All Saints Anglican Church

Item details


Name of item:	All Saints Anglican Church
Type of item:	Built
Group/Collection:	Religion
Category:	Church
Primary address:	1 McDonnell Street, Condobolin, NSW 2877
Parish:	Condobolin
County:	Cunningham
Local govt. area:	Lachlan

All addresses

Street Address	Suburb/town	LGA	Parish	County	Type
1 McDonnell Street	Condobolin	Lachlan	Condobolin	Cunningham	Primary Address

Statement of significance:


	All Saints Anglican Parish Church is significant because of its historical associations with the spread and development of the Anglican faith in the region. It is associated with prominent Colonial identities such as Samuel Marsden, Edmund Blackett an John Lamb Lyon. The Church is an aesthetically pleasing building, held in high esteem by the local and broader community. It has the potential, through detailed research to reveal further information about its architectural design. All Saints Church contains a rare intact set of windows by Lyon, Cottier & Co. and significant elaborately carved furniture.
	Date significance updated: 21 Jun 06
	Note: The State Heritage Inventory provides information about heritage items listed by local and State government agencies. The State Heritage Inventory is continually being updated by local and State agencies as new information becomes available. Read the Department of Premier and Cabinet copyright and disclaimer.

Description


Designer/Maker:	Possibly Edmund Blackett
Builder/Maker:	Mr Brinsmead
Construction years:	1878-1879
Physical description:	Brick Church built on sandstone foundations with 300mm walls and external buttresses. The brick was made locally. Internal walls are white plaster. Double pitched gabled roof. Aluminium tiled roof (previously shingles).
Physical condition and/or Archaeological potential:	Excellent, apart from minor damp in wall near Marsden Street entry
	Date condition updated:11 Nov 03
Modifications and dates:	Windows restored in 1978. Cement paths and surrounds laid in the 1960s.
Further information:	Cement surrounding the Church and foundations should be removed and replaced with gravel.


Current use:	Church
Former use:	Church

History

Historical notes:

The foundation stone of All Saints Church was laid on 24 July 1878 by Bishop Samuel Marsden. The first service in the new Church was conducted on 4 January 1880. Prior to construction of the Church it appears that services were initially held in the open air. Then in about 1872 services were held in the home of Mr Piercey, the Schoolmaster. Subsequently services were held in the Courthouse until the new Church was built. At this time Priests would travel from Forbes to Condobolin to conduct the Services.

The first Priest actually resident in Condobolin was the Rev. G Soare who was licensed to reside at the Naroonage. He resigned in 1876 and was succeeded by The Rev. Samuel Hart. In 1879, Rev. Hart resigned and in that same year the Parish of Condobolin was established. On 21 December the Rev Henry Thomas Holliday was licensed as Assistant Minister, under the superintendency of the Rev. E. Dunstan (Rector of Forbes) and appointed to reside at Condobolin. He arrived in Condobolin just after the completion of All Saints Church and conducted the first service on 4 January 1880.

The builder of the new Church was Mr Brinsmead. It was constructed from local bricks and was reputedly the first brick building in Condobolin. The roof was of ironbark shingles (which were later replaced by aluminium tiles) and the furniture was made from local timbers. The original pews still remain in the Church. Although the records do not specifically state the name of the Architect it is possible that it was built from a design by Colonial Architect, Edmund Blacket. Plans of St Augustines at Bulli (held by the Mitchell Library) which was designed by Blacket, are very similar to All Saints Church. The plan of St Augustines, as originally built before the addition of a sanctuary, is identical to that of All Saints, except that All Saints has one less window on each side, plus buttresses on the exterior walls. The western walls, windows and bell towers are identical. All Saints, Condobolin is also similar to All Saints, Albion Park which was built of stone in the mid-1870s. It is possible that All Saints, Condobolin adapted a Blackett design that was in general use during the 1870s and 1880s.

The windows of All Saints are highly significant. They were installed when the Church was built. The windows were given as gifts and memorials by many of the early settlers, whose names appear on the windows. They were produced by Lyon, Cottier & Co., in a style known as "Grissaile". Lyon, Cottier & Co created much of Australia's Victorian and Federation period stained glass. They were the foremost stained glass manufacturers in Australia and became famous in domestic, commercial and ecclesiastical work. Lyon (who lived in Sydney) was the window designer and glass painter whilst Cottier kept the firm up to date with the latest overseas developments. Their company had an offices in London and Sydney, whilst Cottier had a studio in New York. John Lamb Lyon won international and national awards for his work. A full set of original Lyon & Cottier windows of the quality of these are rare today. They were restored in 1978.

