Parish of St Matthew, Bethnal Green , Church of England

Bethnal Green was served by Saint Dunstan's in Stepney until 1743. A petition presented to the Commissioners of the Act for Building Fifty New Churches (1711) asked for Bethnal Green to be made a separate parish with its own church. The Commissioners agreed but various schemes fell through until 1743 when an Act was passed making Bethnal Green a separate rectory. The church was begun in 1743 and completed by 1746, designed by George Dance the Elder. Fire destroyed the interior in 1859 and the church was not reopened until 1861. The church was seriously damaged by bombing during World War Two, although it was rebuilt in 1957 according to the original designs. Saint Matthew's remained the only parish church until 1814, when the Episcopal Jew's Chapel opened, followed by several other churches intended to serve the needs of a rapidly expanding population.

'Bethnal Green: The Parish Church', A History of the County of Middlesex: Volume 11: Stepney, Bethnal Green (1998), pp. 212-217.