The History of the Parish Church of St. Mary the Virgin, Nottingham

The late-Victorian Changes, 1851 to 1903 - improvements or vandalism?

In 1853 the venerable neighbour of Plumptre House and grounds was sold by auction on February 21 by Mr. C.N. Wright, when "After much spirited bidding" it was knocked down to Mr. Alderman Birkin for £8,410.

On July 19, 1853, came the opening of the New Bluecoat School, on Mansfield Road. The opening service was conducted by Rev. J.W. Brooks, vicar of St. Mary's. A commemorative plaque read - Bluecoat Charity School, founded, AD 1706; By voluntary contributions, and further endowed with lands and tenements by Charles Harvey, AD 1711, William Thorpe, AD 1720, Gilbert Beresford, AD 1747, Joseph Peake, AD 1753; was removed, AD 1853, from the School-house in the High-pavement, to this building. T.C. Hine, who is commemorated by a stained glass window in St Mary's, was the Architect.

In 1854, on April 26, there was a general fast day to pray for success in the war against Russia. A Civic service was held in St. Mary's. The next year, 1855, on July 10, there was the formal opening of the extensive warehouse of Messrs Adams & Co., on Stoney Street. The frontage was 144 feet and the depth to St. Mary's Gate was 160 feet; subsequently (by 1879) it was considerably enlarged.

Break-up of the Parish

1856 saw the start of a devastating event in terms of the prosperity of St. Mary's with the start of the Break-up of the Parish. The New Parishes Act led to St. Mary's Parish being subdivided seven times between 1856 and 1871, six churches being in working class areas and the seventh, All Saints', Raleigh Street, in a middle class area. On January 15, St. Matthew's church, Upper Talbot Street, with 700 seats, was consecrated by the Lord Bishop of Lincoln. It was demolished in 1956. On April 20, St. Mark's church, Windsor Street, (demolished 1958) opened, it cost about £5000, had 850 seats, and the living was worth £160. On June 19, Cinder Hill church opened. Then on August 14, Albion Chapel, Sneinton opened, seating about 800 and costing £3650.

The same year, 1856 was when Burials in churches stopped. On February 19, "a notice appeared in the London Gazette to discontinue burials forthwith in St. Mary's, St. Peter's and St. Nicholas's churches, and in Castle-gate and Friar-lane chapels; and on or after July 1st, 1856, in the church-yards of St. Mary's, St. Peter's and St. Nicholas's, and in the burial grounds of St. Mary's Nos. 1, 2, and 3, also in the burial grounds in Broad-marsh, Rosemary-lane, Stoney-street, Broad-street, Parliament-street, George-street, Mount-street, St. James's-street, and Castle-gate, except in family vaults and walled graves which can be opened with disturbance of soil, and in which each coffin shall be embedded in powdered charcoal and separately in an airtight manner". On June 18 the Church cemetery on Mansfield Road (the Forest) was consecrated by the Bishop of Lincoln. The last interment in a vault in St. Mary's Churchyard was in 1889.

December 4, 1859, saw the opening of Trinity free church, Bunker's Hill, seating 500 and costing £2600. Beckett has this as "St. Stephen's", with 700 seats, demolished 1896.

In 1860 came the demolition of the old Plumptre House. On March 4, the first church service in St. Mary's for theRobin Hood Rifles was held, Rev. Canon Brooks preached on "Put on the whole armour of God". On November 25, Divine service first held in the Theatre, St. Mary's Gate.

Nationally, 1861 brought the upheaval of the death from typhoid fever of Prince Albert. On July 2, the foundation stone of St. Luke's church, Carlton Road was laid by Thomas Adams, Esq. This new church was consecrated on February 24, 1863, by the Bishop of Lincoln. It cost over £3000 and had 550 seats but was closed in the 1920's.

On January 27, 1863, the Nottingham Lace Market, or Chamber of Commerce, was opened at the Corn Exchange. From this comes the modern name for the area, a somewhat misleading title as many visitors expect to see a physical Market.

