ST PAUL’S CATHEDRAL
ROCKHAMPTON, QUEENSLAND ANGLICAN
PAUL SCOTT
SPECIAL NOTE
As we shall see, for various reasons this Cathedral is in a bad state of disrepair, and its future is unknown. At the time of my visit, entry to the building was forbidden for safety reasons. There are only ten photographs on this site. These include four exterior views that I was able to take, and six photographs of Cathedral origin, including two interior views and four pictures showing repairs being made.
So in a sense, this is a token site which completes my project of photographing all the Australian cathedrals. I may be able to update it if I live long enough! In fact, if I can obtain large photo files of the interior of the Cathedral as it was, I would be happy to include them here.
The main axis of the cathedral is not in a geographical east-west direction, so for the brief span of this website we shall find it easier to use the liturgical directions as indicated by the compass rose. So the sanctuary is at the East end (with a capital E).
The Cathedral itself has a rectangular nave with covered side aisles. There is a small porch at the Western entry, and an Eastern apse with side additions including a small transept to the North. Two chapels and a vestry were included here.
There follows a quite extensive history of the Cathedral, and a description of the building as it was.
If you wsh to proceed to the few photographs, tap / click on
NOTE ON MAGNIFYING IMAGES
With this website format the images are large enough for most purposes. If there is a need for greater magnification of an image, go to the identical photo on
https://www.flickr.com/photos/paulscottinfo/albums
and use Command - + (Mac) or Windows - + (Windows).
HISTORY
[Wikipedia]
St Paul’s Anglican Cathedral·is a heritage-listed·cathedral·at 89 William Street,·Rockhampton. It was designed principally by·Annersley Voysey and built between 1883 and 1953. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register in 1992. The associated hall and offices were listed on the Queensland Heritage Register in 2000.
St Paul’s Anglican Cathedral began life as the Rockhampton Church of England, which was completed by 1883 when it was dedicated. The building became the Church of England Cathedral in 1892.
Anglican services were held in Rockhampton from the late 1850s by lay ministers. In 1859 a small timber church and school building was constructed, however this was destroyed in a storm in 1860. The pioneer rector, Reverend Thomas Jones, arrived in Rockhampton in about 1860 and held services at Grant’s Timber Yard Hall and at the local Court House. By 1862 he had raised sufficient funds to build a timber church on the site later occupied by the Parish Hall. This building, designed by Thomas Dixon Chater, was built on a dedicated church reserve adjoining the National School. By 1872 about £3000 had been collected for the construction of a third Rockhampton church.
Plans and specifications were prepared for the new church, later the Cathedral, in Brisbane by architect, Annersley Voysey. The stonemason employed on the first part of the project was Paul Sanderson who completed external walls to the height of one metre. By 1877 the walls were no higher and the money was spent, fresh tenders were called. Amid a flurry of concerns about the strength of the foundations as well as the introduction of a new plan by Queensland Colonial Architect, FDG Stanley, the construction at the church was recommenced in September 1879 to revised plans by AW Voysey and Frank Scarr. The masonry was continued by George Sanderson, carpentry was completed by David Wiley, plumbing by J Wakefield and painting by W Aspinall. Funding shortages again caused a work stoppage, this time in April 1881 just as the roof was to be started. Committee members pledged to raise £200 each and the work was recommenced. The building was completed and furnished by 18 October 1883 when it was dedicated by Bishop Matthew Hale assisted by Bishop George Stanton. The building was not consecrated until 20 June 1911 when the building fund was repaid.
In 1892 the Rockhampton Church of England Diocese was formed and the church was upgraded to a cathedral. The foundation bishop was the Right Reverend Nathaniel Dawes who was enthroned on 30 November 1892. Entrance gates, designed by Louis Spier Robertson, were constructed at the Cathedral in 1899.
Other changes to the building include the removal in 1968 of the High Altar from the Eastern wall of the chancel to a more central position on the sanctuary. This work involved the removal of a rood screen, which was installed in the 1920s. The crucifix which was part of this screen is now affixed to a wall near the lectern. A Warriors Chapel was added to the Eastern end of one of the aisles in 1916. A Lady’s Chapel was created in the other aisle in about 1953. A temporary bell tower with a peal of eight bells was erected in 1946 as a thanksgiving offering for victory in World War II.
The photograph below comes from Wikipedia, and shows the Cathedral as it was in 1930.
Description
[This Description does not take account of the present situation.]
