St Luke's Church, Silverhill
Encyclopedia
St Luke's Church is a United Reformed
church in the Silverhill suburb of Hastings
, a town and borough
in East Sussex
, England. The congregation was originally independent (not linked to any Christian denomination
) before taking up Presbyterianism
, and worshipped in a private house from its founding in 1853 until a permanent church was provided in 1857; this was one of the oldest Presbyterian places of worship in southeast England. The growth of the community has resulted in several extensions since then, and severe damage caused by the Great Storm of 1987
was quickly repaired—except for the loss of the building's distinctive spire
. The church, along with most other Presbyterian congregations, joined the United Reformed Church when that denomination was formed in 1972. It is one of four United Reformed Churches in the borough of Hastings.
of Stone was one of several medieval land divisions in the area now covered by Hastings. Its land covered a large, thinly populated area northwest of the ancient fishing port of Hastings. Ecclesiastically, it was a prebend
linked to the collegiate church
of St Mary-in-the-Castle in the grounds of Hastings Castle
.
Much of the land in the manor was part of a single farm. Originally named Cildetona (farm of the heirs or children), the name became modernised to Childerton and later Chillington Farm, before being recorded as High Ridge Farm in 1714 (around the time it was bought by the Town Clerk of Hastings), Salver Hill Farm in 1785 and Silver Hill Farm before 1815. Around this time, Hastings and the high-class neighbouring planned development of St Leonards-on-Sea
had begun to develop rapidly as fashionable seaside resorts, helped by better transport connections and royal patronage. New turnpikes
were built northwards to Sedlescombe
in 1837 and Battle
the following year to reduce the road distance from Hastings and St Leonards-on-Sea to London; the roads met at Silver Hill Farm, and the area began to develop as a suburb, with a windmill
, hotel (the Tivoli) and tearooms. By 1839, a combined pottery and brickworks building and cottages for its workers also existed.
Despite this development, by 1853 Silver Hill Farm was still a working farm. Francis Smith owned it and a local shopkeeper, George Street, was its tenant. Street employed a tutor, William Boyd, for his son. Boyd was a member of the United Presbyterian Church of Scotland
and had recently studied theology
. Realising there were no churches (either Anglican
or Nonconformist
) nearby—the closest were the ancient Church in the Wood
at Hollington
and the new St Leonard's Church, the centrepiece of James Burton's
St Leonards-on-Sea development—he decided to found one of his own. The resident of Providence Villa, a new house near the Tivoli Hotel, allowed Boyd to use one of his rooms for preaching. Boyd's mission was so successful that by 1855, the congregation was too large for the house and the meetings had to move to a public building (believed to be the hotel itself) nearby.
The meetings were "independent" (not linked to any denomination), and the congregation attended them instead of going to the Anglican churches at Hollington or St Leonards-on-Sea. In 1856, the vicars of both churches visited the meeting and spoke individually to members of the congregation, making clear their opposition:
Despite this opposition, Boyd decided to build a permanent chapel. By this time, his studies were nearly complete and he was about to be ordained into the Presbyterian Church, but the chapel was still intended to be primarily independent and non-denominational. A committee of eight trustees was drawn from the members of various local Anglican and Nonconformist churches who were supportive of the cause, and fundraising began. The landowner Francis Smith—who by this time was in financial difficulty and was about to sell Silver Hill Farm for housing and other development—sold some land for £50 (£ as of ), and the first chapel was designed by local architect Henry Carpenter and built for £370 (£ as of ) in a few months in 1857. (He later designed Christ Church in the Blacklands suburb of Hastings for the Anglican community there.) Boyd held the first service at Silver Hill Independent Chapel on 12 July 1857. A Sunday school
was inaugurated the following week with 30 children.
