 > 29-01-1866 > 12-02-1881 > 07-04-1882 > 30-12-1893

2. Wooloomooloo, Sydney, NSW, St Peter’s (Darlinghurst), now part of Sydney Church of England Girls Grammar School.
Related posts: 1867: St Peter’s Anglican Church, Woolloomooloo, Sydney, New South Wales.

3. Geelong, Victoria, St Peter & Paul Catholic. Three light principal east window.
Related post: 13-08-1867: St Peter & St Paul, Geelong, Victoria.

4. Collingwood, Melbourne, Roman Catholic (St Joseph’s) destroyed by fire in 2007.
See: 1863: St Joseph’s Catholic Church, Collingwood, Victoria.

5. Duneed, Victoria, St Patrick’s (Mt Moriac) foundation laid in 1858. Ferguson & Urie east window erected in 1866 but was destroyed my a massive hail storm in 1887. The church was rebuilt in 1950’s and sold at auction in February 2017..

6. Melbourne, Victoria, the “Melbourne Convent”. This is likely to be the “Convent of Our Immaculate Lady of Mercy” in Nicholson street Fitzroy. My correspondence with the Convent has revealed nothing.

7. West Melbourne, Presbyterian. Dismantled in 1935 and re-erected as St Andrews at Box Hill in 1936. It contains the original F&U windows except for one which went to the Camberwell Church on Riversdale Road.
Related posts: 27-04-1935

8. Ballan, Victoria, Presbyterian (St Paul’s). All windows are extant.
Related posts: > 22-07-1866 > 28-07-1866 > 13-08-1867

9. Daylesford, Victoria, Wesleyan. Only small ‘stock’ windows in the porch exist in poor condition. See photos <here>

10. Kent Town, South Australia, Wesleyan. Nothing further known.
Related posts: 26-10-1864

11. Kew, Melbourne. The Prince Consort window at Holy Trinity is extant and recently restored.
Related posts: 08-06-1881

12. Mount Gambier, Christ Church, Rev Needham memorial window and others are extant.
Related posts: 02-11-1867

13. Sale, Victoria, St Paul’s Anglican Cathedral. Dr. Peck memorial window is extant.
Related post: 29-01-1867

14. Melbourne, Pohlman and Stoddart memorial windows.
Nothing found in regards to the Pohlman window but the Stoddart window exists.
Related post: South Yarra Presbyterian 1867

Pohlman:

Judge Robert Williams Pohlman (1811-1877): Biography | Obit 1877 | Funeral | Obit 1878 His funeral was in St Stephen’s in Richmond and he was buried in the Melbourne General Cemetery on the 8th Dec 1877. He was married twice. His second wife, Mercy Clifton Bachelor died of an embolism at age 26 on the 21st January 1876 only a couple of weeks after giving birth to a stillborn daughter on the 5th of January 1876. He only had one daughter to his second wife named Annie who married Navy Commander Frederick Owen Pike at St John’s in Toorak on the 27th December 1893.

This would mean that the stained glass window would have been a memorial to his first wife “Eliza” who died at Richmond on the 11th Feb 1856.

Stoddart/Stodart:

This is James Dickson Stodart (c1825-1867), Mayor of Prahran 1864/65 and councilor 1858/59-1859/60, 1863/64-1864/65.

Arrived from Edinburgh in 1853. Was later a financial agent for Cornish & Bruce railway contractors. See: Yarra Presbyterian 1867

An active member of the Scotch Presbyterian Church in Punt Road South Yarra, where his memorial stained glass window resides.

He died on Wednesday 12th June 1867. The window has been found at the South Yarra Presbyterian Church See: http://wp.me/p28nLD-2I3.

15. New Norfolk, Tasmania, St Matthew’s, Dr. Moore memorial window is extant.
Related posts: 04-03-1882

16. Launceston, St John’s: The window is extant but no longer in its original position. The canopy glass above the main three lights no longer exists but an original design for the window shows that it contained the descending Dove and the symbols for Alpha and Omega.
Full details see  post: 25-09-1866

17. George Stevenson’s house at Toorak was named “Trawalla” and is located at 22 Lascelles Avenue Toorak. Window is extant.

18. Ross, Tasmania, Kermode’s Mona Vale Mansion. This window still exists. Images are shown in various historical books written in the last 30 years.

19. Launceston, Wesleyan, (Pilgrims Uniting), window facing Patterson street is extant but nothing seen in the opposite end. Gavin Merrington from Hobart has confirmed that a wheel window exists above the organ loft.

Also see: 07-08-1867: Decorative Art. James Urie sojourning in Tasmania.

Other related posts: 03-03-1868 , 29-01-1866, 20-06-1867, 29-04-1864,

Short link to this page: http://wp.me/p28nLD-98
Feb 15 2012

19-12-1864: St. John’s Anglican Church, Digby, Victoria.

The Foundation Stone of St John’s was laid by the Rev. Francis Thomas Cusack Russell on the 19th April 1861 and was consecrated on the 21st January 1888.

Amongst the many historic artifacts in the church is the the three light Gothic stained glass window by Ferguson & Urie erected in 1864.

The Portland Guardian, Monday 19th December 1864, page 2.

“I am able to congratulate the township of Digby upon the possession of three very handsome stained windows in St. John’s church The design is very neat and the appearance is peculiarly rich; the centre compartment contains a full length figure of St John and he side windows have the emblems of the Evangelists and also the “Agnus Dei;” the whole is in rich antique glass and was supplied by Messrs. Ferguson and Urie of Melbourne.”

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Portland Guardian and Normanby General Advertiser, Vic, Monday 6th May 1867, page 2.

 “DIGBY”

 “The most prominent feature in the township of Digby is the English Church, St. John’s, and the common school on the same reserve. The church is built of brick and is a remarkably chaste gothic. The interior is beautifully fitted up, and the east window of stained glass, is perhaps the most beautiful in design and execution of any in the Western district. The window is in three compartments, the centre with a well executed figure of the saint in flowing eastern drapery, with a book in one hand and candle-stick and candle in the other, with an eagle at his feet“

Related posts:
1877: Holy Trinity Anglican Church, Coleraine, Victoria.
1867: St Peter’s Anglican Church, Merino, Victoria

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