St John's Church, Ladywood

Coordinates: 52°28′39″N 1°55′39″W / 52.47750°N 1.92750°W / 52.47750; -1.92750

Church of St. John the Evangelist, Ladywood

Church of St. John the Evangelist, Ladywood
Country United Kingdom
Denomination Church of England
Churchmanship Broad Church
Website www.stjohnpeter.org.uk/
History
Dedication St. John the Evangelist
Administration
Diocese Birmingham
Province Canterbury

The Church of St. John the Evangelist and St. Peter is a Grade II listed[1] Church of England church of Ladywood, Birmingham, England.

History

The Church of St. John the Evangelist was built to designs by the architect Samuel Sanders Teulon between 1852 and 1854. It was founded as a mission from St Martin in the Bull Ring and the rector of St. Martin’s was patron of the living.

The governors of the King Edward VI Schools had also agreed to allow a site on their property. The site was on what was then known as Ladywood Green, a 17th-century Great Plague burial ground. Frederick Gough, 4th Baron Calthorpe laid the foundation stone on 28 September 1852, and the church was consecrated by Henry Pepys, the Bishop of Worcester, on 15 March 1854. The cost of the building was £6,000 (equivalent to equivalent to £507,892 in 2015).[2] It was a commissioners' church as a grant of £247 (equivalent to £20,908 in 2015)[2] was given towards its cost by the Church Building Society.[3]

In 1876 part of the parish was taken to form the new parish of St Margaret’s Church, Ladywood.

In 1881, a further sum of £2,350 (equivalent to £213,793 in 2015),[2] was expended in the erection of a new chancel and other additions by the architect J. A. Chatwin.

The church was significantly redeveloped and restored internally between 1994 and 2005, (a flagship to internal church redevelopment) which now enables the building to have a light, airy, flexible worship space. The building benefits from good acoustics. Many different organisations use this building and it plays host to numerous concerts and other events throughout the year. It is a church that is very much alive and serving the local community and beyond. Following the closure of St Peter's Church, Spring Hill in 2001 the parish is now known as St John and St Peter's, Ladywood.

Clergy

Organ

The church had an organ by Bevington installed in 1858 which was modified in 1888. A specification of this organ can be found on the National Pipe Organ Register.

This organ was replaced by a Hammond organ in 1939 which was subsequently upgraded.

A two manual, 33 stop Renaissance Quantum digital organ by Allen was installed in 2008.

List of organists

Directors of music

St. Peter’s Church, Spring Hill

St Peter’s, Spring Hill built in 1901 ceased to function as an Anglican church in 2001 and was combined with St John’s to make one new, larger parish.

References

  1. ↑ Historic England. "Grade II (217823)". Images of England.
  2. 1 2 3 UK Consumer Price Index inflation figures are based on data from Gregory Clark (2016), "The Annual RPI and Average Earnings for Britain, 1209 to Present (New Series)", MeasuringWorth.com.
  3. ↑ Port, M. H. (2006), 600 New Churches: The Church Building Commission 1818-1856 (2nd ed.), Reading: Spire Books, p. 342, ISBN 978-1-904965-08-4
  4. ↑ Clergy list for England. 1866
  5. ↑ British Musical Biography. James D. Brown
  6. ↑ The Musical Times. March 1952. P.133
  7. ↑ British Musical Biography. James D. Brown
  8. ↑ Dictionary of Organs and Organists. Frederick W. Thornsby
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