From 1860, the pace of development increased in Silverhill (by now established as the name of the suburb). New terraced house
s, villas and inns were built, and more of the farmland was sold. The Anglican community also established their own church in the suburb: St Matthew's Church
was founded on 21 September 1860 by Sarah Waldegrave, Countess Waldegrave
. It opened for worship in May 1861. By 1862, William Boyd and his immediate successor had left and a new minister, Walter Roberts, was in place. Under his ministry, the church joined the English Presbyterian Church
, and the building was extended at a cost of £400 (£ as of )—despite attendances falling temporarily as some worshippers returned to the Anglican Communion and attended St Matthew's Church instead. By 1864, the fortunes of Silverhill Presbyterian Church (as it was now known) had improved, and the enlarged building was regularly full. More work was carried out in 1865, when a tower and a distinctive tall spire were added at the west end. At the same time, the nave
was widened and a vestry
was built. £544.9s.6d
(£ as of ) was spent in total. New fittings added in the 1860s and 1870s included a harmonium
, wooden rostrum, panelled lobby built by a local resident, a set of pews and a proper heating system. Meanwhile, the Sunday school was given its own separate premises when a schoolroom was built adjoining the chapel in 1878. George Clement, the tenant of Silver Hill Farm when the chapel was founded in 1853, donated some land and a third of the £296 (£ as of ) cost of construction. The chapel was closed during these renovations, but reopened on 26 May 1878.
The congregation continued to grow, and in the chapel's golden jubilee
year of 1907 a "Jubilee Fund" was begun to raise money for further extensions. £700 (£ as of ) had been pledged by 1909. The former schoolroom was demolished and replaced with a larger hall with subsidiary rooms, a chancel
was added to the chapel, the sanctuary was refitted with new wooden fixtures and a stone font
, and the building received electric light for the first time. Work started on 5 August 1909 and was completed about 10 weeks later, when the hall and chancel were dedicated.
In the 1920s, Silverhill Presbyterian Church was renamed St Luke's Presbyterian Church after a vote was taken on which of three saints—Luke
, Stephen
or Andrew
—to dedicate it to. The intention was to give the church a "more memorable" name. A series of stained glass
memorial windows were donated in 1923. World War II had no significant effect on the church, although it was used as a shelter for people displaced from their homes by bomb damage, and by the Ministry of Labour
as a base from which to make payments to vulnerable people. During World War I, soldiers had been based in the church hall, and 25 years later a similar thing happened when the manse
(the minister's house) was requisitioned
for army use. New members also joined the congregation during World War II: worshippers at St Columba's Presbyterian Church on the northwest corner of Warrior Square, St Leonards-on-Sea, were displaced when their church (founded in 1883) was destroyed by a bomb in 1942.
The church joined the new United Reformed
denomination in 1972, and took in former members of the Red Lake Congregational Church in Ore when that church closed in 1973. (Founded in 1903 and built by important local architect Henry Ward
, the building survived until its demolition in 1980.) In 1979, a joint pastor
ate was created when St Luke's Church was administratively joined to the smaller St Mark's Church in the Blacklands area of Hastings. A third church, in the nearby town of Rye
, was added to the pastorate in 1980, but after this church closed in 1986 the pastorate was dissolved and St Luke's Church administered its own affairs again.
Overnight on 15/16 October 1987—the night of the Great Storm
, one of Britain's most disastrous weather events—St Luke's Church was severely damaged by the winds, which gusted to hurricane force. At about 7.00am, the spire was torn from the tower and flung through the roof of the north aisle, from which it protruded at a hazardous angle—threatening the terraced houses opposite. After the storm subsided, a crane lifted the spire out of the church and left it in the garden while the rest of the building was repaired. The church hall was used for worship until temporary repairs were carried out. Other churches in Hastings offered assistance: the Roman Catholic Church of St Thomas of Canterbury and English Martyrs
hosted weddings, and St Matthew's Church raised money from special collections. Rebuilding work, which included a new vestry and larger kitchen, was completed in time for a reopening ceremony on 29 April 1990. The spire was taken away for repair, but could not be saved; the tower was rebuilt and a much smaller "cap"-style spire was added in its place. (Coincidentally, St Leonards-on-Sea United Reformed Church
also lost its spire during the storm; it was never replaced.)
In 2000, a clock was inset into the front wall of the tower as a celebration of the millennium, and a new wooden font was donated in 2003. In the same year, the minister moved to a new, larger manse
.
; some have stained glass
.
s in Great Britain, which is responsible for 168 United Reformed churches in southeast England. The former St Leonards-on-Sea United Reformed Church
held its last service in 2002 and was officially closed in 2008.
