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An early lithograph of St. John’s church in the 19th century, recently | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Anglican Church of St. John the Evangelist, Toorak, has been a prominent landmark and an important place of worship, reflection, and prayer, for the surrounding community, for over 150 years.The church is widely regarded as one of the architectural gems of Melbourne and has been classified at the highest level of significance by the National Trust. The church is open to visitors each day, and for rest, reflection, and prayer. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The foundation of St. John’s Toorak can be traced back to a meeting hosted by Mr. H. W. Dauglish in his Heyington Place home (now part of St Catherine’s School) in November 1859. Like the wider city of Melbourne itself, Toorak was, at the time, a rapidly growing district. Whilst previously Toorak residents had attended Anglican church services at Christ Church South Yarra, it was now felt by Mr. Dauglish and those present in his home that there were sufficient residents to sustain an Anglican congregation in Toorak. It was resolved at this meeting to appoint trustees and commence subscriptions for the building of a church in Toorak. Within months one of the six trustees appointed at that first meeting, Mr. Alfred Ross, had donated sufficient land from his property ‘Orrong’ for the site of the church and over £1500 had been raised. A recent immigrant and newly appointed government architect, William Wardell, who was known to Mr. Dauglish, was contracted to build the new church, on its present site, in the early English Gothic style. Wardell had previously designed and built St Patrick’s Roman Catholic cathedral in East Melbourne. In April 1860 the Governor of the colony of Victoria, Sir Henry Barkly, laid the foundation stone. The nave, seating 250 was quickly completed and, after a lengthy delay, the new parish was formally separated from Christ Church South Yarra and St. John’s Toorak was opened for worship, again by Sir Henry Barkly, in July 1862. By 1865 the chancel and nave had been enlarged and the north porch extended, giving the church its present capacity of around 400. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
1859 Meeting of residents held to found the parish in the home of Mr. Dauglish | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The exterior of the church is bluestone (basalt), with Tasmanian freestone around the apertures and windows. The 150 foot high spire was designed by a Toorak resident, Mr. A. E. Johnson, and based on William Wardell’s original drawings. It was completed in 1873. Four stone gargoyles are carved at each corner of the apex of the tower. During the 1880’s an unknown Italian craftsman carved the fifty-two stone heads which adorn the corbels of doors and windows both outside, and within, the church. Some of the faces have been identified (as the two daughters of the first vicar, Queen Victoria, King George V) however many remain unknown and are probably the faces of prominent Toorak residents and Melburnians of the time. The main entrance to the church is through a set of double oak doors, commissioned and installed in 1970 on the 110th anniversary of the commencement of the building of the church. A further feature are the thirteen bells installed in the tower, making a complete octave. The first eight bells were installed in 1921 and a further five in 1927. The first eight were given by the Honorable William Baillieu in thanksgiving for the return of those who had served in the First World War, including his own two sons, and the subsequent five were given in memory of his wife. Together the bells weigh around four tonnes. They were cast in London and in Glasgow, and continue to ring today to announce the commencement of the 10am Sunday service of worship, and at all weddings. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| The spire of the church rising over busy Toorak Rd, and the sun drenched entrance to the Angel Chapel and south porch from Clendon Rd. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The entrance area or foyer to a church is known as the narthex, whilst the main body of the church in which the pews are located and where the congregation are seated is the nave (after the Latin for ‘ship’). The nave at St. John’s is supported by stone pillars on each side, giving the church a cathedral-like ambience. Near the entrance of the church, on the right hand side as you face the altar, is the Baptistry. Designed by Walter Butler in 1920 it was erected in memory of Canon Drought, the second vicar of the parish, by the parishioners of the day. The font was dedicated in 1928 and is decorated with scenes from John Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress. Along the walls of the nave on each side are stained glass windows depicting a variety of scenes, mainly drawn from the Bible. Each of these windows was erected in memory of a church member by their family, or by the parishioners of the church. The inscriptions can be read at the base of the windows. A unique feature of St. John’s are the opus sectiles occupying the space between the windows on both walls of the nave. Each consists of three stone panels, with the central panel illustrating by mosaic a scene from the early history of the Christian church or the Bible, and the panels on either side given by donors as memorials. There is seating for about 400 people in the pews. Each of the pews is made from Japanese oak and feature carvings of native flora and fauna at each end. The central aisle of the church is just over 23 metres long, providing a memorable walk for countless brides over the years. The aisle leads into the chancel at the front of the church, flanked on either side by choir stalls given in 1920 as a thank offering for the end of the First World War. There is also a prayer desk for the clergy on either side of the chancel, one located behind the stone pulpit from which the sermon is given on Sundays and other occasions, and the other behind the gold lectern from which the Bible is read. The chancel leads into the sanctuary, in which the altar is located. Carved in English oak and rendered in low relief into the front of the altar is a scene inspired by Leonardo da Vinci’s famous painting of the Last Supper. Above the altar is the east window. Installed in 1862 it is the oldest and most spectacular window inside the church. The four panels depict four important events in the life of Christ - his birth, baptism, death, and resurrection - each with an accompanying inscription taken from one of the four Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. On either side of the east window are painted panels containing the text of the Ten Commandments, the Lord’s Prayer, and the Apostle’s Creed. