CHURCHES.
There was a
church at Wanstead by 1208. (fn. 1)
The rector was then John of
St. Lawrence, a canon of St.
Paul's, and there was also a vicar, probably provided
by the canon to serve the cure. No later reference
has been found to a vicar. The advowson of the rectory descended with the manor of Wanstead until the
19th century, except for occasional turns. (fn. 2) About
1825 the next presentation was sold. (fn. 3) The advowson
appears to have been finally alienated from the manor
during the 1890s. By 1898 it had been acquired by
the Misses Mary, Jessie, and Gertrude Nutter of
Wanstead, who in that year conveyed the reversion,
after their deaths, to the bishop of the diocese. (fn. 4) The
bishop of Chelmsford became patron in 1926. (fn. 5)
In 1208, after a dispute between the rector and the
priory of Holy Trinity, Aldgate, it was agreed that
the priory should retain the tithes of Cann Hall,
paying to the rector 4 qr. grain. (fn. 6) The payment continued to be made by the owners of Cann Hall down
to the 19th century, in spite of occasional attempts
by rectors to overthrow the agreement. (fn. 7) The rectory
was valued at only £4 in 1254, (fn. 8) and in 1291 it was
among the poorest Essex livings, being valued at
only £2. (fn. 9) In 1535 it was assessed at £6 13s. 4d. (fn. 10)
It was valued at £70 in 1604 and at £72 in 1650. (fn. 11)
In 1650 an augmentation of £28 was granted by
Parliament, but it had been withdrawn by 1655. (fn. 12)
In the earlier 18th century the rectory was valued
at £140. (fn. 13) The tithes were commuted in 1841 for
£404, of which £2 was due from the owners of
Cann Hall. (fn. 14) There were then 80 a. glebe situated in
the north-east and north-west of the parish. Of
that 32 a. were sold in 1867 (fn. 15) and most of the remainder by 1902. (fn. 16)
The ancient rectory house stood in South (or
Parsons, later Redbridge) Lane, north of Wanstead
Park. (fn. 17) In 1732 Earl Tylney granted the rector
free use of water piped from the supply at Wanstead
House. (fn. 18) About 1830 the rectory was rebuilt on or
near the same site. (fn. 19) It was sold in 1924 to Essex
county council, which demolished it and built
Wanstead county high school there. (fn. 20) A new rectory
was later built in Wanstead Place, opposite Christ
Church.
William Smith, rector from 1542, was deprived in
1554 as a married priest. (fn. 21) Humphrey Maddison,
who was rector when the Civil War began, signed
the Protestation of 1641 along with his leading
parishioners, headed by Sir Henry Mildmay. (fn. 22) Maddison also signed the Essex Testimony (1648), and
in 1650 was described as 'an able godly preaching
minister'. (fn. 23) He died in 1653, and the rectory was
held by Paul Amiraut (1654–6) and Leonard Hoar
(1656–60), each of whom was presented by Sir
Henry Mildmay. (fn. 24) The presentation of Hoar was
repeated later in 1656 by the Lord Protector. (fn. 25)
With a title derived from a regicide and Cromwell
himself it is not surprising that Hoar was ejected in
1660. (fn. 26) Thomas Harrison, who replaced him (1660–7), was deemed to have succeeded Maddison,
Amiraut also being ignored. (fn. 27) In the 18th century,
as far as is known, the rectors were usually resident
and there are occasional references to assistant
curates. (fn. 28) James Pound, rector 1707–24, is mentioned above. (fn. 29) Samuel Glasse (1786–1812) was a
theologian, an advocate of Sunday schools, and a
chaplain to the king. (fn. 30)
The ancient parish church, demolished in 1790,
stood about 70 ft. south of the present one. Its
site is still traceable in the churchyard by a line of
gravestones marking the central aisle and memorial
slabs marking the chancel. It was enlarged and
renovated in 1709–10 by Richard Allison, a Wanstead builder, at a cost of £300, provided by subscription. (fn. 31) The walls were raised throughout to the
same height as those of the chancel, involving the
removal of the arcade between the nave and north
aisle. The timber west tower was replaced by one of
brick 54 ft. high, and a west gallery was erected.
The south porch was removed and a west porch
formed under the tower. Allison's work was faulty,
and in 1714 the parish vestry compelled him to
repair some of it. A drawing of the church from the
south made c. 1715 shows a north aisle, a tower of
three stages, and a box-like projecting sanctuary
with roundheaded east window and roof pediment. (fn. 32)
The tower seen from the west is well shown in a
water-colour (1788) by J. M. W. Turner. (fn. 33) By 1786,
when Samuel Glasse became rector, the church
had become too small for its growing parish. Having
rebuilt the church in his previous parish of Hanwell
(Mdx.), he immediately launched a rebuilding
scheme at Wanstead, for which statutory powers
were obtained. (fn. 34)
Wanstead, St. Mary's Church, Pulpit
The site of the present church of ST. MARY was
given by Sir James Long, Bt., out of his park. (fn. 35)
The building cost £9,150 of which £3,500 was
raised by subscription and most of the balance by
tontine. The foundation stone was laid in 1787 and
the building completed in 1790 in a classical style
to the design of Thomas Hardwick. The church
has not been substantially altered since it was built.
