Baptism Font - St Peter in the City - Derby, Derbyshire - Stone Church Artefacts on Waymarking.com

A stone font in St Peter's church in Derby City. Octagonal font, presumably victorian.

V"It is believed that St. Peter’s church was founded in the reign of Edward the Confessor which began in 1042 so; there has been a church on the site for nearly 1000 years.
Some lettering on the pillars is the remains of Norman craftsmanship with St Peter’s being listed in the Doomsday Book in 1086. Later, in 1137, the church came under the jurisdiction of the Abbot of Darley Abbey.

A significant proportion of the existing building dates back to the medieval period when, in 1338, the south aisle and Chantry were added by the first curate – John de Crich.Paul Morris

The reign of Henry VII (1485 – 1509) saw major rebuilding and extension including the rebuilding of the tower and adding the two-floor vestry with a “squint” window in the upper vestry so that the clergy could view the high alter.

The Liversage Trust currently manages Alms houses on London Road and the vicar and churchwardens are still ex-officio trustees because Robert Liversage’s 1531 will bequeathed most of his property to the benefit of the poor of the parish.

Oliver Cromwell stole an Elizabethan chair that had been presented to St. Peter’s in 1593. Amazingly, the chair was discovered at an auction in 1960 and one of the churchwardens at the time negotiated its return to the church.

Bell ringers at St. Peter’s are able to toll bells that were manufactured in about 1636 and one of the three original bells has never had to be recast. The bells were no doubt rung to mark the passing of Percival Willughby (reputed to be the first gynaecologist), Henry Mellor (the first Mayor of Derby) and many others.

The hymn “Hark my Soul” is believed to have been written in the upper vestry by William Cowper in 1768. As the number of worshippers grew, galleries were added to the church in the period 1793 to 1827 but these were removed by the Victorians in the 1850s. The Victorians added the East window and in1865 built an organ chamber by the vestries.

In 1919, the patronage of St. Peter’s passed to the Church Pastoral Aid Society (CPAS who remain as patrons) and has maintained an “evangelical outlook ever since. Serious consideration was given to closing the church completely in 1969 because of the dwindling congregation but the appointment of a new vicar was to breathe new life into the church which is now exploring new ways of serving the people and community around it. Further changes are being made to the building to make it more accessible, and in keeping with the past an extension is being planned to the church hall so that the service to the community may continue as it has for the last 1000 years.
The Flemish chest also dates back to the 14th century"

SOURCE - (visit link)

Approximate Age of Artefact: Not listed Relevant Website: Not listed

Visit Instructions:
Please supply an original picture when visiting this waymark.

Recent Visits/Logs:

There are no logs for this waymark yet.