Later in the year, on June 25, there was the laying of the foundation stone of All Saints' church, Radford Road. In the Gothic style, it was designed by Hine & Evans, architects, erected at the cost of W. Windley, Esq. a merchant of Nottingham, and was consecrated on November 3, 1864, by the Bishop of Lincoln. The entire cost of church, schools and parsonage was about £10,000. The weather cock was at a height of 177 feet 9 inches from the ground and there was a peal of eight bells.

The first new stained glass window

At St. Mary's, 1863, saw the first new window, when on September 13 there was the opening of the memorial window to the late Prince Consort at the east end (shown right ca. 1869, before it became partly hidden by, first, the organ of 1872, and, then, the reredos of 1885). On September 28, foundation stone of St. Saviour's, Arkwright Street, was laid by the Bishop of Lincoln. Consecrated on September 26, 1864, by the Bishop of Lincoln; 731 seats on the ground floor, and cost £2975 to a design by Mr. R. C. Sutton. Also on September 28, was the foundation of St. Ann's church, St. Anne's Well Road, laid by Earl Manvers. Consecrated on September 26, 1864, by the Bishop of Lincoln; 822 sittings, of which 532 were free, and cost £3100 to a design by Mr. R. Clarke, demolished 1971.

In 1864, on an unknown date, it seems that Rev. Joshua Brooks resigned (he went to Great Ponton, and was still alive in 1870, see below), as Francis Morse, MA, (pictured left) was instituted as Vicar in this year, Patron Earl Manvers.

On August 13, 1865, came the death of the Ven. George Wilkins, aged 80, having been born in Norwich in May, 1785. He had "employed a vigorous constitution to the last".

The further restoration

Francis Morse extended the opening up of the space within the church and (some might say wrongly) took it upon himself to move many monuments from the chancel, etc. to the north aisle wall, all well away from the resting place of those commemorated by the monuments and stones. Probably) also the commemorative floor stones were taken up and randomly utilized for flooring in the main body of the church. In a supreme irony, having had all the monumental plaques and so-on moved from the Chancel, Brooks himself is commemorated by a plaque on the south wall of the Chancel.

On November 14, 1865 a Meeting, chaired by Lord Belper, was held for the purpose of taking steps for the restoration of St. Mary's.

On July 6, 1866, a meeting was held at St. Mary's vicarage to receive tenders. Mr. Hall's tender of £11,055 was accepted, and it was agreed to proceed.

On October 22, 1867 came the "Opening Services" in connection with the restoration of St. Mary's, over £18,000 was raised.

The restoration works, completed before 1874 and costing some £10,000, included much furnishing:

The Last of the galleries (at west end) were removed; there was removal of pews and installation of with flooring and chairs throughout the nave (the chairs then were wicker-seated but all wood seats by 1910); there was a new roof, repairs to internal walls "To a great extent" and gas fittings.

The organ was repositioned in the north aisle, opposite the south porch, by Lloyd & Dudgeon; the result was the "the organ in its present position is almost useless".

Repositioning of the many monumental plaques, etc., from the Chancel to the Nave - Godfrey noted that the grave stone of the Warren Family in the North Transept (?) had an additional inscription - "This stone was removed from its original position over the vault in the Chancel and placed here in 1867".

A Brass Lectern (below on right of picture) was given by John Watson (Church Warden); the Eagle is the emblem of the swift message of the Gospel carrying the everlasting Word of God. The inscription reads "To the Glory of God, and in loving memory of Sarah, the wife of John Watson, of Beeston, Nottinghamshire; Sarah, his sister; and George Stretton, Captain 88th (Connaught Rangers), his youngest son. -- October 22, 1867".

In December 1868, memorial windows to Mr. William Wright and the late Sir Charles Fellows were placed in the chancel of St. Mary's. Also a choir vestry was created by panelling off the west end of the north aisle.

