An early 20th century hand coloured postcard of St Thomas Church, note the Martin Bootmaker shop on the corner of Pennington Road and Castle Street.
The church of St Thomas on Pennington Road has a fascinating history and connections to local people. Roger Evernden, who has published a book detailing its history will be presenting an illustrated talk and tour of the church on Tuesday, 19th of April at 7:30pm. All are welcome to the talk and there will be refreshments afterwards.
A little about St Thomas Church:
St. Thomas's Church was built at the sole expense of local resident, Mrs. Sarah Pugh, at a cost of £2,400 and it was consecrated by the Archbishop of Canterbury in 1860.
The memorial dedicated to Mrs Sarah Pugh who solely financed the construction of the church.
The church has been extended and altered over the years. The main additions have been, the North Aisle (1879), the Choir Vestry (1881), the "Colebrooke Chapel" (1889), the West Porch (1909), the North Transept and Organ Loft (1925) and the Baptistery (1939).
The St. Thomas window in the north aisle dates from 1879 and is in memory of Mrs. Blackburn Maze. The windows in the sanctuary were also given by the Blackburn Mazes. The windows in the "Colebrooke Chapel" all depict subjects from the Gospel of St. Lukę, "the beloved physician" - Henry Colebrooke was a local doctor.
The picture above the Lady Chapel is a copy of Botticelli's "Our Lady of the Magnificat" and was presented to the church in 1923.
The oak choir stalls were carved by resident of Vale Road, William Wallis, a man with deep connections to Southborough, you can read all about him here.
The present organ was given in 1925 and the organ loft was built to accommodate it. The organist sat in the "gondola" above the choir stalls. The organ was rebuilt and a new console provided in the 1980s. There have been ten vicars and they are listed in the south aisle. The memoriał to the right of the church door is to the Revd. Henry Julian Bigsby, the first vicar of the parish, 1870 - 1890, see image below. The churchyard has never been used for burials and is maintained as a garden.
