SAINT MATTHEW'S ANGLICAN CHURCH GUILDFORD, WESTERN AUSTRALIA

A Guide for Visitors to the church·

Welcome to our historic Parish Church. We hope you will spend some time in quiet prayer while you are here. As you look around the Church, please do so quietly if others are at prayer.

Historic Notes on Saint Matthew’s

The present building, designed by Mr. F. Sherwood of Guildford, is the third St Matthew's Church in Guildford, and the second on this site.

The First Saint Matthew’s

In September 1836, Governor Stirling laid the foundation stone of the Australian Church Missionary Society Guildford Church on a piece of land alongside where the Guildford Grammar School Chapel now stands. He had gifted this land from his “Woodbridge” Estate. There had been a Brush Church in Perth since 1830, but this was the first solid Church in the Swan River Colony.

The first Rector of the Guildford Church was Reverend Dr Guistiniani who stayed until 13th February 1838.

The Reverend William Mitchell was to take his place in August that year and was still the Rector when Bishop Augustus Short, during his first visit to the colony, consecrated the Guildford Mission Church as Saint Matthew's on the 22nd November 1848.

However, this first Saint Matthew’s soon fell into disrepair, and the second Saint Matthew's was planned.

The second Saint Matthew’s Church

In 1858, the then Rector, the Reverend William Dacres Williams, requested that the government assist with the building of a new Church in central Guildford in the area designated in the plans first drawn for Guildford in 1829. The site of the present Saint Matthew's was chosen and an acre of Stirling Square was given to the Church. Governor Kennedy's wife laid the foundation stone in March 1860. The Church was completed and consecrated by Bishop Hale on the 26th September 1860.

Our records do not provide the original capacity, but in 1870, the building was enlarged to accommodate a further 90 parishioners. However, it was only to serve another two years before a hurricane completely destroyed this building. This tragedy occurred on 10th March 1872 as a baptism was about to take place. Luckily no one was injured.

In the porch are photos of the 1860-1872 church taken both before and after the hurricane.

The resident Chaplain and Churchwardens issued an appeal for aid to build another church. Part of the appeal read:

"The first intimation of danger came from the orderly, who called out to the Chaplain, whilst officiating at a Baptism, that the Church was falling. The party had barely time to escape from the building when the bell tower and Church wall fell. The gale, which had now increased to a hurricane, had such an effect on the Church that it was very evident that nothing could save it. At every fresh blast, the building rocked to and fro, the cracks opening and the roof heaving terribly. At about 11.30, a stronger blast than usual brought the whole building down. Our warning of the dangerous state of the Church was so short that scarcely any of the furniture was saved. The Font, the Pulpit, the reading desk, and the seats were either totally destroyed or much injured. At the risk of their lives, several volunteers entered the Church and succeeded in rescuing the harmonium and a few books, but nothing more could be done. The ruin is most complete, the whole of the nave having fallen, and the chancel and vestry walls are so shaken that they will have to be taken down. In the midst of our great trouble, we have much cause for thankfulness that there was no loss of life or limb, for had the building fallen during Divine Service, many must have been killed."

The Third and present Saint Matthew’s

The Parishioners of Guildford immediately commenced rebuilding, and the third Church was built on a larger scale. This is the present building. It was consecrated on October 15th 1873 by Bishop Mathew Blagden Hale. Bishop Hale was Archdeacon of Adelaide in 1848 and was present when Bishop Short consecrated the first Saint Matthew's.

The Exterior of the Building, apart from the roof, remains much the same as when it was built. The roof was originally covered by wooden shingles, but in 1926 these were damaged by fire and so were replaced by the present tiles. The fire was caused by a spark from a garden rubbish fire during a cleanup for a wedding the following week. There was no fire damage to the interior of the church, but the interior did suffer extensive water damage, resulting in the need to render the interior walls. The wedding and church services were held in the church hall until the church was reopened on the 5th June 1927.