Christ Church Hartlepool Art Gallery - This Old Church on Waymarking.com

Christ Church was the first church built to cater for the newly arrived population of West Hartlepool.

It was sited in the centre of Church Square, West Hartlepool. In recent years, it has become Hartlepool’s Art Gallery.

Ralph Ward Jackson, founder of West Hartlepool, wanted a church for his new town. The town had grown rapidly, after the opening of the first dock and harbour, in 1847. By 1851 there were over 4000 people working in the new town; in the next ten years this would increase to over 29,000. Ralph Ward Jackson believed that it was his responsibility to provide for the spiritual needs of the town. He took it upon himself to find the money to build the church.

Edward Buckton Lamb, a respected London architect, won the architectural competition set up by Ward Jackson in March 1852. The winner was commissioned to design the new church. Lamb had worked on similar designs for churches before. His winning design was too large and too expensive for Ward Jacksons budget. The church building that still stands is from his second design.

It is difficult to work out how much it cost to build Christ Church. The stone to build the church came free of charge from Ralph Ward Jacksons excavation for Jackson Dock. Ralph Ward Jackson said in 1856 that it cost £8,000 (£385,800 today) of which £7,800 was provided by him, his family and friends. He did not keep separate records of his private income and that of the Hartlepool West Harbour and Railway Company. This failing was to cause him trouble in later years when he was accused of misspending his companys funds. Ralph Ward Jackson also gave a large sum of money to finance the building of a parsonage in Church Square, which cost £1,200 (£57,867 today) in 1856

As well as the limestone, pieces of prehistoric bog oak (ancient trees preserved in peat) were found during the excavations. The churchs wooden altar rails were made from it. The outside of the church has little decoration other than the anchor on the south gable end of the building. The tower at Christ Churchs western end is 100 feet (30.48 metres) high. The little spire in the south east corner of the tower adds another 25 feet. (7.6 metres.)

A peal of six bells by Taylor and Son of Loughbrough cost £400, (£19,290 today) and the church organ was built by James Langley of Greatham Village (about five kilometres outside Hartlepool). The tower was not fitted with a clock until 1921.

The Church was consecrated (opened for worship) at a service conducted by the Bishop of Durham, Bishop Maltby, on 20th April 1854. The prayers were read by Rev. John Hart Burges, the first vicar of Christ Church. When first opened, Christ Church contained 1,000 seats. 700 were available on a subscription basis, the wealthy members of the parish renting seats annually for themselves, their families and servants. 300 seats were free for the poor.

Christ Church settled down to become a busy parish church. It served the area for many years, but congregations began to decline following the Second World War. People moved out of the area to new houses that were being built on estates on the outskirts of town. The streets of small, cramped terraced houses that had been built around the church in the mid 19th century were demolished in the 1970s. Shops, offices, a Fire Station, and a College of Further Education replaced them. With its congregation gone, the church had to close. The last service was held on 10th June 1973.

Eventually Hartlepool Borough Council bought Christ Church from the church authorities. The building was falling into disrepair, and for a time was under threat of demolition. This provoked a spirited campaign by the local Civic Society, who began lobbying to save the old church. In 1982 the Department of the Environment listed Christ Church as a Grade II* Building of Historic and Architectural Interest. This places it just below the top rating for the most architecturally or historically important buildings in the country. In 1986 a structural survey showed that the building was basically still sound. It was not until the early 1990s, however, that the Council found funding to restore the building. This came mostly from Hartlepool City Challenge, with support from English Heritage and the Sports and Arts Foundation.

Work started in 1994 and included the erection of a new staircase and a viewing platform at the top of the tower. The church bells were also returned to working order. The repaired and restored building, costing £2.25m, reopened to the public on 5th January 1996.It is now houses an Art Gallery with a changing programme of art and craft exhibitions, as well as a Tourist Information Centre, cafe and craft and gift shop.

Date the Church was built, dedicated or cornerstone laid: 04/20/1854 Age of Church building determined by?: Other reliable source If Church is open to the public, please indicate hours: From: 10:00 AM To: 5:30 PM Street address of Church: Hartlepool Art Gallery Christ Church Church Square Hartlepool, United Kingdom TS24 7EQ If denomination of Church is not part of the name, please provide it here: Not listed If Church holds a weekly worship service and "all are welcome", please give the day of the week: Not listed Indicate the time that the primary worship service is held. List only one: Not Listed Primary website for Church or Historic Church Building: Not listed Secondary Website for Church or Historic Church Building: Not listed

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