Choir Stalls and Sedilia

On February 2, 1870, The Rev. Charles Mackenzie, DD, was consecrated Suffragan Bishop of Nottingham, at St. Mary's Church. He was Suffragan Bishop for seven years and died at his residence in Lincoln, on October 15, 1878.

The same year saw the erection of the Choir Stalls; in memory of William Hanbury Morse, died 1867, (also sedilia, see below) on the occasion of the Church Congress "through the suggestion of the Venerable Edward Trollope, the present Archdeacon of Stow, and the substantial aid of himself and others, a new set of carved oak canopied seats now adorns the Chancel". Designed by George Gilbert Scott "after the original ones" (contract awarded August 1866), design very similar to that in Bath Abbey, two years previous. Over the westernmost seat in the south-side Choir stalls are the arms of Archdeacon Trollope (as the donor of the same); those opposite on the north-side are those of the then Vicar, Wilfred Hanbury Morse. The latter stall had been paid for by the Morse family in memory of their son.

In 1871, a new Pulpit (on left of picture), was put in place to commemorate the meeting of the Church Congress in Nottingham, this was a Scott design.

Scott also designed the new Organ - "of great power and sweetness, enclosed in a beautifully carved oak case, provided by subscription at a cost of £2,600" - which was first played on 8 October. The case was designed by Scott; builders Bishop & Starr, London.

Positioned on the north wall of the chancel (left), over the old vestry door; a new door had to be built [that presently used] and a deep niche created high up on the wall. The bellows were sited in the old vestry.

Then in 1872, a High Altar Credence Table in memory of Elizabeth Coldham, died 9 February 1872, was given by Charles Francis Fellowes. Around this time (1872-4) the Bishop's Throne - "another noble gift, viz., a throne for the Bishop, when he visits this church officially" was conceived and completed in 1873-4. Farmer & Bailey constructed it and were (paid £751, at least).

On the Choir Stalls much is made of their being designed by Gilbert Scott, supposedly after the originals (still in St Stephen's Sneinton). After coming across a photograph of the Scott designed stalls of 1867 for Bath Abbey, however, I suspect this supposition may be wrong and the stalls are little better than a job lot design (see the comparison illustration below - St. Mary's left and Bath right).

Wider activities

In a magnificent effort on March 21, 1868, a peal of 5093 grandsire cators was rung at St. Mary's by W. Lee 1st, J. Wibberley 2nd, G. Ashmore 3rd, W. Widdowson 4th, S. Wilkins 5th, T. Sanderson 6th, W. Langley 7th, F. Johnson 8th, G. Middleton 9th, W. Holroyd and A. Archer tenor. They occupied three hours and 37 minutes. A peal of this kind had not been rung in St. Mary's for 47 years. Also in 1868, the Free Grammar School removed in April from Stoney Street to the handsome building in Arboretum Street, and the name was changed to Nottingham High School.

Also in 1870, on April 3, an immense conflagration occurred on the premises formerly occupied by Messrs. Adams & Co. inSt. Mary's Gate and in the occupancy of several tenants. On April 26, Mr. S. Adams, of the firm of T. Adams & Co. died suddenly. On June 27, the foundation stone of St. Andrew's church, Mapperley Road and Mansfield Road, was laid by the Rev. Preb. Brooks, of Great Ponton, formerly vicar of St. Mary's. The cost was about £5680. On November 29, the first School Board election was held, among the successful candidates was the Rev. F. Morse.

1873 saw yet another new church when on April 22, St. Thomas's church, Park Row, was consecrated by the Bishop of Lincoln. The building had formerly been a Methodist chapel.

In 1873 or 1874 part of the churchyard wall was rebuilt and the south and west sides of the churchyard were levelled and planted. About this time, as visible in the 1874 photos, gas light fittings were installed (shown left).

