18900411 The Renovated Church p317

Besides this Chancel (which includes also an Organ chamber and Vestry) Mr. Drew’s plans provide for a tenth aisle, which will accommodate 200 persons, a new roof for the Nave; new windows, corresponding to the ornate character of the new work and the conversion of the present Vestry room suits a spacious and handsome Porch.

Mr Drew has supplied the following notes on the general character after alterations & additions. “The first case is the improved Church has been to provide a worthy chancel. It has been devised by extracting its Eastern Wall as far as the Churchyard boundary would permit, and by taking some length from the Nave. The plans provide thus for a well-proportioned chancel 25 feet long by 17 ½ ft wide, opening to the Nave with a lofty chancel arch, and on the north and south sides with like arches to the organ chamber and Vestry, and to a lateral aisle respectively. The chancel is a memorial, and the last named feature, while it gives additional seating room would be specially suitable as a kind of location for monuments or memorials on the pinnacles

The parishioners’ addition to the church consists of a southern aisle 37 ½ ft long and21 ft wide and giving 200 additional seats. It opens into the Nave with these lofty pointed arches and give additional architectural character and interest when heretofore four square building. There remains the Nave of this somewhat unusual proportion of 65ft. of length to 30 ½ ft in breadth, to be brought into architectural character, with a low pitched roof, which it would not be desirable to raise higher. It was at first proposed merely to remove the ceiling and case into the old roof and make it as fairly presentable as possible. By the additional generosity of the Baroness von Steiglitz, however a new roof and a handsome arch? is found, and the Architect has met the difficulties of proportion by adopting a treatment in the manner of 15^th Century architecture which lends itself to lower pitched roofs and wider spans. The roof of the Nave, Aisle and chancel are accordingly of a design not usual in other churches in the Diocese, a four centred arched framing, springing from hammer beams and all richly moulded and peculiarly massive and bearing in character of old examples of the 15^th century English roofs. They will be of pitch pine, left untouched after the carpenter’s tools, without varnishing, it being found that pitch pine treated in this way assumes in time an appearance as pleasing as that of old oak

The old Vestry in the North side, becomes a spacious and imposing porch, encased and adorned with cut stone dressings, butresses and pinnacles. The windows in new additions as well as the old offerings in the Nave, will be large and handsome traceried stone windows, designed in the same consistent “perpendicular” style, as the rest of the work, and especially adapted for effective filling with stained glass at a future day.

“ The new seats will of course be open and of the best kind,, according to modern ideas for convenience of worshipping“

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