It is of brick cased in Portland stone, comprising
nave, chancel, north and south aisles, west porch,
and bell-turret. The nave arcades of five bays have
tall Corinthian columns. There are north, south, and
west galleries, and a vestry at the east end of the
south aisle. The Tuscan porch is supported by two
pairs of columns, and above it the west front has
a central pediment surmounted by a clock turret
crowned by a domed bell cupola with paired
Ionic columns. There are box pews and a fine pulpit
with sounding-board. Much of the stained glass was
destroyed in the Second World War and has not
been replaced, but two small circular windows
depicting the royal arms of George III and those of
Sir James Long remain at the east end of the north
and south aisles respectively. The original east
window, said to have been copied from Murillo's
painting of Christ bearing the Cross, at Magdalen
College, Oxford, was replaced in 1890 by a memorial
window to the Revd. W. Pitt Wigram, rector 1837–64. An organ was bought for the church about 1802,
a new one in 1847, and the present one, in the west
gallery, in 1923. (fn. 36) The fine brass chandelier in the
chancel was given in 1899. (fn. 37)
The present church has five bells, dated 1789,
1843, and 1899 (three). The old church is said to
have had three bells. In the church of Thorington
(Suff.) is a bell inscribed 'Samuel Owen made me for
Wanstead 1596'. It was given to Thorington in
1598 by (Sir) Edward Coke. (fn. 38) Whether it was ever
in fact at Wanstead is not known. Perhaps it was a
cancelled order. (fn. 39) The church plate includes two
cups with paten covers, a flagon, two alms-dishes,
a spoon, and an oval dish, all of silver dated 1790. (fn. 40)
It was recast from earlier plate given in 1705 and
1707, the cost, including some additional silver,
being met by Samuel Glasse.
The church contains several monuments from the
earlier building, the most notable of which is a
large marble monument to Sir Josiah Child, Bt.
(1699) and his son Barnard (1698) against the south
wall of the chancel. Sir Josiah's figure, in Roman
costume and Stuart wig, stands between Corinthian
columns under a segmental pediment on which
recline two angels with trumpets. (fn. 41) There are tablets
to Capt. John Morice (1638) and Mary Williamson
(1683) on the walls of the north and south gallery
stairs respectively. On the east wall of the north
gallery is a monument to George Bowles (1817) by
(Sir) Francis Chantrey. Floor slabs in the churchyard, on the site of the old church, include the
indent of a lost brass, said to have been that of Sir
John Huntercombe (1368). (fn. 42) A sentry-box in the
church-yard probably dates from 1831. (fn. 43)
St. Mary's was the only Anglican church in
Wanstead until 1861 when a chapel of ease, CHRIST
CHURCH, Wanstead Place, was built of stone in
the Early English style to the design of (Sir)
George Gilbert Scott. (fn. 44) The south aisle was added
in 1867 and the north tower and spire in 1868–9.
The building was set back from High Street beyond
a public park. Christ Church has remained a chapel
of ease, but missions elsewhere within the ancient
parish resulted in the formation of the new parishes
of Holy Trinity, South Woodford, and St. Gabriel,
Aldersbrook. The parish of Holy Trinity, Harrow
Green (1879), also included part of Wanstead. (fn. 45) In
1898 St. Mary's had a mission room in George
Lane. (fn. 46) The mission church of ST. JOHN, Nightingale Green (later Cowley Road), which existed in
1903 and later, (fn. 47) was probably also attached to St.
Mary's.
The church of HOLY TRINITY, South Woodford, Hermon Hill, originated in 1882, when an
iron building was erected. (fn. 48) A separate parish was
formed in 1888, out of Wanstead and Woodford, the
advowson of the vicarage being vested in the bishop
of the diocese. A permanent church designed by
J. Fowler in a correct late Norman style was completed in 1890. Most of its cost was met by the
Misses Nutter, who also endowed the living.
The church of ST. GABRIEL, Aldersbrook,
Aldersbrook Road, originated in 1903, when an
iron building was erected. (fn. 49) A separate parish was
formed in 1914 out of Wanstead and Little Ilford,
the advowson of the vicarage being vested in the
rector of Wanstead. A permanent church, designed
by Charles Spooner in Perpendicular style, was
completed in the same year, with the aid of contributions from the Misses Nutter.
ROMAN CATHOLICISM. (fn. 50)
A mass centre was
opened in Wanstead in 1910 by the parish priest of
Walthamstow. In 1918 it was transferred to the hall
of the newly-opened St. Joseph's convent school,
Cambridge Park. Wanstead became a separate
parish in 1919; the church of OUR LADY OF
LOURDES was opened in 1928, and completed in
1934–9.
PROTESTANT NONCONFORMITY.
Quakers
were assembling at Wanstead at least as early as
1671, and by 1673 they had bought a building in
George Lane for use as a meeting-house. (fn. 51) William
Penn belonged to the meeting in the 1670s. (fn. 52) Wanstead was at first part of Ham and Waltham monthly
meeting and from 1691 of Barking monthly meeting.
