St Matthew's Roman Catholic Church, Windsor

Last updated

St Matthew's Roman Catholic Church, Windsor
Location map Australia Sydney.png
Red pog.svg
St Matthew's Roman Catholic Church, Windsor
33°36′33″S150°48′55″E / 33.609267551450756°S 150.81530670724723°E / -33.609267551450756; 150.81530670724723
LocationTebbutt Street, Windsor, City of Hawkesbury, New South Wales
Address Windsor, New South Wales
CountryAustralia
Denomination Roman Catholic
Website stmatthewswindsor.org.au
History
Status
Founded28 December 1836 (1836-12-28)
(foundation stone laid) [1]
Founder(s)Bishop John Bede Polding
Consecrated
  • 21 October 1840
    [2]
Architecture
Functional statusCompleted
Architect(s) Thomas Bird [3]
Architectural type Church
CompletedOctober 1840
Specifications
Capacityc. 350
Administration
Diocese Parramatta
Parish St Patrick's Cathedral Parish
Clergy
Bishop(s) Vincent Long Van Nguyen OFM Conv
Priest(s) Fr Ranillo Creta

St Matthew's Catholic Church, Windsor is a Roman Catholic church building located at Tebbutt and Little Church Streets, Windsor, City of Hawkesbury, New South Wales, Australia. it is the church of St Matthew's parish (founded in 1832), which is the oldest parish in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Parramatta and one of the oldest Roman Catholic parishes in Australia. [4]

Contents

St Matthew's is the oldest Roman Catholic church in continual use (since 1840) in mainland Australia, and is an early example of a stripped-down Gothic revival style. It was designed by architect Thomas Bird, [5] who arrived in Sydney from England in January 1835. [6]

History

Early history of St Matthew's Parish

Early colonial New South Wales was Anglican, and officially appointed Catholic priests only obtained permission from the British Government to come to the Colony in 1819, arriving in 1820. Early conditions were difficult, with church services being held in private homes or barns. At Windsor, the new Convict Barracks was able to be used for a time, until it was converted into a hospital. While a church was needed, the parishioners of the district were not financial enough to raise enough funds to build one, and progress was slow. [7]

An anecdote printed in a history of St Matthew's catholic Church relates that in the early days of settlement, the government decreed that each convict must worship on a Sunday. In the Hawkesbury area, it was ordered that prisoners worship “at St Matthew’s” (that is, St Matthew's Anglican Church, Windsor, which opened in 1822). In order to remain within the confines of the law, but to celebrate Mass instead of a Protestant service, the local Catholics called their church "St Matthew’s" too. This is reputedly why Windsor has two St Matthew's churches within walking distance of each other. [8]

A grant of land was obtained in 1833 for a Roman Catholic church and cemetery in Windsor, although Catholic burials had been occurring locally well before this (the earliest known burial was of the remains of a man called Patrick Cullen, in 1822). The cemetery covered an area of three acres and one rood. [9]

In 1834, the plan of Windsor showed the present site of the church (at modern Tebbut and Little Church Street) as being part of the Church Green (this probably being a reference to the nearby St Matthew's Anglican Church) and the adjacent farm, “Catherine Farm”. [10]

Construction of St Matthew's Church

Lack of funds for building ceased to be an issue in 1836, when a bequest of 500 pounds in the Will of former convict James Doyle allowed construction to commence.

On 1 May 1836, Bishop Polding wrote, in a letter to Rev. Thomas Heptonstall that he had visited Windsor the

Sunday before last and celebrated Mass in our temporary chapel there. It was a barn and will be one again, made of slabs. A man by the name of Doyle died there a few weeks since, and he left five hundred pounds to build a church and two hundred pounds for a school. I hope to obtain as much from the government for the same purposes and to complete the two this year. [11]

St Matthew's foundation stone was laid before the year was out, on 28 December 1836. Building of the church proceeded for nearly four years, and it was opened on 21 October 1840 with great ceremony by the Bishop of Sydney, the Right Rev. John Bede Polding, with the sermon being preached by the Very Rev. Dr William Ullathorne. The procession to the church was accompanied by the band of the 80th Regiment, and the choir of St Mary's Cathedral, Sydney, was also present for the service. [12] [13]

According to a District Surveyor's Plan dated 1889, modern Tebbutt Street used to be known as Glebe Street, and modern Little Church Street as simply Church Street. [14]

The Church was designed in a cruciform shape with a porch at the front, and is possibly the first Australian Catholic Church designed with transepts. Although supposedly designed to seat 1,200 people, it accommodated around 350. The external walls are stuccoed brick with corner and intermediate buttresses, small transepts all originally with a shingled roof, but now with corrugated iron. The choir loft and a circular leadlight window high in the façade facing Tebbutt Street were added later. [15] [16]

Clergy

The following were parish priests in charge of St Matthew's, Windsor in the 19th and 20th centuries. [17]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Windsor, New South Wales</span> Town in New South Wales, Australia