Hastings historian J. Manwaring Baines considered Silverhill Independent Chapel to be the most important church built during the town's 19th-century growth "in view of its determination to overcome all difficulties". When it joined the Presbyterian church in 1862, it became one of the first such churches in southeast England. On 5 October 1972, the congregation joined the newly formed United Reformed Church
denomination, created from the merger of those English Presbyterian churches which had voted in, those Congregational churches which had not opted out, and congregations of the Re-formed Church of Christ. It has been known since then as St Luke's United Reformed Church.
United Reformed Church
The United Reformed Church is a Christian church in the United Kingdom. It has approximately 68,000 members in 1,500 congregations with some 700 ministers.-Origins and history:...
church in the Silverhill suburb of Hastings
Hastings
Hastings is a town and borough in the county of East Sussex on the south coast of England. The town is located east of the county town of Lewes and south east of London, and has an estimated population of 86,900....
, a town and borough
Borough status in the United Kingdom
Borough status in the United Kingdom is granted by royal charter to local government districts in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The status is purely honorary, and does not give any additional powers to the council or inhabitants of the district...
in East Sussex
East Sussex
East Sussex is a county in South East England. It is bordered by the counties of Kent, Surrey and West Sussex, and to the south by the English Channel.-History:...
, England. The congregation was originally independent (not linked to any Christian denomination
Christian denomination
A Christian denomination is an identifiable religious body under a common name, structure, and doctrine within Christianity. In the Orthodox tradition, Churches are divided often along ethnic and linguistic lines, into separate churches and traditions. Technically, divisions between one group and...
) before taking up Presbyterianism
Presbyterianism
Presbyterianism refers to a number of Christian churches adhering to the Calvinist theological tradition within Protestantism, which are organized according to a characteristic Presbyterian polity. Presbyterian theology typically emphasizes the sovereignty of God, the authority of the Scriptures,...
, and worshipped in a private house from its founding in 1853 until a permanent church was provided in 1857; this was one of the oldest Presbyterian places of worship in southeast England. The growth of the community has resulted in several extensions since then, and severe damage caused by the Great Storm of 1987
Great Storm of 1987
The Great Storm of 1987 occurred on the night of 15/16 October 1987, when an unusually strong weather system caused winds to hit much of southern England and northern France...
was quickly repaired—except for the loss of the building's distinctive spire
Spire
A spire is a tapering conical or pyramidal structure on the top of a building, particularly a church tower. Etymologically, the word is derived from the Old English word spir, meaning a sprout, shoot, or stalk of grass....
. The church, along with most other Presbyterian congregations, joined the United Reformed Church when that denomination was formed in 1972. It is one of four United Reformed Churches in the borough of Hastings.
History
The manorManorialism
Manorialism, an essential element of feudal society, was the organizing principle of rural economy that originated in the villa system of the Late Roman Empire, was widely practiced in medieval western and parts of central Europe, and was slowly replaced by the advent of a money-based market...
of Stone was one of several medieval land divisions in the area now covered by Hastings. Its land covered a large, thinly populated area northwest of the ancient fishing port of Hastings. Ecclesiastically, it was a prebend
Prebendary
A prebendary is a post connected to an Anglican or Catholic cathedral or collegiate church and is a type of canon. Prebendaries have a role in the administration of the cathedral...
linked to the collegiate church
Collegiate church
In Christianity, a collegiate church is a church where the daily office of worship is maintained by a college of canons; a non-monastic, or "secular" community of clergy, organised as a self-governing corporate body, which may be presided over by a dean or provost...
of St Mary-in-the-Castle in the grounds of Hastings Castle
Hastings Castle
Hastings Castle is situated in the town of Hastings, East Sussex .Before or immediately after landing in England in 1066 William of Normandy ordered three fortifications to be built, Pevensey Castle in September 1066, Hastings and Dover, a few days after the battle. Hastings Castle was originally...
.
