St James Old Cathedral - Melbourne's First Church
- astavovy
- Dec 10, 2023
- 6 min read
“ before Melbourne’s streets were even drawn on a map, there lay a church on the site of St James’. A slab hall with shingle roof and dirt floor, it was built in 1836 on what was then portions of John Batman’s sheeprun”.
A City Lost and Found: Whelan the Wreckers's Melbourne, Robyn Annear
St James the Old Cathedral is a remarkable little church with a fascinating history. It began it’s life in one place in the city and was moved brick by brick to a completely different city location 70 years later. (1)
So named “old” because, well it was (and still is) quite simply old. But not just old because it had a long history and had been around for ages, it was dubbed ‘old’ because all of God’s glory and the majority of its congregations had left and gone to a new grand cathedral, St Paul’s (on the corner of Flinders and Swanston sts) By the time it was moved in 1914 the church had become run-down and dreary, and being poorly made was, ‘in imminent danger of collapse’ (Annear)
St James was designed by Robert Russell. Interestingly Russell was the original surveyor of the township of Melbourne (Narrm) before Robert Hoddle took ( some say appropriated) his plans and completed the surveying in 1837. Being the ‘official’ colony surveyor more or less explains the historical naming of the ‘Hoddle Grid '. You can read more about the Hoddle Grid in my previous post.
Melbourne had only been ‘settled’ four years earlier in 1835 when the foundation stone of the current church was laid in 1839. It was dedicated in 1842 and completed in 1847. (2)
Robert Russel, Melbourne from the falls, 1837, drawing, pencil
Melbourne in 1840 was ‘certainly not a city and could hardly be called a town; nor did it even partake of the character of a village or hamlet. It was a kind of big settlement in groups pitched here and there, with houses, sheds and tents in clusters, or scattered in ones and twos – During winter the streets were chains of waterholes, and the traffic had to be suspended in places – Elizabeth Street and Swanston Street were shallow gullies, with deep and dangerous ruts every twenty yards; Flinders Street was a swamp”.Garryowen's Chronicles 1835- 1851
Robert Russell, Melbourne from the falls, from a sketch, 1838, watercolour and oil
The church originally stood near the corner of Collins and Williams streets. Those of you familiar with Melbourne will know this area as part of the business district, mostly a conglomeration of high rise office buildings and lunch time coffee shops, and not exactly the late night dining and cultural destination Melbourne’s reputation is built upon. But if you can believe it this area was once considered ‘the healthiest part of town and the select spot for fashionable residences and gay promenades’ (Annear, Whelans)
The orignal location of St James Builidngs, near the corner of Collins and Williams St's.
By 1913 the old church had become hemmed in by grey and dreary ‘modern’ city buildings and factories. The nearby McKrakens’s brewery covered the area in constant flat damp smog and much of the surrounding church land had either been leased to other businesses or reclaimed by the state government. (3) No one lived in the area anymore and the church congregation had mostly abandoned St James for St Paul’s years earlier.
You should understand the changed conditions of city life. In early days this was what was called a fashionable church. It drew its congregation from people resident in the city. But 70 years have brought about great changes. The residents have been taken far away, and though the services have continued on the old site, the glory had gone”.
Archbishoip Lowther Clarke and the re-consecration serivcie of St james Old Cathederal, 1914
McCrakens's Brewery and St James can be seen in the left foreground.
Image: State Library Victoria, LV. Scott, R. V. (1900). Panoramic view of Melbourne looking east along Collins Street.
The church was basically condemned and considered unsafe for public use and destined for demolition. A vigorous protest by some of Melbourne’s key pioneer families ensured its future and stone by numbered stone it was moved to its new location on the corner of King and Batman streets opposite the western boundary of Flagstaff Gardens where it has stood ever since.
Architecturally the church exterior has been described as a simple design, a rare example in Melbourne of a colonial Georgian style building with pleasing proportions and Greek detailing at the doorways. (Hels, 2016) Conversely it has also been dubbed “a pile of ugliness’, and ‘about as ugly a specimen of ecclesiastical architecture as could be imagined" (St James Old Cathedral – a Link with Melbourne’s Past, 2022)
Compared to the majority of gothic revival churches in Melbourne, St James is markedly unpretentious. I'll leave you to decide.
The interior is regarded as important for some rare and unusual features. The traditional cedar box pews lend the church a sort of austere traditional feeling and are striking for their dark colour. Historically box pews could be ‘rented’ by prominent members of a congregation, but whether this occurred at St James I’m unable to ascertain. The upstairs gallery has more regular seating, and lends to the theory that box pews where reserved for more prominent members of the church. Towards the front there are two raised side galleries, vice regal boxes used by Melbourne’s first Governor Charles Latrobe and Victoria’s chief justice and magistrate.
