Collection GB 0074 P93/GEO - SAINT GEORGE IN THE EAST: CANNON STREET ROAD, TOWER HAMLETS

Identity area

Reference code

GB 0074 P93/GEO

Title

SAINT GEORGE IN THE EAST: CANNON STREET ROAD, TOWER HAMLETS

Date(s)

  • 1729-1901 (Creation)

Level of description

Collection

Extent and medium

9.08 linear metres

Context area

Name of creator

Parish of St George in the East, Stepney , Church of England

Biographical history

The church of Saint George in the East, Stepney, was one of three Stepney churches built under the 1711 "Act for the building of Fifty New Churches in the Cities of London and Westminster or the Suburbs thereof" to be paid for by a tax levied on coal entering the City of London. The church was designed by Nicholas Hawksmoor to serve the residents of Upper Wapping, however it was not consecrated until 1729 because of financial difficulties. It has a 160 foot tower. The east window was designed by Sir Joshua Reynolds.

The church was the centre of a controversy in the 1850s when the Presbyterian Bishop of London A C Tait replaced the high church rector with a low church preacher, causing demonstrations and unrest and the eventual temporary closure of the church.

The interior of the church was gutted during World War II, but the exterior was left intact. After the bombing, services continued in a shed at the rear. In 1963 a new church, by Arthur Baily, was built within the Hawksmoor shell. The original apse with its plasterwork and the font at the west end have been retained. There was space for an inner courtyard between the original west front and the new, which was built entirely of glass. On either side of the courtyard, the former galleries incorporate four flats which were given the Civic Trust Award in 1967.

Repository

The London Archives

Archival history

GB 0074 P93/GEO 1729-1901 Collection 9.08 linear metres Parish of St George in the East, Stepney , Church of England

The church of Saint George in the East, Stepney, was one of three Stepney churches built under the 1711 "Act for the building of Fifty New Churches in the Cities of London and Westminster or the Suburbs thereof" to be paid for by a tax levied on coal entering the City of London. The church was designed by Nicholas Hawksmoor to serve the residents of Upper Wapping, however it was not consecrated until 1729 because of financial difficulties. It has a 160 foot tower. The east window was designed by Sir Joshua Reynolds.

The church was the centre of a controversy in the 1850s when the Presbyterian Bishop of London A C Tait replaced the high church rector with a low church preacher, causing demonstrations and unrest and the eventual temporary closure of the church.

The interior of the church was gutted during World War II, but the exterior was left intact. After the bombing, services continued in a shed at the rear. In 1963 a new church, by Arthur Baily, was built within the Hawksmoor shell. The original apse with its plasterwork and the font at the west end have been retained. There was space for an inner courtyard between the original west front and the new, which was built entirely of glass. On either side of the courtyard, the former galleries incorporate four flats which were given the Civic Trust Award in 1967.

Records P93/GEO/1-69 deposited in 1959. Records P93/GEO/70-85 deposited in 1961. Record P93/GEO/86 deposited in 1954.

Records of the parish of Saint George in the East, Cannon Street Road, including registers of baptisms, marriages, banns and burials; registers of church services; papers of the parish constable; papers of the St George in the East workhouse; records relating to poor relief; settlement examinations; papers of the incumbents; faculties; Vestry and Parochial Church Council minutes; parish magazines and historical notes.

The records have been sorted into categories which reflect divisions between the different functions and operations of the parish and its administration. Order within these categories reflects chronology.

These records are available for public inspection, although records containing personal information are subject to access restrictions under the UK Data Protection Act, 1998.

Copyright to these records rests with the depositor.

English

Fit

Please see online catalogues at: http://search.lma.gov.uk/opac_lma/index.htm

See also ACC/3248.

Further records are available at Tower Hamlets Local History Library.

Compiled in compliance with General International Standard Archival Description, ISAD(G), second edition, 2000; National Council on Archives Rules for the Construction of Personal, Place and Corporate Names, 1997.

April to June 2010. People People by occupation Personnel Local government personnel Parish constables Religious activities Religious practice Church services Church architecture Parish councils Religions Baptism registers Ancient religions Christianity Protestantism Anglicanism Church of England Government Public administration Local government Administrative units Parishes Ecclesiastical parishes Parish records Marriage registers Information sources Documents Marriage records Banns register Architecture Buildings Workhouses Vestry Parish meetings Meetings Group communication Communication process Poor relief Social welfare Burial registers Church records and registers Primary documents Churches Religious buildings Settlement examinations Settlement records Conferences Religion Parish of St George in the East , Stepney , Church of England Tower Hamlets London England UK Western Europe Europe Stepney Burial records Legal documents Catholicism

Immediate source of acquisition or transfer

Records P93/GEO/1-69 deposited in 1959. Records P93/GEO/70-85 deposited in 1961. Record P93/GEO/86 deposited in 1954.

Content and structure area

Scope and content

Records of the parish of Saint George in the East, Cannon Street Road, including registers of baptisms, marriages, banns and burials; registers of church services; papers of the parish constable; papers of the St George in the East workhouse; records relating to poor relief; settlement examinations; papers of the incumbents; faculties; Vestry and Parochial Church Council minutes; parish magazines and historical notes.

Appraisal, destruction and scheduling

Accruals

System of arrangement

The records have been sorted into categories which reflect divisions between the different functions and operations of the parish and its administration. Order within these categories reflects chronology.

Conditions of access and use area

Conditions governing access

These records are available for public inspection, although records containing personal information are subject to access restrictions under the UK Data Protection Act, 1998.

Conditions governing reproduction

Copyright to these records rests with the depositor.

Language of material

  • English

Script of material

  • Latin

Language and script notes

English

Physical characteristics and technical requirements

See also ACC/3248.

Further records are available at Tower Hamlets Local History Library.

Finding aids

Please see online catalogues at: http://search.lma.gov.uk/opac_lma/index.htm

Allied materials area

Existence and location of originals

Existence and location of copies

Related units of description

Related descriptions

Notes area

Alternative identifier(s)

Access points

Subject access points

Place access points

Name access points

Genre access points

Description control area

Description identifier

Institution identifier

London Metropolitan Archives

Rules and/or conventions used

Compiled in compliance with General International Standard Archival Description, ISAD(G), second edition, 2000; National Council on Archives Rules for the Construction of Personal, Place and Corporate Names, 1997.

Status

Level of detail

Dates of creation revision deletion

Language(s)

  • English

Script(s)

    Sources

    Accession area