Much of the land in the manor was part of a single farm. Originally named Cildetona (farm of the heirs or children), the name became modernised to Childerton and later Chillington Farm, before being recorded as High Ridge Farm in 1714 (around the time it was bought by the Town Clerk of Hastings), Salver Hill Farm in 1785 and Silver Hill Farm before 1815. Around this time, Hastings and the high-class neighbouring planned development of St Leonards-on-Sea
St Leonards-on-Sea
St Leonards-on-Sea is part of Hastings, East Sussex, England, lying immediately to the west of the centre. The original part of the settlement was laid out in the early 19th century as a new town: a place of elegant houses designed for the well-off; it also included a central public garden, a...
had begun to develop rapidly as fashionable seaside resorts, helped by better transport connections and royal patronage. New turnpikes
Turnpike trust
Turnpike trusts in the United Kingdom were bodies set up by individual Acts of Parliament, with powers to collect road tolls for maintaining the principal highways in Britain from the 17th but especially during the 18th and 19th centuries...
were built northwards to Sedlescombe
Sedlescombe
Sedlescombe is a village and civil parish in the Rother District of East Sussex, England. The village is located north of Hastings.The parish lies within the High Weald Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The River Brede and its tributary the River Line flow through it; and Powdermill Reservoir is...
in 1837 and Battle
Battle, East Sussex
Battle is a small town and civil parish in the local government district of Rother in East Sussex, England. It lies south southeast of London, east of Brighton and east of the county town of Lewes...
the following year to reduce the road distance from Hastings and St Leonards-on-Sea to London; the roads met at Silver Hill Farm, and the area began to develop as a suburb, with a windmill
Windmill
A windmill is a machine which converts the energy of wind into rotational energy by means of vanes called sails or blades. Originally windmills were developed for milling grain for food production. In the course of history the windmill was adapted to many other industrial uses. An important...
, hotel (the Tivoli) and tearooms. By 1839, a combined pottery and brickworks building and cottages for its workers also existed.
Despite this development, by 1853 Silver Hill Farm was still a working farm. Francis Smith owned it and a local shopkeeper, George Street, was its tenant. Street employed a tutor, William Boyd, for his son. Boyd was a member of the United Presbyterian Church of Scotland
United Presbyterian Church of Scotland
The United Presbyterian Church of Scotland was a Scottish Presbyterian denomination. It was formed in 1847 by the union of the United Secession Church and the Relief Church, and in 1900 merged with the Free Church of Scotland to form the United Free Church of Scotland, which in turn united with...
and had recently studied theology
Theology
Theology is the systematic and rational study of religion and its influences and of the nature of religious truths, or the learned profession acquired by completing specialized training in religious studies, usually at a university or school of divinity or seminary.-Definition:Augustine of Hippo...
. Realising there were no churches (either Anglican
Anglicanism
Anglicanism is a tradition within Christianity comprising churches with historical connections to the Church of England or similar beliefs, worship and church structures. The word Anglican originates in ecclesia anglicana, a medieval Latin phrase dating to at least 1246 that means the English...
or Nonconformist
Nonconformism
Nonconformity is the refusal to "conform" to, or follow, the governance and usages of the Church of England by the Protestant Christians of England and Wales.- Origins and use:...
) nearby—the closest were the ancient Church in the Wood
Church in the Wood, Hollington
Church in the Wood, officially known as St Leonard's Church and originally as St Rumbold's Church, is an Anglican church in the Hollington area of the town and borough of Hastings, one of six local government districts in the English county of East Sussex...
at Hollington
Hollington, East Sussex
Hollington is a suburb and local government ward in the northwest of Hastings, East Sussex. The area lies next to Baldslow, Ashdown, North and Conquest, and less than five miles southeast of Battle, East Sussex, the home of Battle Abbey, which commemorates the victory of William the Conqueror at...
and the new St Leonard's Church, the centrepiece of James Burton's
James Burton (1761–1837)
James Burton was a builder and developer, responsible for large areas of Bloomsbury and the houses around Regent's Park in London. He later founded the new town of St Leonards-on-Sea, which is now part of the built-up area of Hastings...
St Leonards-on-Sea development—he decided to found one of his own. The resident of Providence Villa, a new house near the Tivoli Hotel, allowed Boyd to use one of his rooms for preaching. Boyd's mission was so successful that by 1855, the congregation was too large for the house and the meetings had to move to a public building (believed to be the hotel itself) nearby.
