County of church: Callaway County
Original Location: Lombard Street and Gracechurch Street, London, England
Current Location: 7th St. & Westminster Ave., Fulton, Missouri, United States
"St. Mary Aldermanbury was a church in the City of London first mentioned in 1181 and destroyed by the Great Fire of London in 1666. Rebuilt in Portland stone by Christopher Wren, it was again gutted by the Blitz in 1940, leaving only the walls standing. In 1966 these stones were transported to Fulton, Missouri, by the residents of that town, and rebuilt in the grounds of Westminster College as a memorial to Winston Churchill. Churchill had made his Sinews of Peace, "Iron Curtain" speech in the Westminster College Gymnasium in 1946.
"The footprint of the church remains at the junction of London's Aldermanbury and Love Lane, planted with bushes and trees; to this footprint has been added a memorial plaque placed by Westminster College. The gardens also house a monument to Henry Condell and John Heminges, key figures in the production of the First Folio of William Shakespeare's plays and co-partners with him in the Globe Theatre. Condell and Heminges lived in the St. Mary Aldermanbury parish and were buried in its churchyard. This monument is topped with a bust of Shakespeare. The remains of the church were designated a Grade II listed building on 5 June 1972. The monuments are separately listed.
"In the 1830s, the notable missionary William Jowett was a lecturer at the church.
"Notable burials in the church included the notorious "hanging judge" Judge Jeffreys and the Puritan author and minister James Janeway and his father, William." ~ Wikipedia
"The story of the Church of St. Mary the Virgin, Aldermanbury is a story of survival - in the midst of rebellion, plague, fire, and war. Despite many calamities, this church has been an active place of worship for more than 800 years.
"The church was founded in the late 11th or early 12th century within what is now the historic City of London. A medieval parish church, it was responsible for the religious well-being of persons within its geographical area. Sometime before the 16th century it received an endowment from the "late Alderman Bury of London," acknowledged in the church's name.
"The parish and church grew with the City of London and shared all of its struggles. It survived both the English Reformation and Restoration, becoming one of the prominent Puritan parishes of the 17th century. Even civil war and plague did not stop the parish's development.
"But what social change and upheaval could not stop, fire did. On 2 September 1666 the Great Fire of London began, burning for five days. When it finally burned out, the city of London north of the Thames - including the entire parish of St. Mary the Virgin, Aldermanbury - lay in ruins.
"This was the prelude to the first rebirth of the church.
"Like the mythical Phoenix - the bird reborn from fire to live again - St. Mary the Virgin, of Aldermanbury emerged from the ashes of London.
"With so much of London in ruin after the Great Fire, parish churches may not have been the first priority for reconstruction, and many churches were not rebuilt at all. However, St. Mary the Virgin, Aldermanbury would be the ninth church restored, placing it among the earliest.
"With approval for rebuilding granted in 1670, work began in 1672 with the removal of 1,068 cubic yards of rubble. The church was rebuilt on part of the old foundation with as much original stone as could be salvaged - saving both time and money. By 1677 the work was essentially complete; the cupola was added to the tower in 1679.
"No original drawings remain; drawings were typically made by Wren's assistants as guidance for the workers and would be in poor shape when the builders finished with them. But, while Wren may not have personally drawn all the plans for St. Mary's, he undoubtedly was the guiding vision behind the design.
"St. Mary the Virgin, Aldermanbury contains elements of both Renaissance Classical and Wren's own English Baroque style." ~ National Churchill Museum