All Saints' Anglican Church

Statement of Significance

All Saints' Anglican Church is the oldest public building in Donnybrook and is a very fine example of a building constructed of Donnybrook stone. It is the only Anglican Church building of Donnybrook stone in the south-west and one of a few public buildings of Donnybrook stone in the state. The church is the physical embodiment of the social support given to the local community by the Anglican Church and is a landmark building in the main street of Donnybrook.

Physical Description

All Saints' Anglican Church is a single storey building constructed of Donnybrook stone with a steeply pitched gabled corrugated iron roof. There is a gabled porch at the front of the building and projecting transepts reflect the traditional cruciform plan. The Donnybrook stone is dressed and laid in courses. Buttresses divide the side facades into equal bays which each contain two narrow round arched windows. Internal features include a jarrah ceiling and stained glass windows. There is a large rose window facing east. The foundation stone is inscribed
AD MAJORUM DEI GLORIAM
HUNC LAPIDEM POSUIT
JOHANNES WINTHROP HACKETT LLD
XXVII OCT AD 1906.

History

On 30 March 1880, Rev. Joseph Withers, Rector of Bunbury, held the first Anglican Church service in the Donnybrook district. In 1898, the Parish of Donnybrook was formed and services were held in the Agricultural Hall until mid-1900, when the Congregational Church in Bentley Street (later site of the fire station) was purchased for use as a Mission Hall. The Congregational Union had inaugurated a mission in the district in 1891, and voluntary labour had built the small timber church. In 1901, a building committee was formed and began fund raising to build a new Anglican church. In 1906, architect Augustine Benedict Rieusset (a past President of the Melbourne Architectural and Engineering Association) prepared plans for a new church to be constructed of Donnybrook stone, to be built on land donated by James Egan. On 27 October, Dr. J. Winthrop Hackett, M.L.C., who owned land in the district, laid the foundation stone for All Saints’ Anglican Church. The West Australian (1 Nov. 1907) reported it would be ‘a handsome edifice in the Norman style’ and on its completion would be ‘one of the finest public buildings in the South-West.’ A. Bragg built the church ‘entirely of the famous Donnybrook stone’ (Western Mail 21 Sept. 1907), and it was completed at a cost of about £500. On 29 June 1907, Bishop Goldsmith, of Bunbury, dedicated the Church, ‘one of the most handsome and stately edifices in the Diocese’ (Western Mail ibid) in which donations from England included choir stalls from the village of Rake, Hampshire, a credence table and communion vessels from All Saints, Bloxsom, and other items from Hampshire and Kent. A small rectory of brick construction was built to accommodate the resident Rector. On 24 June 1923, Dr. Wilson, Bishop of Bunbury, dedicated a mural painting and paneling in the Sanctuary. At a cost of about £1,000 ($2,000), it was a substantial gift from the donor. In 1952, Donnybrook received £100 towards extensions for the rectory from the Jubilee Appeal. In 1963, a disused school and hall at Goodwood were purchased and re-located to the church grounds, where it was re-erected and converted for use as a parish hall and Sunday school. In 1999, All Saints’ Anglican Church, a rare example of a church built in Donnybrook stone and the oldest public building in Donnybrook, was Entered on the Register of Heritages Places. In 2012, the Parish Hall was demolished and a new corrugated iron hall has been erected behind the church.

Integrity/Authenticity

High

Condition

Good

Uses

Historic Themes

Creation Date

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