The meetings were "independent" (not linked to any denomination), and the congregation attended them instead of going to the Anglican churches at Hollington or St Leonards-on-Sea. In 1856, the vicars of both churches visited the meeting and spoke individually to members of the congregation, making clear their opposition:
Despite this opposition, Boyd decided to build a permanent chapel. By this time, his studies were nearly complete and he was about to be ordained into the Presbyterian Church, but the chapel was still intended to be primarily independent and non-denominational. A committee of eight trustees was drawn from the members of various local Anglican and Nonconformist churches who were supportive of the cause, and fundraising began. The landowner Francis Smith—who by this time was in financial difficulty and was about to sell Silver Hill Farm for housing and other development—sold some land for £50 (£ as of ), and the first chapel was designed by local architect Henry Carpenter and built for £370 (£ as of ) in a few months in 1857. (He later designed Christ Church in the Blacklands suburb of Hastings for the Anglican community there.) Boyd held the first service at Silver Hill Independent Chapel on 12 July 1857. A Sunday school
Sunday school
Sunday school is the generic name for many different types of religious education pursued on Sundays by various denominations.-England:The first Sunday school may have been opened in 1751 in St. Mary's Church, Nottingham. Another early start was made by Hannah Ball, a native of High Wycombe in...
was inaugurated the following week with 30 children.
From 1860, the pace of development increased in Silverhill (by now established as the name of the suburb). New terraced house
Terraced house
In architecture and city planning, a terrace house, terrace, row house, linked house or townhouse is a style of medium-density housing that originated in Great Britain in the late 17th century, where a row of identical or mirror-image houses share side walls...
s, villas and inns were built, and more of the farmland was sold. The Anglican community also established their own church in the suburb: St Matthew's Church
St Matthew's Church, Silverhill
St Matthew's Church is an Anglican church in the Silverhill suburb of Hastings, a town and borough in the English county of East Sussex. The present building, a large brick structure of 1884 by ecclesiastical architect John Loughborough Pearson, replaced a much smaller church founded in 1860 when...
was founded on 21 September 1860 by Sarah Waldegrave, Countess Waldegrave
Sarah Waldegrave, Countess Waldegrave
Sarah Waldegrave, Countess Waldegrave was a British philanthropist.Sarah Whitear was born in 1787, the daughter of Rev. William Whitear, a prebendary of Chichester, at Hastings Old Town Rectory. She later married Edward Milward, who later served as Mayor of Hastings several times and she inherited...
. It opened for worship in May 1861. By 1862, William Boyd and his immediate successor had left and a new minister, Walter Roberts, was in place. Under his ministry, the church joined the English Presbyterian Church
English Presbyterianism
Presbyterianism in England is distinct from Continental and Scottish forms of Presbyterianism. Whereas in Scotland, church government is based on a meeting of delegates, in England the individual congregation is the primary body of government...
, and the building was extended at a cost of £400 (£ as of )—despite attendances falling temporarily as some worshippers returned to the Anglican Communion and attended St Matthew's Church instead. By 1864, the fortunes of Silverhill Presbyterian Church (as it was now known) had improved, and the enlarged building was regularly full. More work was carried out in 1865, when a tower and a distinctive tall spire were added at the west end. At the same time, the nave
Nave
In Romanesque and Gothic Christian abbey, cathedral basilica and church architecture, the nave is the central approach to the high altar, the main body of the church. "Nave" was probably suggested by the keel shape of its vaulting...
was widened and a vestry
Vestry
A vestry is a room in or attached to a church or synagogue in which the vestments, vessels, records, etc., are kept , and in which the clergy and choir robe or don their vestments for divine service....
was built. £544.9s.6d
£sd
£sd was the popular name for the pre-decimal currencies used in the Kingdom of England, later the United Kingdom, and ultimately in much of the British Empire...
(£ as of ) was spent in total. New fittings added in the 1860s and 1870s included a harmonium
Harmonium
A harmonium is a free-standing keyboard instrument similar to a reed organ. Sound is produced by air being blown through sets of free reeds, resulting in a sound similar to that of an accordion...
, wooden rostrum, panelled lobby built by a local resident, a set of pews and a proper heating system. Meanwhile, the Sunday school was given its own separate premises when a schoolroom was built adjoining the chapel in 1878. George Clement, the tenant of Silver Hill Farm when the chapel was founded in 1853, donated some land and a third of the £296 (£ as of ) cost of construction. The chapel was closed during these renovations, but reopened on 26 May 1878.
