St Cuthbert's Church, Darlington Explained

St Cuthbert’s Church, Darlington
Pushpin Map:County Durham
Map Caption:Location within County Durham
Coordinates:54.5242°N -1.5513°W
Location:Darlington
Country:England
Denomination:Church of England
Heritage Designation:Grade I listed
Length:130feet
Width:75feet
Width Nave:44feet
Spire Height:180feet
Parish:Darlington St Cuthbert
Deanery:Darlington[1]
Archdeaconry:Auckland
Diocese:Durham

St Cuthbert's Church, Darlington is a parish church in the Church of England Diocese of Durham in Darlington, County Durham.

History

The church dates from the early 12th century. The church became collegiate when Richard Whitton was appointed by the Bishop of Durham Rt Revd Robert Neville as the first Dean of Darlington in 1439. To support the dean, there were four prebendaries, Cockerton, Newton, Blakwell and Darlington. The college survived until 1550 when it was dissolved.

Following a lightning strike on the spire on 17 July 1750,[2] the crossing tower was rebuilt in 1752.

A major restoration took place in 1864-65 by the architects George Gilbert Scott of London and James Pigott Pritchett of Darlington. The estimated costs of the works were £1,590 and William Vane, 3rd Duke of Cleveland gave £500 towards the restoration.[3] The work involved removal of the galleries and ceilings, the opening out of the gable windows in the nave and transepts, the rearranging of the pews, and the replacing of several stalls which had been destroyed. The main work was the restoration of the chancel where the piscina and armoury were restored, the sedilia restored to their original depth, the floor laid with encaustic tiles and eleven stained glass windows inserted. A font was presented by R.H. Allan, of grey polished marble. A lectern by Messrs King and Collie of Durham was presented by Miss Topham. The organ was restored and the bells in the tower were recast. The church was reopened for worship on 14 December 1865.[4]

Incumbents

Vicars 1309 - 1436

Deans 1439 - 1550

Vicars 1550 onwards

Organ

The organ dates from 1880 when it was built by Forster and Andrews. Later work by Binns Fitton & Haley and Bishop & Son in 1987 has resulted in a 38 stop 3 manual and pedal organ. The specification can be found on the National Pipe Organ Register. The new organ cost about £1,000 and was opened on 3 November 1880 by William Thomas Best.[10]

Organists

Bells

The tower contains a peal of 8 bells by Gillett & Johnston dating from 1937.[12]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Darlington St Cuthbert . A Church Near You. Archbishops' Council. 30 December 2019.
  2. News: . Newcastle July 28 . Newcastle Courant . England . 21 July 1750 . 31 December 2019 . British Newspaper Archive .
  3. News: . Untitled article . Bury Times . England . 6 February 1864 . 30 December 2019 . British Newspaper Archive .
  4. News: . The Restoration of St Cuthbert’s Church, Darlington . Newcastle Journal . England . 15 December 1865 . 30 December 2019 . British Newspaper Archive .
  5. News: . The Vicar of Darlington . Darlington & Stockton Times, Ripon & Richmond Chronicle . England . 4 August 1894 . 30 December 2019 . British Newspaper Archive .
  6. News: . Canon G.E. Holderness to be Bishop of Burnley . Yorkshire Post and Leeds Intelligencer . England . 13 December 1954 . 30 December 2019 . British Newspaper Archive .
  7. News: . Church appointments . https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220524/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/church-appointments-1507030.html . 24 May 2022 . subscription . live . The Independent . 27 November 1993 . 31 December 2019 .
  8. Web site: A new appointment . . 2 October 2016 . Deanery of Mowbray . 31 December 2019 .
  9. Web site: 24 July 2020. Resignations and Retirements. 19 November 2020. Church Times.
  10. News: . Darlington, Opening of a New Organ . Yorkshire Gazette. England . 6 November 1880 . 30 December 2019 . British Newspaper Archive .
  11. News: . Obituary. Leeds Mercury . England . 23 March 1896 . 30 December 2019 . British Newspaper Archive .
  12. Web site: Darlington S Cuthbert . . 18 June 2019 . . Dovemaster . 30 December 2019 .

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