The church's website [visit link] tells
us:
"St John's Church was constructed
in 1833 and cost £23,000 to build, of which £5,000 was granted by the church
commissioners and much of the rest of the money was given by local people, in
1834 it was opened as a Chapel of Ease for West Ham Parish. The land on which it
stands was given by Lord Wellesley-Pole of Wanstead and Thomas Humphreys, Lord
of The Manor of West Ham.
The building was designed by Edward
Blore who was one of the leading architects of his day, he was given the job of
finishing off Buckingham Palace after John Nash was sacked for being too
extravagant.
St John's clock was built by
Benjamin Lewis Vulliamy in 1834. Vulliamy came from a noted clock making family,
and he was himself an eminent and respected maker. He built clocks in Canada and
Australia as well as those at Hampton Court, Oriel College Oxford, Windsor
Castle, Plymouth Dockyard and others.
Originally there was a gallery at
the back of the Church, which was removed in 1887, and building work in the mid
1990s revealed the bricked-up door which lead from the tower on to the
gallery.
In 1847, £600 was raised by
subscription, for "the purchase of an organ; the erection of a richly carved
recedos of Caen stone, extending the whole width of the chancel; in beautifying
the altar window with painted glass"... "These, and other decorations in painted
glass, were executed by Mr C Clutterbuck, a resident artist, and are much
admired."
In 1879, during the incumbency of
the Rev William Jay Bolton, the huge 6-sided Martyrs Memorial was built in St
John's churchyard to commemorate 23 Protestant men and women who were burnt
alive at 'Stratford the Bowe' in 1556, during the reign of Mary Tudor, for their
religious views.
In 1884 the interior of St John's
was completely changed when it was extended with the extension of the Chancel,
and the building of the Choir Vestry and the Organ Chamber. The 'richly carved
recedos of Caen stone' erected in 1847 was cut in half and placed in either side
of the new chancel. There is a plaque near the organ stating that the Chancel is
in memory of Sir Antonio Brady, a famous local geologist of the
time.
The building was badly damaged by
bombing during World War II, in particular all the windows were blown out. The
only pre-war window is the small window in the Chancel which is a copy of the
famous picture by Holman Hunt "The Light of the World". This was taken out and
stored before the bombing. The churchyard railings were also removed for the war
effort.
The Friends of St John's was formed
in 1944 to keep members who had been bombed out of the East End in touch with
each other. The Friends contributed towards the cost of repairs and St John's
was finally restored from war damage in 1951, the new East Window being
dedicated in 1955.
A new extension was built at St
John's in 1998 to provide facilities for the church members and the local
community. The bricks used to build the extension were recycled from a
demolished building and came from the original brickyard and the same period as
when the church was first built. (the architects for the new extension were
Purcell Miller Tritton)."
The church is Grade II listed and the
entry at the English Heritage website [visit
link] tells us:
"Church 1832-34: Architect: Edward
Blore. Chancel added 1882. Early English/decorated Gothic. Grey gault bricks
with stone dressings. Slated roofs. Six-bay clerestoryed nave, north and south
aisles, chancel and south chapel, with steeple at SW corner. Triple lancets to
aisles and paired lancets to clerestory. Plain parapets to aisles and
clerestory. Triple light geometrical tracery with cuspless oculi west end.
Gabled central entrance. Three stage tower with angle buttresses. Crocketed
niche to centre stage. Flying buttresses to steeple with two tiers of pinnacles.
Chancel lower than nave, buttressed with corner pinnacles. Five light east
window. (20 vestry extensions to north, of no interest). Main entrance to south,
under tower, gabled."
The church website [visit link] lists the days
and times of services:
"Sunday Services
First &
Third Sunday:
11:00am: Holy Communion
6:30pm: Prayer &
Praise
Second & Fourth
Sunday:
11:00am: Prayer & Praise
6:30pm: Holy
Communion
Fifth Sunday (when
applicable):
11:00am: Holy Communion
6:30pm: Prayer &
Praise
Weekday Services:
Tuesday:
1:10pm: Lunchtime Service
Wednesday: 8:00pm: Church On Wednesday
Thursday:
12:40pm: Lunchtime Communion
Morning and Evening
Prayer:
9:00am: Morning Prayer (9.30 am Saturdays)
5:00pm: Evening Prayer
(NOT on Saturdays)"