There is a baptismal font (4 )with a white marble bowl that that dates to around the 17th century (although some say it could be up to 800 years old) It came originally from St Katherines Abbey in the UK, was gifted by Queen Victoria and brought to Melbourne by Governor Latrobe.
There are also some wonderful examples of ecclesiastical stain glass windows from Christian Waller, Australia’s first professional woman stained-glass artist, and Ferguson & Urie, colonial Victoria's stained glass factory. A future post will delve into the fascinating history of colonial Victoria’s glass making used in churches.
Viewing the compact church interior one can start to get a sense of the early pioneer congregation. A gathering of prominent citizens, conservative, upright, formal, officious, very English; combined with everyday citizens, slightly wild, messy, muddy, indomitable, restless, all together carving a future in a frontier outpost village that was, with the discovery of gold, soon to become the fastest growing and wealthiest city in the world.
A special mention to historian Robyn Annear's fascinating book.
Click on the image above to learn more.
Notes
St James was originally a simple timber pioneer church used by Presybeterians, Anglicans and other Christian faiths. With the founding of the Anglican Diocese in Melbourne in 1847, and the arrival of the first bishop of Melbourne Charles Perry in 1948, the church became a Cathederal. It remainded this way until St Paul's Cathederal was finished in 1891 wherein it reverted to being a parish church again.
In response to the reported ‘illegal’ settlements (first instigated separately by John Batman and John Pasco Fawkner both arriving from Van Dieman’s Land - modern day Tasmania) Robert Russell travelled from Sydney Town with William Lonsdale under official Commonwealth (Imperial) authority. Colonists, convicts and everyone in between desired a piece of fertile land and an opportunity to build a life. Notwithstanding the complicated history of illegal land grabs and subjugation and murder of the local Aboriginal people Melbourne was declared a legal port and administrative center in 1838 and inner city land sales quickly occurred. Lonsdale supervised the official settlement of Port Phillip, later renamed Melbourne (Narrm) Victoria was still a part of the colony of New South Wales up until 1851.
McCrackens Brewery first started in this area in 1851. During the later half of the 1800's it became one of Melbourne's largest, emplying 130 people and making 500 barrels per a brew. The depression in the 1890's impacted its operations and eventually it became part of Carlton and United Breweries (CUB - such salubrious brands as Fosters, VB, Melbourne Bitter)
What the hell is a baptismal font you ask!? – Well, it's a religious architectural element, which serves as a receptable for baptismal water, designed to help people remember their initiation into the church and stay true to their vows. You may have noticed people dipping their fingers into water at the entrance to a church and making the symbol of the cross.
References
Annear, Robyn. (2005). A city lost & found : Whelan the Wrecker's Melbourne / Robyn Annear. Melbourne : Black Inc.
CHANGES OF CITY LIFE. (1914, April 20). The Argus (Melbourne, Vic. : 1848 - 1957), p. 10. Retrieved December 7, 2023, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article7250527
St James Old cathedral - alink with Melbourne's past. (2022). Cbdnews.com.au. https://www.cbdnews.com.au/st-james-old-cathedral-a-link-with-melbournes-past/
Wikiwand - St James Old Cathedral. (2023). Wikiwand; Wikiwand. https://www.wikiwand.com/en/St_James_Old_Cathedral
23-07-1883: St James’s Old Cathedral, Melbourne. (2012, June 5). Ferguson and Urie; Ferguson and Urie. https://fergusonandurie.com/2012/06/05/23-07-1883-st-jamess-old-cathedral-melbourne/
Melbourne – Do you know its real history? (2018, January 11). Balance Architecture; Balance Architecture
VHD. (2017). Vic.gov.au. https://vhd.heritagecouncil.vic.gov.au/places/767
History | mysite. (2016). Mysite. https://www.sjoc.org.au/history
Hels. (2016). Rare Australian Colonial architecture in Melbourne. Blogspot.com. https://melbourneblogger.blogspot.com/2016/11/rare-australian-colonial-architecture.html
Melbourne. (2023). Vic.gov.au. https://www.melbourne.vic.gov.au/arts-and-culture/city-gallery/exhibition-archive/pages/melbournes-breweries.aspx
Wikiwand - Baptismal font. (2018). Wikiwand; Wikiwand. https://www.wikiwand.com/en/Baptismal_font
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