St Paul’s Anglican Cathedral is a simple substantial masonry building with steeply pitched gabled roof. The building is constructed from rock faced evenly coursed sandstone and has smooth faced sandstone detailing including window surrounds, base course, string coursing and buttress caps. The building has a rectangular plan, with apsidal chancel and rectangular gabled porch entrance. Flanking the chancel is a vestry to the South and a Warriors’ Chapel to the North. The building is divided internally into nave and side aisles by a pointed arched arcade of smooth faced Stanwell sandstone.
The High Altar is constructed with a Tasmanian black bean base and bronze and resin lining. The central figure on the altar is the Lamb from the Book of Revelation surrounded by four evangelists. The sedilia or stalls surrounding the altar are of timber. The Bishop’s Cathedra or Throne is made from red cedar and canopied in Gothic style. Four mosaics set into the floor in front of the throne are thought to date from the eighteenth century and depict mythical beasts from Ezekiel and the Book of Revelation. The pulpit is carved from Stanwell sandstone and features a cross carved in relief. The font, also of Stanwell sandstone, is situated in the Southwestern corner of the building.
The sanctuary of the church houses a Dean’s stall, Precentor’s stall and Canons’ stalls. A brass lectern with eagle head is housed near the altar. The Lady Chapel houses a small coloured statue of the Madonna and Child known as the Lady of Walsingham. The piece dates from 1963 and depicts the patron saint of the church. Also housed in the Lady Chapel is an icon of St Paul. The Warriors’ Chapel houses a 1919 honour board bearing the names of the fallen from the Diocese. A ceramic bas relief of the Madonna and Child (after Della Robbia) is attached to the wall of the Southern side aisle. On the sills of some of the windows in the side aisles are small brass medallions which are modern interpretations of the fourteen Stations of the Cross.
The stained and coloured glass windows throughout the building are of high quality. The first window in the Eastern end of the North aisle, of unknown origin, was placed in 1903 depicting Christ in Glory and dedicated to John Peddle. Windows in the Southern aisle, with the exception of the one depicting St Paul on the Road to Damascus, were designed by William Bustard of Brisbane. The three central sanctuary lights (Messrs Lawndes and Dowry, London, after the design of Miss Caroline Townshead) were placed in the memory of the first Bishop Nathaniel Dawes in 1914, depicting Agony and Crucifixion, the Risen Christ and the Day of Pentecost. The two windows flanking these were placed in 1921 and also made by Messrs Lawndes and Dowry in memory of Marion Dawson, depicting the Annunciation and Visitation and Eucharist worship of the church.
Modern History
[Quoted from an article by Michelle Gately dated 6th February 2018 in The Bulletin’.
The Cathedral was closed to the public after some movement in the north wall while ground works to replace paving and reinstate the grounds were being carried out. The movement resulted in some roof beams disengaging and the roof is currently being supported by internal scaffolding as the north wall remains in a precarious state.
The Cathedral sustained significant roof damage during Tropical Cyclone Marcia and was re-opened after repairs in late 2016. But it was closed just a few months later.
Bishop Robinson said he had concerns for the future of the Cathedral given its current unsafe state and the enormous cost of repairs and restoration.
“Our preferred option is to make safe, repair and restore the Cathedral,” he said.
“However the cost of doing this is enormous and it is very difficult at this stage to get accurate estimates of the cost. While we have obtained several engineering reports, nobody knows precisely what it will cost to completely repair and restore the cathedral or how long it will take. To repair and restore the Cathedral could cost in excess of $10 million.”
The diocese has launched a public fundraising campaign, ‘Save St Paul’s Cathedral’, which is hoped will attract help from across the state.
Bishop Robinson said it was an unfortunate reality that, depending on further technical reports and the success of fundraising ventures, the diocese couldn’t rule out the option of demolition.
“Over the past few months there has been considerable interaction with our insurers, engineers and architects about the cathedral,” Bishop Robinson said.
“Unfortunately, there is no simple explanation for why the movement occurred.
It is apparent from the Cathedral records that there have been a number of reports, over the decades about the instability of the soil, and the foundations of the building which, I understand, do not meet modern engineering standards.
Some movement is inevitable in buildings of this age and for the most part they cope well. But we are unsure at this stage exactly what caused the wall to move so far and so suddenly.
"What we do know is that the building remains unsafe and that there is a significant risk of harm in addition to the question about liability if the (West) wall was to collapse. We are awaiting further final reports which will help to inform our future decision-making.”
Bishop Robinson said the diocese had no choice but to make the front wall safe as soon as possible but it was unclear if this would allow the Cathedral to re-open as additional structural work may be required inside the building.
