A Brief History
Sketch by Geoff
Warburton which was published in the 'Blackcountryman'
the magazine of the Black Country Society, Summer, 2000.
Reproduced
by kind permission of the artist.
Amblecote
Amblecote
appears in the Domesday Book as Am-bel-coit, or Elme-le-cote
the exact meaning of which is unclear but could possibly refer to the
wooded or rural nature of the area. It lay on the South Western fringe of
the Black Country and formed part of the Manor of Enville (Enfield),
property of the Earls of Stamford and Warrington.
Amblecote was only a tiny hamlet with an equally small population. In
1662 it had approximately 300 inhabitants; in 1812 this had grown to
just over a thousand; by 1862 the figure had risen to just over two
thousand and by the end of the nineteenth century the number had
passed three thousand.
In 1838
the hamlet was just a sprinkling of cottages along the turnpike
together with some six gentlemen's mansions further away from the
road. Its Parish Church was St. Mary's, Old Swinford, the Mother
Church of Stourbridge as well as Amblecote, which was a two mile
walk from Brettell Lane.
©
Bill Hazlehurst and used by kind permission of the artist.
A link to Bill's website (Memory Corner) can be found on the "Links"
Page
The Building of Holy
Trinity
With the
increasing population and growing importance of the area it
was considered that Amblecote should have a church of its own, and
in 1838 the Lord of the Manor was approached with a request that he
should assist the project.
On
February 20th, 1839 at a meeting in the Talbot Hotel, Stourbridge,
a letter from The Earl of Stamford and Warrington (dated 20th December,
1838) offered two acres of land and £300 towards the erection of a
Church in the hamlet of Amblecote together with an annual endowment
of £100.
At a
subsequent meeting held in the Public Offices, Stourbridge, on
23rd April, 1839 a committee of twelve was set up to see the project
through its building stage. This group decided that the Church should
be constructed from brick and faced with Fire-Brick, supplied at cost
by William King of Amblcote Hall from his Withymoor works,
which gives the
building its distinctive old gold colour.
The
Church, we believe but have not yet been able to verify, was
designed in an Early English style by Samuel Heming.
By the
beginning of July, 1839 the actual site had been agreed and
subscriptions to the building fund now totalled £2,082.18s. 0d.
On 7th
August, 1841 the first stone of the building was laid by James
Foster Esq. and prayers were said by the Rector of Old Swinford,
the Rev. C. H. Crauford.
The
Church was opened for divine service (at a total cost of £4,280 7s. 8d.
but not including the Iron Railings given by James Foster valued at £500)
on Sunday, 7th August, 1842, and was Consecrated in November, 1844.
It took until 30th June, 1849 to raise all the money.
Amblecote became a separate parish in 1845
On
October 28th, 1849 the Organ, built by J. Nicholson, was opened and
an Organist appointed. Three years later the Clock was placed in the Tower.
In 1856
the East Window was installed in memory of James Foster, the cost
met by his former employees at John Bradley & Co. Iron Works and by
friends. Mr. Foster was the largest contributor to the subscription list for
the building of the Church.
Between
1902 and 1906 large changes took place. The pews were replaced
with chairs and the Choir Stalls, Lectern and Font introduced. The Organ
was enlarged. The Pulpit followed in 1915, the Lych Gate in 1921 and in
1922 the Church Hall was built by J. Guest and Son at a cost of £950.
In 1966
a peal of eight bells was hung in the Tower. In 1972 the extended
sanctuary and free standing High Altar were introduced. In recent years
toilets were constructed in the S.W. porch and Committee Rooms in the
West of the Gallery.
Taken
from a print of Holy Trinity in its early days which now hangs in the
Vestry.
The Worship at Holy
Trinity
The
style of worship which developed at Holy Trinity would appear
to have been highly influenced by the 'Oxford Movement' and the
'Tractarians'. Through a succession of incumbents the style of
teaching gradually became more 'Catholic' or * 'High
Church' with
an
increasing importance attached to ceremonial. For instance on Good
Friday, 1892 an entry in the Register reads 'Stations of the Cross'.
By 1904 daily Celebrations of the Holy Communion had been instituted
and from Easter 1910 there appears to have been Sung Mass every
Sunday, a tradition which, from then onwards, has been maintained.
*
The
title 'High Church' merely signifies that the importance of the Church, its
Divine nature and origin, its apostolic order, its Catholicity as affirmed in
the
Creeds, was held in high repute.
'Low Church' is more concerned with the Individual, and not with the
authority of the Church.
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