In 1940 the shingled roof was replaced by aluminium tiles which caused a sensation at the time, due to the glare caused when the sun shone on it. In the late 1920s new ecclesiastical furniture was added to the Church. The furniture is elaborately carved and made in a style called "tabernacle work". The pieces are: two Bishop's Thrones, the Altar, Credence Table, Prayer Desk, Lectern and Font. The elaborately carved Font was displayed at the Brisbane Exhibition before being placed in the Church. The first Rectory for the Parish was built in 1886 in what was then known as Chruch Lane but now is known as Marsden Street. It was sold in 1917. A new Rectory was built on the corner of Orange and McDonnell Streets. The foundation stone of the new Rectory was laid on 29 September 1916 and the building was completed in February 1917. This building was sold in 2002 and a new demountable Church House was installed in the grounds of All Saints Church in 2002. This new Church House is used as an office and for the visiting Priests, as there is no longer a permanent Priest based in Condobolin. Behind the Church and the new Rectory is the Church Hall.

Historic themes

Australian theme (abbrev)	New South Wales theme	Local theme
8. Culture-Developing cultural institutions and ways of life	Religion-Activities associated with particular systems of faith and worship	Church-

Assessment of significance


SHR Criteria a) [Historical significance]	All Saints Anglican Parish Church demonstrates strong historical associations with the establishment of the Anglican faith in the region and in Condobolin.
SHR Criteria b) [Associative significance]	All Saints Anglican Parish Church is associated with the establishment of the Anglican faith in Condobolin. It is also associated with three significant people in Australia's Colonial history: Samuel Marsden, Edmund Blackett and John Lamb Lyon.
SHR Criteria c) [Aesthetic significance]	The design of All Saints Anglican Parish Church demonstrates the technical and creative excellence of Edmund Blackett. The windows of the Church are particularly significant demonstrating the creative and technical excellence of John Lamb Lyon. The overall appearance of the Church and its setting is aesthetically pleasing.
SHR Criteria d) [Social significance]	All Saints Parish Anglican Church is esteemed by the local and broader Christian community for its cultural and aesthetic value, as well as its spiritual associations. It is valued by the general community for association with Condobolin's early spiritual development and the early establishment of facilities within the region.
SHR Criteria e) [Research potential]	All Saints Anglican Parish Church has the potential to yield further information in respect of its design and construction. It provides evidence of the creative achievements of John Lamb Lyon.
SHR Criteria f) [Rarity]	All Saints Anglican Parish Church provides evidence of the creative and innovative techniques of Victorian glass making and design. It contains a rare complete set of windows designed by Lyon, Cottier & Co.
SHR Criteria g) [Representativeness]	All Saints Anglican Parish Church is representative of Edmund Blackett's standard ecclesiastical architectural designs.
Integrity/Intactness:	All Saints Parish Church, its fixtures, fittings an interior design contains a high degree of integrity and intactness.
Assessment criteria:	Items are assessed against the State Heritage Register (SHR) Criteria to determine the level of significance. Refer to the Listings below for the level of statutory protection.

Recommended management:

A Conservation Management Plan should be prepared to guide all future management and maintenance of this item. This should be undertaken prior to any proposed alterations, additions or changes. A Statement of Heritage Impact should be prepared to assess the impact of any such proposals on the significance of the site. If the CMP has not been prepared at the time of such proposed changes it should be prepared prior to the SHI. The SHI should take into account the CMP and any relevant recommendations.

Listings

Heritage Listing	Listing Title	Listing Number	Gazette Date	Gazette Number	Gazette Page
Local Environmental Plan	Lachlan Local Environmental Plan 2013	I3	09 Aug 13
Local Environmental Plan - Lapsed	Schedule 1	1991	20 Sep 91	132	8245
Heritage study	All Saints Anglican Parish Church	1900014	11 Nov 03

Study details

Title	Year	Number	Author	Inspected by	Guidelines used
Lachlan Shire Heritage Study	2004	1900014	Lachlan Shire Council	Jillian Comber	Yes

References, internet links & images

Type	Author	Year	Title
Written	Lachlan Shire Council	1991	Local Environmental Plan (Item 1 of Schedule 1)
Written	National Trust of Australia (NSW)		National Trust Register
Written	Rev James Askey Pettigrew	1979	"As it was in the Beginning": a History of the Parish of All Saints, Condobolin

Note: internet links may be to web pages, documents or images.

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Data source


The information for this entry comes from the following source:
Name:	Local Government
Database number:	1900014

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