The congregation continued to grow, and in the chapel's golden jubilee
Golden Jubilee
A Golden Jubilee is a celebration held to mark a 50th anniversary.- In Thailand :King Bhumibol Adulyadej, the world's longest-reigning monarch, celebrated his Golden Jubilee on 9 June 1996.- In the Commonwealth Realms :...
year of 1907 a "Jubilee Fund" was begun to raise money for further extensions. £700 (£ as of ) had been pledged by 1909. The former schoolroom was demolished and replaced with a larger hall with subsidiary rooms, a chancel
Chancel
In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar in the sanctuary at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building...
was added to the chapel, the sanctuary was refitted with new wooden fixtures and a stone font
Baptismal font
A baptismal font is an article of church furniture or a fixture used for the baptism of children and adults.-Aspersion and affusion fonts:...
, and the building received electric light for the first time. Work started on 5 August 1909 and was completed about 10 weeks later, when the hall and chancel were dedicated.
In the 1920s, Silverhill Presbyterian Church was renamed St Luke's Presbyterian Church after a vote was taken on which of three saints—Luke
Luke the Evangelist
Luke the Evangelist was an Early Christian writer whom Church Fathers such as Jerome and Eusebius said was the author of the Gospel of Luke and the Acts of the Apostles...
, Stephen
Saint Stephen
Saint Stephen The Protomartyr , the protomartyr of Christianity, is venerated as a saint in the Roman Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran, Oriental Orthodox and Eastern Orthodox Churches....
or Andrew
Saint Andrew
Saint Andrew , called in the Orthodox tradition Prōtoklētos, or the First-called, is a Christian Apostle and the brother of Saint Peter. The name "Andrew" , like other Greek names, appears to have been common among the Jews from the 3rd or 2nd century BC. No Hebrew or Aramaic name is recorded for him...
—to dedicate it to. The intention was to give the church a "more memorable" name. A series of stained glass
Stained glass
The term stained glass can refer to coloured glass as a material or to works produced from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant buildings...
memorial windows were donated in 1923. World War II had no significant effect on the church, although it was used as a shelter for people displaced from their homes by bomb damage, and by the Ministry of Labour
Ministry of Labour
The Ministry of Labour was a British civil service department established by the New Ministries and Secretaries Act 1916. It was renamed the Employment Department in 1988, and finally abolished in 1995...
as a base from which to make payments to vulnerable people. During World War I, soldiers had been based in the church hall, and 25 years later a similar thing happened when the manse
Manse
A manse is a house inhabited by, or formerly inhabited by, a minister, usually used in the context of a Presbyterian, Methodist, Baptist or United Church...
(the minister's house) was requisitioned
Eminent domain
Eminent domain , compulsory purchase , resumption/compulsory acquisition , or expropriation is an action of the state to seize a citizen's private property, expropriate property, or seize a citizen's rights in property with due monetary compensation, but without the owner's consent...
for army use. New members also joined the congregation during World War II: worshippers at St Columba's Presbyterian Church on the northwest corner of Warrior Square, St Leonards-on-Sea, were displaced when their church (founded in 1883) was destroyed by a bomb in 1942.
The church joined the new United Reformed
United Reformed Church
The United Reformed Church is a Christian church in the United Kingdom. It has approximately 68,000 members in 1,500 congregations with some 700 ministers.-Origins and history:...
denomination in 1972, and took in former members of the Red Lake Congregational Church in Ore when that church closed in 1973. (Founded in 1903 and built by important local architect Henry Ward
Henry Ward (architect)
Henry Ward ARIBA was the architect of many large public buildings in and around Hastings, East Sussex, some of which are listed buildings.-Biography:...
, the building survived until its demolition in 1980.) In 1979, a joint pastor
Pastor
The word pastor usually refers to an ordained leader of a Christian congregation. When used as an ecclesiastical styling or title, this role may be abbreviated to "Pr." or often "Ps"....
ate was created when St Luke's Church was administratively joined to the smaller St Mark's Church in the Blacklands area of Hastings. A third church, in the nearby town of Rye
Rye, East Sussex
Rye is a small town in East Sussex, England, which stands approximately two miles from the open sea and is at the confluence of three rivers: the Rother, the Tillingham and the Brede...
, was added to the pastorate in 1980, but after this church closed in 1986 the pastorate was dissolved and St Luke's Church administered its own affairs again.
