The Avalanche Memorial Church, also known as the Church of St Andrew, is a Church of England church in Southwell, on the Isle of Portland, Dorset, England. It was built in 1879 and remains active as part of the Portland Parish. [1] The church, along with its boundary wall, has been a Grade II Listed building since September 1978. [2]
The church was designed C.R. George Crickmay in an early English style. Built by Lynham and Bayliss of Portland, it was completed in 1879 and consecrated by the Bishop of Salisbury on 3 July. [3] [4] The church is not to be confused with the ruins of Portland's first parish church, the 13th century St Andrew's Church.
In September 1877, two ships, the SS Avalanche of the Shaw Savill Line and the SS Forest, collided off Portland Bill during stormy conditions. The Avalanche was taking 63 passengers to their homes in New Zealand, while the Forest had a crew of 22. The tragedy claimed the lives of 106 people, and by the dawn local fishermen at Chesil Cove rescued the survivors and brought them ashore. [5] The disaster became national news and a national campaign was launched, raising £2,000 in donations for a new church to be erected as a memorial. [3]
The church features memorials to those drowned and testimonials to the bravery of the local fishermen. Some of the windows, the lectern, and the pulpit were funded by relatives and friends of those who drowned. There is a picture of the Avalanche, an artist's impression of the two Portland lerrets coming into land after the rescue and a framed copy of the testimonial presented to William Flann. There is also a brass tablet listing the names and, where known, the descriptions of the passengers and crew of the Avalanche. [3] The most notable artifact is the large anchor of the Avalanche, which was raised and donated to the church in 1984. [2] [6]
The Isle of Portland is a tied island, 6 kilometres (4 mi) long by 2.7 kilometres (1.7 mi) wide, in the English Channel. The southern tip, Portland Bill, lies 8 kilometres (5 mi) south of the resort of Weymouth, forming the southernmost point of the county of Dorset, England. A barrier beach called Chesil Beach joins Portland with mainland England. The A354 road passes down the Portland end of the beach and then over the Fleet Lagoon by bridge to the mainland. The population of Portland is 13,417.
Easton is a village on the Isle of Portland in Dorset, England. The village is situated at Tophill, within the centre of the island. As with the rest of Portland's villages and settlements, Easton, including the settlements Reforne and Straits, has been designated as a conservation area, as it is a place of special architectural and historic interest. Easton, Wakeham and Reforne were designated pre-1974.
The Diocese of Salisbury is a Church of England diocese in the south of England, within the ecclesiastical Province of Canterbury. The diocese covers the historic county of Dorset, and most of Wiltshire. The diocese is led by Stephen Lake, Bishop of Salisbury, and by the diocesan synod. The bishop's seat is at Salisbury Cathedral.
Wakeham is a hamlet near the village of Easton, in Tophill on the Isle of Portland in Dorset, England. It is situated between the Straits part of Easton, and Pennsylvania Castle. As with the rest of Portland's villages and settlements, Wakeham has been designated as a conservation area, as it is a place of special architectural and historic interest. Easton, Wakeham and Reforne were designated pre-1974. The hamlet features a distinctively wide road running through it, once built to allow space for horse-drawn carts transporting stone by road. Many of Wakeham's older buildings of the 17th and 18th century survive.
Southwell is a small coastal village in Tophill on the Isle of Portland, Dorset. As Portland and Dorset's southernmost village, it lies between Portland Bill and the villages of Easton and Weston. Though close to the Bill, the village is sheltered by hills on three sides. It is the only village on Portland not to be designated a conservation area.
Church Ope Cove is a small secluded beach on the sheltered eastern side of the Isle of Portland in Dorset, southern England, and is part of the Jurassic Coast. It is found close to the village of Wakeham. The beach has many unusual features for the Isle of Portland. The beach used to be sandy, but quarry debris now covers the sand, and has been worn into rounded pebbles. The pebbles cover a small stream which runs to the sea, which is one of the few active streams remaining on the Isle of Portland.
St George's Church is a Church of England church on the Isle of Portland, built between 1754 and 1766 to replace St. Andrew's which had fallen into disuse and was no longer suitable as a place of worship.
Shaw Savill Line of London was a shipping company set up to transport both produce and passengers between Great Britain and New Zealand.
Charles Edwin Ponting, F.S.A., (1850–1932) was a Gothic Revival architect who practised in Marlborough, Wiltshire.
St Andrew's Church is a ruined church located above Church Ope Cove on the Isle of Portland, Dorset, England. St Andrew's was Portland's first parish church and remained as such until the mid-18th century. It is now one of the island's prime historical sites, and is a Grade II* Listed Building and a Scheduled Monument. The southern retaining wall of the churchyard is also Grade II Listed, as are three remaining churchyard monuments, approximately 7 metres south of the church.
All Saints' Church, Winthorpe is a Grade II listed parish church in the Church of England in Winthorpe, Nottinghamshire, England. The current building, the construction of which was completed in 1888, is at least the third version of the church, which dates back to at least the early 13th century. All Saints' Church was commissioned by the church rector, Edward Handley, in memory of one of his relatives.
Freshwater Bay is a bay on the east side of the Isle of Portland, Dorset, England, south from Church Ope Cove and between the villages of Wakeham and Southwell. It forms part of the Jurassic Coast.
The Great Southwell Landslip occurred in 1734 on the Isle of Portland, Dorset, England near the southerly village of Southwell and extended for a length of 1.5 miles (2.4 km) between Durdle Pier and Freshwater Bay. It remains Britain's second largest recorded historical landslide.
Church of Our Lady and St Andrew is a former Roman Catholic church in The Grove, on the Isle of Portland, Dorset. The church is now in private ownership.
Grove Lime Kiln is a disused 19th century lime kiln on the Isle of Portland, Dorset, England. It is located close to HM Prison Portland and The Grove village. Owned by the prison service, the lime kiln has been Grade II Listed since 2009.
All Saints Church is a Church of England church in Easton, on the Isle of Portland, Dorset. It was consecrated in 1917 and has been a listed grade II building since September 1978. The church succeeded to the rights, privileges, registers and silver of the St George's Church. It has been described as the finest ecclesiastical building on Portland – though somewhat hidden at its position. The church remains active to date, as part of the Portland Parish – a host of three churches; St. John's Church, All Saints Church and the Avalanche Memorial Church.
St. John's Church is an Anglican Church of England church in Fortuneswell, on the Isle of Portland, Dorset. It was built between 1838–40 and has been a Listed Grade II building since January 1951. The churchyard walls, gate piers, railings, and steps of St. John's Church, dating from 1839–40, became Grade II Listed in September 1978. At this same time, two headstone monuments, about 5 metres north east from the west tower of the church became Grade II Listed.
Southwell Business Park is a business park on the Isle of Portland, Dorset, England. It is housed at the former Admiralty Underwater Weapons Establishment, which closed in 1995 and became the Southwell Business Park in 1997.
Southwell Methodist Chapel is a former Methodist chapel at Southwell, on the Isle of Portland, Dorset, England. The chapel was built in 1849 between terraced cottages on the east side of the road leading from Southwell to Portland Bill. It closed in 1997 and is now a private residence. It has been Grade II Listed since May 1993.