On October 15, 1874, the memorial stone of the Unitarian Chapel, High Pavement, was laid by the Mayor of Leicester. The new chapel, on the site of the old one, was opened on April 28, 1875. It is in the style of XIIIC Gothic, and built of Coxbench stone, with Bath stone dressings. It was built at a cost of £12,000, to the designs of Mr. Stuart Coleman of Bristol, by Messrs. Hodson & Facon, of Shakespeare Street, and sat 1000 persons. The total length was about 101 feet, with a width of some 63 feet and the spire reaching over 160 feet. Rumour had it that the height was deliberately such as to rival that of St Mary's.

On May 12, 1875 the Lord Bishop of Lincoln, Dr. Wordsworth, delivered a lecture on the true character and functions of painting, architecture, and sculpture, in St. Mary's church.

In 1876, on May 26, the foundation stone was laid of the Thomas Adams Memorial Church, Pennyfoot Style, by the Rev. Henry Wright, Hon. Sec, of the Church Missionary Society, formerly Rector of St. Nicholas. The architect was Mr. R.C. Sutton, the builder Mr. C. Lowe, and the style was XIV century, to accommodate 600-700 persons. It, now known as St. Philip's, was consecrated on November 18, 1879, by the Lord Bishop of Lincoln. On December 1, there was a disastrous fire at theNottingham County Hall, the greater portion of which had only just been rebuilt. The fire commenced at the back of the old or civil court which was completely destroyed, together with the new crown court, but the prison at the rear and the grand jury room were saved.

Then on April 10, 1877, the foundation stone of St. Jude's, Mapperley Plains, was laid by W. Windley, Esq. JP. Mr. Wright, owner of Mapperley Park made a present of the land and a substantial donation to the building fund. The completed portion was opened in December 1877. On November 1, the first election of the newly extended Borough took place, there were now 16 wards as opposed to the original seven. Also in 1877, on December 21, came the consecration of the Rev. Edward Trollope, rector of Leasingham in Lincolnshire, as Suffragan Bishop of Nottingham, by the Archbishop of Canterbury and at Westminster Abbey.

November 4, 1878, was when the electric light was first used for street lights in Nottingham, five lamps being put outside the Mechanics' Hall, on the occasion of F. Maccabe's entertainment.

More profound changes

In 1881, the Churchyard was formally closed by Order in Council.

Then in 1884 the New Diocese of Southwell was created, covering the Counties of Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire, the Suffragan Bishop title was changed from Nottingham to Sherwood (?). This saw the end of the aspirations of St Mary's to become a Cathedral and the patronage was obtained by the Diocese in exchange for the advowson of Edwinstowe.

In the church, 1884 saw the erection of the Reredos (right below, 1910 photograph). It replaced a "diapered curtained dossal" (shown above) and had the asset of partly concealing what by then was regarded as a garish East window with an unsuitable subject. The reredos was paid for as a memorial to Jane Hill. The construction was by Bodley & Garner. The Madonna painting was moved from the east wall to the southeast tower pier, where it is to this day, albeit with a "better" frame (see below).

A year later, in 1885, the Oak Rood Screen (right), also a memorial to Jane Hill, was erected (paid for) by Mr. Thomas Hill, her husband. The design was by George Gilbert Scott (?) and the construction was also by Bodley & Garner construction. 1885 also saw the death of Rev. Prebendary Francis Morse. He is commemorated by the south window in the sanctuary and the great bronze doors in the south porch erected by his son (who also did much to restore the south porch in succeeding years. His portrait is in the vestry.

Around that time, 1885-6, the Litany Desk (centre right) was presented to commemorate Bishop Were's care of the Parish betwixt Canon Morse and Archdeacon Richardson. In 1886, the Processional Cross, was given to the church, this was in memory of someone now unknown as the inscription is worn away.

In 1886, the Rev. John Gray Richardson, MA, Patron the Bishop of Southwell, was instituted. His portrait (left) is in the Vestry.

A set of major building works were completed in 1890, with the erection of the New Vestry. This is oft referred to as the Chapter House, but not by the Vicar of the day, or by Hood. Other works were the new Kitchen and the enlargement of the Chantry, plus a new north door from Chantry was completed. all this was designed by G.F. Bodley. These can be located on the Plan