Overnight on 15/16 October 1987—the night of the Great Storm
Great Storm of 1987
The Great Storm of 1987 occurred on the night of 15/16 October 1987, when an unusually strong weather system caused winds to hit much of southern England and northern France...
, one of Britain's most disastrous weather events—St Luke's Church was severely damaged by the winds, which gusted to hurricane force. At about 7.00am, the spire was torn from the tower and flung through the roof of the north aisle, from which it protruded at a hazardous angle—threatening the terraced houses opposite. After the storm subsided, a crane lifted the spire out of the church and left it in the garden while the rest of the building was repaired. The church hall was used for worship until temporary repairs were carried out. Other churches in Hastings offered assistance: the Roman Catholic Church of St Thomas of Canterbury and English Martyrs
Church of St Thomas of Canterbury and English Martyrs, St Leonards-on-Sea
The Church of St Thomas of Canterbury and English Martyrs is the Roman Catholic church serving St Leonards-on-Sea, a town and seaside resort which is part of the Borough of Hastings in East Sussex, England...
hosted weddings, and St Matthew's Church raised money from special collections. Rebuilding work, which included a new vestry and larger kitchen, was completed in time for a reopening ceremony on 29 April 1990. The spire was taken away for repair, but could not be saved; the tower was rebuilt and a much smaller "cap"-style spire was added in its place. (Coincidentally, St Leonards-on-Sea United Reformed Church
St Leonards-on-Sea United Reformed Church
St Leonards-on-Sea United Reformed Church is a former United Reformed church in St Leonards-on-Sea, part of the town and borough of Hastings in East Sussex, England...
also lost its spire during the storm; it was never replaced.)
In 2000, a clock was inset into the front wall of the tower as a celebration of the millennium, and a new wooden font was donated in 2003. In the same year, the minister moved to a new, larger manse
Manse
A manse is a house inhabited by, or formerly inhabited by, a minister, usually used in the context of a Presbyterian, Methodist, Baptist or United Church...
.
Architecture
Henry Carpenter's chapel has been added to several times since its construction in 1857, but still retains its Early English Gothic appearance. It is built entirely of stone, and has a tower at the west end (now with a low pyramid-shaped spire), an aisled nave, chancel, partly glazed wooden porch, vestry, kitchen and a large attached hall. The windows are mostly lancetsLancet window
A lancet window is a tall narrow window with a pointed arch at its top. It acquired the "lancet" name from its resemblance to a lance. Instances of this architectural motif are most often found in Gothic and ecclesiastical structures, where they are often placed singly or in pairs.The motif first...
; some have stained glass
Stained glass
The term stained glass can refer to coloured glass as a material or to works produced from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant buildings...
.
The church today
As of 2010, St Luke's Church is one of four United Reformed churches in the borough of Hastings. The others are St Mark's Church at Blacklands, Clive Vale United Reformed Church in the Clive Vale area and Robertson Street United Reformed Church in Hastings town centre. All four are in the Southern Synod, one of 13 SynodSynod
A synod historically is a council of a church, usually convened to decide an issue of doctrine, administration or application. In modern usage, the word often refers to the governing body of a particular church, whether its members are meeting or not...
s in Great Britain, which is responsible for 168 United Reformed churches in southeast England. The former St Leonards-on-Sea United Reformed Church
St Leonards-on-Sea United Reformed Church
St Leonards-on-Sea United Reformed Church is a former United Reformed church in St Leonards-on-Sea, part of the town and borough of Hastings in East Sussex, England...
held its last service in 2002 and was officially closed in 2008.
Hastings historian J. Manwaring Baines considered Silverhill Independent Chapel to be the most important church built during the town's 19th-century growth "in view of its determination to overcome all difficulties". When it joined the Presbyterian church in 1862, it became one of the first such churches in southeast England. On 5 October 1972, the congregation joined the newly formed United Reformed Church
United Reformed Church
The United Reformed Church is a Christian church in the United Kingdom. It has approximately 68,000 members in 1,500 congregations with some 700 ministers.-Origins and history:...
denomination, created from the merger of those English Presbyterian churches which had voted in, those Congregational churches which had not opted out, and congregations of the Re-formed Church of Christ. It has been known since then as St Luke's United Reformed Church.