St. Mary's Church, Selly Oak

Parish church
name = St. Mary's Church, Selly Oak


caption = St. Mary's Church, Selly Oak
dedication = St Mary
denomination = Church of England
tradition = Broad Church

parish = Selly Oak
deanery =
archdeaconry =
diocese = Birmingham
province = Canterbury
presbytery =

archbishop =
bishop =
dean =
prebendary =
provost =
canon =
canon1 =
canon2 =
canon3 =
priest =
rector =
vicar = vacant (July 2008)
curate = Revd. Susannah Izzard
curate1 =
minister =
assistant =
honpriest =
deacon =
pastor =
organistdom = John Stormont
organist =
website = [http://www.stmarysellyoak.org.uk www.stmarysellyoak.org.uk]
coordinates =

St. Mary's Church, Selly Oak is a parish church in the Church of England located in Selly Oak, Birmingham.

Background

The parish of St. Mary's was formed out of the parish of Northfield in 1862. The foundation stone of the new church was laid on 12 July 1860 and the church was consecrated by the Bishop of Worcester, Henry Philpott on 12 September 1861. The architect was Edward Holmes.

The building

The church is built in the decorated Gothic style. It is built in sandstone from a quarry (now closed) in Weoley Castle. There are limestone facings to the window openings, and the north west tower supports a spire convert|150|ft|m high.

Internally the wall plastering is interrupted by horizontal bands of sandstone. In the transepts and nave the roof timbers are exposed but those in the chancel are gilded and painted in heraldic colours or red, blue, green, white and gold. The columns of the four bay nave are of limestone.

History

The church was originally within the Anglican Diocese of Worcester but moved to the Anglican Diocese of Birmingham in 1905.

Windows

There are 9 stained glass windows by John Hardman.
*East Window. The Ascension, 1861, given by George Elkington in memory of his first wife Mary.
*West Window. The Transfiguration, 1861, given by J F Ledsam. Above the window a small grisaille in memory of T C Humphries and his wife Eugenie.
*South west window. Mary and Martha, 1872, given by the Elkington family in memory of Margaret Morgan, second wife of George Elkington
*South aisle south window. The Good Samaritan, 1866, in memory of George Elkington.
*South transept west window. Christ and Mary Magdalene, in memory of Hyla Elkington, died 1901
*South transept south window. Worship of the Kings. In memory of John Meredith of Harborne, died 1851, and his wife Jane
*South transept east window. Peter and John at the Tomb. In memory of Hyla Elkington (obscured by the organ)
*Lady Chapel north window. Healing and Resurrection, given by Edward Holmes (architect) in memory of his wife Anne.
*Baptistry. Blessing the Children, given by J.F. Ledsam in memory of F.G. Ledsam.

Incumbents

*1862 Thomas Price
*1887 Clement Price
*1894 Edward John Barleet
*1900 Clement Réné Sharpe
*1903 Lawrence Banks Sladen
*1909 Edmund Arthur Haviland
*1915 Kenneth Donald Mackenzie
*1920 Thomas Brancker
*1926 Herbert James Rayner
*1930 Reginald Pemberton Steer
*1935 Mark Elliott Perfitt
*1942 Frederick Rocke Pryce Parry
*1957 Michael Webster
*1977 John Donald Waterstreet
*1990 Christopher John Aldridge
*???? Martin Roberts (until July 2008)

Bells

At consecration on 1861 there was only 1 bell in the tower. Five more were added in 1864 bringing the ring to six. These were first rung on 29 September 1864.

In 1887, to mark Queen Victoria's Golden Jubilee, two more bells were added, bringing the ring to eight. The eight bells were first rung on 20 June 1887.

In 1922 it was discovered that the bells were unsafe to ring, and they remained silent for 10 years until money could be found to rectify the problem.

The following inscriptions appear on the bells:—

No. I Bell.—Treble.IN MEMORIAM FILIÆ ET S. M. VICTORIÆ ANNUM QUINQUAGESIMA REGNANTIS D. D. JOEL MERRETT.(Translation: Given by Joel Merrett in memory of a daughter and the fiftieth year of the reign of Her Majesty Queen Victoria.)

No. 8 Bell.—Tenor.+ BEATUS POPULUS QUI SCIT JUBILATIONEM.(Translation: Happy are the people who know how to rejoice.)

Organ

An organ was installed in 1862 for the opening of the church. In the 1870s, it was moved to the south side of the chancel. The organ was completely re-built in 1902 by Nicholson of Worcester, retaining much of the original pipework. The organ was restored again between 1925 and 1930 by Bird of Selly Park.

The organ was restored again in 1958 by Nicholson and some further work was carried out by Sheffield Organs in 1996 and 1999.

The specification of the organ can be found on the [http://npor.emma.cam.ac.uk/cgi-bin/Rsearch.cgi?Fn=Rsearch&rec_index=R00928 National Pipe Organ Register] .

Organists

*William Humphreys ca 1868 for 20 years or so
* ?
*Leslie Barker 1950s - 1980s
*John Stormont 1990s - 2000s

Clock

The Clock, which sounds the hour and quarter chimes, was made by Messrs. J. B. Joyce & Co. under the supervision of the Rev. Canon Cattley. It is made on the same principle as the clockdesigned by Lord Grimthorpe for the great clock at Westminster and the large clock at WorcesterCathedral. The cost was about £331 and was the gift of the widow and family of the late Mr.Benjamin Walters.

The frame is horizontal, of cast iron and planed. It is 6 ft. long, l ft. 9ins. wide, and l ft. in depth, and rests on beams which are built into the tower wall to ensure absence of vibration. The wheels are of gun-metal, and the pendulum beats every 1¼ secs.

The clock was fitted in 1887, the year of the jubilee of Queen Victoria.

Links

* [http://www.stmarysellyoak.org.uk/ Church website]

ource

*St. Mary's Church, Selly Oak, Church guide. 1995.