By 1692 most of the Wanstead members had died or
moved away, and the meeting-house was put up
for sale. No buyer could be found, however, and it
apparently remained in use until 1716, when it was
sold to Joseph Wright, himself a Quaker, who demolished it and used the site to enlarge his own
house. (fn. 53)
The present Quaker meeting at Wanstead originated in a shift of population during the later 19th
century. Many of the wealthy Friends who had
attended the Plaistow meeting-house (fn. 54) were moving
farther from London, and about 1868 some of them
began to meet for worship at Wanstead. (fn. 55) In 1870
the Becontree assembly rooms and archery ground
at Bushwood were bought for a meeting-house, (fn. 56)
mainly at the expense of J. Gurney Barclay. Substantial alterations were made to the building, and
some of the furnishings, including oak panelling,
were brought from Plaistow. In its early years the
new meeting-house was attended by such prominent
families as the Smith Harrisons, Godlees, Barclays,
and Fowlers. Between 1870 and 1900 the total
membership was about 85. From 1900 it rose steadily
to a peak of 234 in 1930, after which it declined.
The meeting-house was rebuilt in 1968 as a polygonal structure of white brick. (fn. 57)
Wanstead Congregational church, Grosvenor
Road, originated in 1864. (fn. 58) At that time there
was no nonconformist church at Wanstead, though
shortlived meeting-houses had been registered in
1821 and 1844. (fn. 59) The first Congregational services
were held in the court room of the Weavers' alms-houses, New Wanstead, and in 1865 the church was
formally constituted with Benjamin Beddow as
minister. Of the 24 original members 5 were inmates of the alms-houses. The building committee
bought the Anglican church of St. Luke, King's
Cross, which was being demolished to make way for
St. Pancras railway station, and re-erected it on a site
in the centre of Wanstead given by G. H. Wilkinson.
It is of stone rubble with freestone dressings. A few
alterations were made. The nave was shortened by
one bay, only part of the chancel was rebuilt, and the
nave clerestory and the north door were omitted.
The church was opened in 1867. The cost was higher
than expected, and the small congregation, heavily
in debt, was preoccupied with money matters.
Beddow found this situation intolerable and resigned
in 1869. The debt was finally cleared in 1876, and
for the next forty years the church flourished and
grew, reaching a peak membership of about 200 in
1910. In 1903 it was the strongest free church in
Wanstead. (fn. 60) During the pastorate of Nicholas
Hurry (1873–82) a mission, founded in 1870 in
George Lane, Woodford, became an independent
church. (fn. 61) Hurry favoured the revivalism of Moody
and Sankey, and for a time the church used
Sankey's hymns. In 1897 the Grove Hall was built
behind the church to accommodate a growing
Sunday school. The church was badly damaged by
bombing in 1940 and was re-dedicated after repairs
in 1949. In 1951 the original schoolroom, now called
the Cromwell Hall, was repaired.
Hermon Hill (ex-Wesleyan) Methodist church
originated in 1869, when a small building was
erected. (fn. 62) It was in the Hackney and later in the
Clapton circuit. The present church was built in
1877 and in 1879 was included in the new Wanstead
and Woodford circuit. (fn. 63) It was enlarged in 1882 and
1886. In the early years Hermon Hill's membership
was small and after 1900 it was outstripped by that
of Woodford, but after the Second World War it
increased to over 250.
Cambridge Park (ex-United) Methodist church
was founded about 1865 by Free Methodists from
Forest Gate. (fn. 64) The church, and the old hall behind
it, were built in 1875. (fn. 65) The Cambridge Park hall
was added in 1900, but most of it was burnt down in
1962, and the Warren Hall was built on the site in
1964. (fn. 66) Like the Free Methodist churches in West
Ham (fn. 67) Cambridge Park was originally in the Third
London circuit, from which it passed to the Fifth
London (or Forest Gate) circuit. It was later transferred successively to the Walthamstow circuit and
the Leytonstone and Forest Gate circuit. (fn. 68)
Wanstead Baptist church, Wellington Road,
originated in 1889, (fn. 69) when William Coverley held
services in the open air in Cowley Road, and later
in a dilapidated carpenter's shop. (fn. 70) With the help of
friends at Spurgeon's College he raised money to
buy a site in Wellington Road and to erect an iron
hall there. A church of 16 members was formed in
1894, with Coverley and Edward Scoones as copastors. In 1904 a schoolroom, vestry, baptistery,
and kitchen were added, and further extensions
were made in 1930. The membership has always
been very small, and the church has depended
mainly on lay pastors.
Aldersbrook Baptist church, Dover Road, (fn. 71) grew
out of a small undenominational mission which
existed in 1898. (fn. 72) A hall was built in Dover Road
in 1902 and in 1906 the church was formally constituted. The present church building, adjoining
the hall, was erected in 1909. During the 1930s
the membership rose to a peak of about 100, from
which it later declined. The church was bombed
during the Second World War but was completely
renovated thereafter.
JUDAISM.
Woodford and District Liberal synagogue, Marlborough Road, South Woodford, was
built in 1965. (fn. 73)