St Andrew's Church, Bordesley Explained

St Andrew's
Coordinates:52.4769°N -1.8703°W
Location:Bordesley, Birmingham
Country:England
Denomination:Church of England
Consecrated Date:30 September 1846
Architect:Richard Cromwell Carpenter
Groundbreaking:1844
Construction Cost:£3,500[1]
Length:124feet
Width:47.5feet
Width Nave:27feet

St Andrew's Church, Bordesley was a parish church in the Church of England in Birmingham.

History

The foundation stone was laid on 23 July 1844 by Henry Pepys, the Bishop of Worcester.[2] The church was built to designs of the architect Richard Cromwell Carpenter with funds from the Birmingham Church Building Society. It was consecrated by Pepys on 30 September 1846.[3]

Its decorated gothic style and layout was admired by contemporary ecclesiologists for the correctness of its plan.[4] It was the last church constructed by the Birmingham Church Building Society.

Out of this parish St Oswald's Church, Small Heath was formed.

A storm in 1894 damaged the spire. The vicar was in dispute with the churchwardens,[5] [6] and the repairs were not completed until after the vicar, Robert Foster Burrow, left in 1900. The spire was restored in 1901.[7]

The church was demolished in 1985, having given its name to the adjacent St Andrew's Road and St Andrew's Street, and to the nearby St Andrew's football ground, home of Birmingham City F.C.

Organ

The church contained an organ dating from 1849 by Banfield, later modified by Albert Keates. A specification of the organ can be found on the National Pipe Organ Register.

Notes and References

  1. A Pictorial Guide to Birmingham. William Bates. J Allen and Son. 1849
  2. Aris's Birmingham Gazette. Monday 22 July 1844. p.3.
  3. Aris's Birmingham Gazette. Monday 28 September 1846. p.3
  4. The Buildings of England. Warwickshire. Nikolaus Pevsner. p.130. Second Edition. 1966. Penguin Books Limited
  5. Birmingham Daily Post, Friday 24 August 1894. p.7. The Affairs of St. Andrew’s Bordesley
  6. Birmingham Daily Post, Friday 7 September 1894. p.5. The Affairs of St. Andrew’s Bordesley
  7. Portsmouth Evening News. Friday 19 July 1901. p.3 Church Restorers