Can anyone steer me in the right direction as regards St Lukes Church (The bombed out church) not it's past history, it's current state, like who owns it ? is there a website I can visit?
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I thank you![]()
Can anyone steer me in the right direction as regards St Lukes Church (The bombed out church) not it's past history, it's current state, like who owns it ? is there a website I can visit?
div>
I thank you![]()
Hello GhostSearch
St. Luke's is maintained as a war memorial currently but there are plans hopefully to rehang the bells in the belltower. You might contact the Merseyside Bell Restoration Group who are working on this to find out information on who owns the property though I suspect the Liverpool Diocese owns it. See address and email addy at end of the bell ringers website.
Chris
Christopher T. George
Editor, Ripperologist
Editor, Loch Raven Review
http://christophertgeorge.blogspot.com/
Chris on Flickr and on MySpace
I've got a few pics taken a few months ago, but no info.
http://www.liverpoolpictorial.co.uk/stlukes/index.html
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I can do better than that!
I'm selling these.......(not off the back of a lorry..I'm a committee member!)
The Merseyside Bell Restoration Group (MBRG) was officially adopted in December of 1994, but had been in unofficial existence for 20 years prior to that date. The MBRG is administered by a group of six Trustees who are all church Bellringers.
Peace & Good Neighbourhood was written by Bryan McCahey and first published on St Luke’s Day, 18th October 1995. The book chronicles the history of the site of St Luke’s, construction of the church, history of the bells themselves, and also the significance of the ‘first all-metal bell frame’ still in situ in the tower. This frame design (1828) was the forerunner of all modern bell frames. It also describes the destruction of the bells and body of the church in the blitz of 1941.
It is a 61-page hard backed book and printed using letterpress and as such it is one of the few truly hand-made books published in recent years.
The book also contains a list of the peals rung between 1829 and 1931 together with illustrations of the church and rare photographs of the bell frame.
The price of the book is just £10, £11.50 inclusive of post and packaging. A very small sum in my opinion for such a rare and detailed book of the information on the bells. All proceeds go to the restricted St Luke’s Fund, administered by the MBRG, and as such it cannot be used for any other project or purpose within the MBRG.
Please see the pictures below for a view of the book, the layout and also rare drawings of St Luke’s gone by which feature in the book.
PM if you would like my address to send a cheque to!
Last edited by theninesisters; 12-26-2006 at 09:44 PM.
I can do better than getting them to contact the MBRG as that website is out of date now as I'm working on a new one![]()
We have to go back to past history to realise why St Luke's Church is still standing.
When the site was first given for a church to be built, it was stipulated that only a church could ever be built on the site.
We only have to consider all the other churches that were in the city centre (presumably without any such clause) which have all gone.
Two off the top of my head are the Pro Cathedral St Peter's on Church Road (where HMV is now), the bells were taken out and are now in St Helens.
Also St Thomas Park Lane and come to think of it, St John's which was on the site of St Georges hall!
You're a font of knowledge about churches Jon. This is not meant to be sarky/ironic (I know how things can be misinterpreted when posting stuff and I'm a bugger for doing sarky). Keep 'em coming.![]()
Hehe the day I get offended by words on a screen.....![]()
Pics are of St John's (very rare pic), St Thomas and St Peters! (with two pics of St Peters being demolished)!
Last edited by theninesisters; 12-26-2006 at 09:45 PM.
Thanks, they are rare pictures.
In the last picture the photographer shows Woolworths (the first in the UK) probably aware of the fact that St Peter's was getting demolished for the new Woolworths.
Info on St Peters:
• 1905: Last peal on the bells at St Peter’s.
• c1920: The bells were removed from the tower by Taylor’s. After being stored both at Taylor’s and Mears’ and after tuning they were rehung at St. Helens Parish Church, although it was considered for a while to hang them at St. Barnabas Penny Lane, but this did not come to fruition as the vicar of Penny Lane at the time thought the tower not strong enough.
• 1922: St Peter’s was demolished. A brass cross embedded in the pavement in Church Street (outside HMV) marks the spot where the high altar once was.
Last edited by theninesisters; 12-26-2006 at 09:45 PM.
And the info on St Luke's:
The site of St Luke's had been granted to the town by Lord Derby in 1791 and it was a condition of his gift that this land should never be devoted to any other purpose than the site of a church. Furthermore, no burials were to take place either inside or even within the grounds.
The foundation stone was laid on 9th april 1811 by James Drinkwater Esq, chief magistrate of Liverpool.
In the tower today remains the first ever all metal bell frame in the world!
My God no. A very small spiral stone staircase winds itself up to the clock room and from there, there is only a single wooden ladder that goes up to the bell chamber - combined with their being no roof on the tower at the moment either. There's not that much to see from the top, you think you'd have a grand view but you can just about peak out on the rooftops below towards the river.
Health and Safety wouldn't allow a single staircase incase of a fire and English Heritage wouldn't approve anything as it's Grade 1 listed.
There is talk of putting the ex-Widnes St Paul bells in the tower sometime in the future but I don't think it'll ever happen. The stability of the tower wouldn't take it now.
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