Windsor is a historic town in north-west of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It is the council seat of the Hawkesbury local government area. The town sits on the Hawkesbury River, enveloped by farmland and Australian bush. Many of the oldest surviving European buildings in Australia are located at Windsor. It is 56 km (35 mi) north-west of the Sydney CBD, on the fringes of urban sprawl.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cumberland County, New South Wales</span> Cadastral in New South Wales, Australia

Cumberland County is a county in the State of New South Wales, Australia. Most of the Sydney metropolitan area is located within the County of Cumberland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hills District, New South Wales</span> Region in New South Wales, Australia

The Hills District is a region of Sydney, within the northern part of the Greater Western Sydney region of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Stretching from the M2 Hills Motorway in the south to the Hawkesbury River in the north and Old Windsor Road in the west to Pennant Hills Road and Berowra Creek in the east. The region is often considered to be synonymous with the local government area of The Hills Shire, however in a more expansive sense colloquial definitions can also include surrounding areas such as the western portion of the Hornsby Shire, as well as also sometimes including northern parts of City of Parramatta and Blacktown City Council.

St Thomas Aquinas Church is a Roman Catholic church building located in Springwood, New South Wales, Australia. The church shares its grounds with the St Thomas Aquinas Primary School.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Baulkham Hills, New South Wales</span> Suburb of The Hills, New South Wales, Australia

Baulkham Hills is a suburb in the Hills District of Greater Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It is located within 30 kilometres north-west of the Sydney central business district mostly within the local government area of The Hills Shire, of which Baulkham Hills was formerly the administrative seat and namesake of The Hills Shire. A small section of the suburb which is located south of the Hills Motorway-Windsor Road intersection is part of the City of Parramatta.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St John's, Ashfield</span> Church in New South Wales, Australia

St John the Baptist Anglican Church is an active Anglican church located between Alt and Bland Streets, Ashfield, a suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Founded in 1840, on land donated by Elizabeth Underwood, the church building is the oldest authenticated surviving building in Ashfield, having been built at the time when subdivision increased the population density sufficiently to turn Ashfield into a town. It was also the first church built along the Parramatta Road which linked the early colonial towns of Sydney and Parramatta. The earliest remaining parts of the building are one of the first Sydney designs by the colonial architect Edmund Blacket, who later became renowned for his ecclesiastical architecture.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Bede Polding</span> Australian archbishop (1794–1877)

John Bede Polding, OSB was the first Roman Catholic Archbishop of Sydney, Australia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Sydney</span> Latin Catholic ecclesiastical territory in Australia

The Archdiocese of Sydney is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church. Its episcopal see is Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roman Catholic Diocese of Bathurst (Australia)</span> Catholic ecclesiastical territory

The Diocese of Bathurst (in Australia) is a Latin Church suffragan diocese of the Metropolitan Archdiocese of Sydney, established in 1865, covering the Central West and Orana regions of New South Wales, Australia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roman Catholic Diocese of Parramatta</span> Catholic ecclesiastical territory

The Diocese of Parramatta is a suffragan Latin Church diocese of the Archdiocese of Sydney, established in 1986.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roman Catholic Diocese of Wollongong</span> Latin Catholic territory in Australia

The Diocese of Wollongong is a Latin Church ecclesiastical jurisdiction or diocese of the Catholic Church in Australia. Established in 1951, the diocese covers the Illawarra and Southern Highlands regions of New South Wales. It is a suffragan in the ecclesiastical province of the metropolitan Archdiocese of Sydney

There has been Catholic education in the Diocese of Parramatta since the first catholic school was established in the Parramatta area in 1820. There are 80 Catholic systemic schools in the diocese with a total student population of around 43,000 and a staff population of around 5,000. There are also six non-systemic or congregational (independent) Catholic schools.

The Congregation of the Sisters of the Good Samaritan, colloquially known as the "Good Sams", is a Roman Catholic congregation of religious women commenced by Bede Polding, OSB, Australia’s first Catholic bishop, in Sydney in 1857. The congregation was the first religious congregation to be founded in Australia. The sisters form an apostolic institute that follows the Rule of Saint Benedict. They take their name from the well-known gospel parable of the Good Samaritan.

Bede Polding College is an independent Roman Catholic co-educational secondary day school, located in South Windsor, on the north-western outskirts of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. The school delivers a religious and secular education to approximately 1,200 students from Year 7 to Year 12.