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| The sanctuary, showing the altar together with the east window and panels. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Inside the nave of the church, looking from the altar towards the front door. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| . | The altar and Baptistry | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Music has always played an important and prominent role in the life of St. John’s and several accomplished and renowned musicians have held the post of organist and choir master in the parish, beginning with Dr. Joseph Summers in 1866. The first organ, built by Martlin & Schultz of Brussels, was installed in 1873. The present instrument was commissioned and built by as part of the extensions to the chancel on the fiftieth anniversary of the church, and installed in 1914. The organ was built by the English firm William Hill & Son during 1913 and given to St. John’s by the Connibere family in memory of their father, a prominent churchman of the time. It is one of the largest Hill organs in Australia. After a rebuild in 1961, between 1994 and 1995 the organ was resorted to its original 1913 condition, with 34 functioning stops and 2047 pipes. As it has for almost a century now, the William Hill pipe organ continues to be an integral part of all worship services inside St. John’s. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| The William Hill organ in St. John’s | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The chapel of St. Michael and All Angels is located on the south side of the chancel. Its construction was the gift of a parishioner and it was dedicated in February 1937. The last major structural addition to the church, the chapel can be accessed through the nave of the church, or through the south porch and doors leading out onto the lawn. Above the altar inside the chapel is a mosaic depicting the angels of heaven proclaiming the familiar words of the Prayer Book ‘Holy, Holy, Holy’, and above this are stained glass panels illustrating scenes from the Sermon on the Mount. There are over thirty different angels and angelic scenes inside the chapel, which seats between thirty and forty people, as well as wood carvings of scenes from Australian pioneer life. The Prayer desk inside the chapel is in the figure of an angel of Gethsemane and the Lectern is inscribed with the names of the seven churches of the Book of Revelation (chs 2-3). The chapel is a popular location for family baptisms, and is used each week for the 11am Thursday service of Holy Communion from the 1662 Book of Common Prayer. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Inside the Angel Chapel, and the doors leading into the south porch and Angel Chapel | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
A door leading out of the sanctuary on the south (lectern) wall leads into the cloisters, built in 1936. Along the cloister walls are chiselled significant dates and events in the life of the parish as well as framed photographs of the clergy who have served St. John’s as Vicar. Located here also are the clergy vestry (robing room), library, and choir room. The cloisters were dedicated by the Bishop of Jerusalem and the clergy vestry named the Jerusalem Vestry at this time. Further along are the flower arranging cupboards and sinks, together with the toilets. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
At the time St. John’s was being built the botanist, Dr. von Mueller, renowned for his work in the Botanic Gardens, contributed shrubs and trees surrounding the site of the church. These are now fully grown and provide a pleasant location for post-wedding celebrations and photographs. In 1971 a Garden of Remembrance was dedicated along the north side of the church, facing Toorak Rd. The garden will be extensively renovated during the course of 2009. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The war memorial located at the Toorak Rd entrance to the church, on a busy street corner, was originally dedicated in 1923 in memory of the 36 members of the parish killed in the First World War, and was recently updated to reflect later conflicts and re-dedicated. Alongside St. John’s church are three other significant buildings. The Parish Hall was originally a denominational school located nearer to the centre of Toorak village on Grange Rd. The current hall, named the Buxton Memorial Hall, was designed by Louis Williams, who also designed the war memorial at the front of the church, and built on the site of the church in 1956. The hall has been recently renovated and can accommodate both large and small groups, with several different meeting rooms and areas. Alongside the hall is the Kindergarten, which is operated independently to the church but retains very strong links with the parish, the Vicar of St. John’s being the President. The original vicarage was built in 1862 and re-built in 1958. Many of the materials used in the 1862 building, in particular the bricks and slates, were used in the new building. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Revd Walter Fellows, 1863-1900 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Churchwarden, Mr Keith Beecher OAM, greets the newly installed Vicar of St John’s, Bradly Billings and his wife Karen, at Bradly's Induction service, February 2009. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
