And so the spot was declared
for what was to more popularly known as the Garrison
Church which still stands at the southern end
of Lower Fort Street, cornering Argyle place in
one of the most historically colourful areas of
Sydney known as The Rocks.
Government me then cleared the site of rubbish
and the contractor was allowed to use stone from
the Argyle Cut, so it can truly be said that church
was quarried out of its immediate surroundings.
The builder was Edward Flood and accepted
price for materials is interesting to scan, Bricks
were 2/15 a thousand. A labourer worked 10 hours
for 5/- a week while the bricklayer for the same
period received 8/6. Henry Ginn, the architect
of the basic structure, estimated that the church
would house 250 adults and 50 children and in
his original design his calculations were not
far wrong.
Bishop Broughton decided to appoint Rev.
John Couch Grylls as Rector of the new parish,
and on August 7th 1843 services began. On September
10th 1843, the first baptism was performed, while
the first marriage took place on October 23rd
of that same year.
Perhaps the oldest document held in the Garrison
Church is a letter dated march 17th 1832, advising
“Archdeacon Broughton” that the allotment
at the north end of princes Street was to be intended
for a school. Fourteen years latter, a new school
house was built next to the church. This building,
with walls 2ft 6ins. thick, today is the Parish
Hall. One interesting feature – and there
are many, a boy named Edmund Barton, who later
became Australia’s first Prime Minister,
was one of the pupils.
Built to contain comfortably, a congregation
of 600, the church recaptures much of the early
days, and extends a silent account of the manners,
customs and identities of those times.
Although officially named the church of the
Holy Trinity, it has from its foundation, been
more popularly known as The Garrison Church, simply
because of the numerous regiments at the nearby
Garrison worshipped there. On can envisage the
colourful; black on grey, white on navy blue,
red on white with gold trimming……
But if we are careful in contemplating all
this we realize that this, and other buildings
of historic beauty, were not the result of sheer
skill alone but the fierce concentration and determination
in the work involved.
Courage, determination, love, loyalty and integrity
– all those qualities built a church and
place in our history. |