John Brady, an Australian metropolitan bishop, was the first Roman Catholic Bishop of Perth, serving from 1845 until his death in 1871, despite having been suspended of his functions motu proprio in October 1851 by Pope Pius IX.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cathedral of St Michael and St John</span> Church in New South Wales, Australia

Cathedral of St Michael and St John is a heritage-listed Roman Catholic cathedral at 107 William Street, Bathurst, Bathurst Region, New South Wales, Australia. It was designed by Charles Hansom and built from 1857 to 1861 by Edward Gell. It is also known as Cathedral of Saints Michael and John. The cathedral is the episcopal see of the Roman Catholic Bishop of Bathurst. The property is owned by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Bathurst. It was added to the New South Wales State Heritage Register on 5 June 2012.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St Luke's Anglican Church, Liverpool</span> Heritage-listed church in Sydney, Australia

St Luke's Anglican Church is a heritage-listed Anglican church at Elizabeth Drive, Liverpool, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It was designed by Francis Greenway and built from 1818 to 1820. The property is owned by the Anglican Parish of Liverpool and is the oldest still existing Anglican church in Australia. It was added to the New South Wales State Heritage Register on 2 April 1999.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St Francis Xavier's Roman Catholic Church, Berrima</span> Church in New South Wales, Australia

St Francis Xavier's Roman Catholic Church is a heritage-listed Catholic church at Hume Highway, Berrima, Wingecarribee Shire, New South Wales, Australia. It was designed by Augustus Pugin and built from 1849 to 1851 by William Munro. Originally known as St. Scholastica's Church, it is used by the Parish of St. Paul, administered by the Pauline Fathers, and located in the Diocese of Wollongong. It was added to the New South Wales State Heritage Register on 25 January 2008.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St John's Catholic Church, Campbelltown</span> Church in New South Wales, Australia

St John's Roman Catholic Church and Cemetery is a heritage-listed former school and now Roman Catholic church building located in George Street in Campbelltown. It was designed by John Joseph Therry and built from 1824 to 1841. It is also known as St Johns Roman Catholic Church and Cemetery (former), Saint Johns Roman Catholic Church and Old St John's Church. It was added to the New South Wales State Heritage Register on 2 April 1999. The current church, called St John the Evangelist Catholic Church was built in 1886 and is located at Cordeaux Street, Campbelltown in the City of Campbelltown local government area of New South Wales, Australia. The property is owned by Trustees of the Roman Catholic Church for the Diocese of Wollongong.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charles Frederick Garnsey</span> Church of England clergyman

Charles Frederick Garnsey was an Anglican priest and pioneer of Anglo-Catholicism in Australia.

References

  1. ↑ "Historical Background". Registers of St Matthew's Catholic, Windsor. Hawkesbury on the Net Directory. 2024. Retrieved 6 February 2024.
  2. ↑ "History" (PDF). St Matthew's Catholic Church, Windsor. Diocese of Parramatta. 1990. Retrieved 6 February 2024.
  3. ↑ "The Building of St Matthew's Catholic Church" (PDF). St Matthew's Catholic Church, Windsor. Diocese of Parramatta. 1990. Retrieved 6 February 2024.
  4. ↑ "A Message from our Bishop" (PDF). St Matthew's Catholic Church, Windsor. Diocese of Parramatta. 1990. Retrieved 6 February 2024.
  5. ↑ "The Building of St Matthew's Catholic Church" (PDF). St Matthew's Catholic Church, Windsor. Diocese of Parramatta. 1990. Retrieved 6 February 2024.
  6. ↑ "Shipping Intelligence: Arrivals". "The Alfred" (Sydney, NSW), page 2. 20 January 1835. Retrieved 6 February 2024.
  7. ↑ "The Church in Australia Before 1840" (PDF). St Matthew's Catholic Church, Windsor. Diocese of Parramatta. 1990. Retrieved 6 February 2024.
  8. ↑ "Anecdotes" (PDF). St Matthew's Catholic Church, Windsor. Diocese of Parramatta. 1990. Retrieved 6 February 2024.
  9. ↑ "The Church in Australia Before 1840" (PDF). St Matthew's Catholic Church, Windsor. Diocese of Parramatta. 1990. Retrieved 6 February 2024.
  10. ↑ "The Church in Australia Before 1840" (PDF). St Matthew's Catholic Church, Windsor. Diocese of Parramatta. 1990. Retrieved 6 February 2024.
  11. ↑ "The Church in Australia Before 1840" (PDF). St Matthew's Catholic Church, Windsor. Diocese of Parramatta. 1990. Retrieved 6 February 2024.
  12. ↑ "Opening of St Matthew's Church, Windsor". Australasian Chronicle (Sydney, NSW), page 2. 27 October 1840. Retrieved 6 February 2024.
  13. ↑ "The Church in Australia Before 1840" (PDF). St Matthew's Catholic Church, Windsor. Diocese of Parramatta. 1990. Retrieved 6 February 2024.
  14. ↑ "The Church in Australia Before 1840" (PDF). St Matthew's Catholic Church, Windsor. Diocese of Parramatta. 1990. Retrieved 6 February 2024.
  15. ↑ "The Opening of St Matthew's" (PDF). St Matthew's Catholic Church, Windsor. Diocese of Parramatta. 1990. Retrieved 6 February 2024.
  16. ↑ "Alterations to the Church Building" (PDF). St Matthew's Catholic Church, Windsor. Diocese of Parramatta. 1990. Retrieved 6 February 2024.
  17. ↑ "Parish Priests of St Matthew's Catholic Church, Windsor" (PDF). St Matthew's Catholic Church, Windsor. Diocese of Parramatta. 1990. Retrieved 6 February 2024.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.