More Pictures
building
for
the
community
More pictures
The Church garden.
Our
ladies who make such a good job of organising the daily coffee
mornings.
Click on any of the following pictures for a larger version:
Inside the Church.
The Church sanctuary is open most mornings so do come in to look,
rest or pray.
The Church porch
decorated with "Bob the Builder" at the re-opening celebration
on 7 June 2003, following the completion of the first phase of the
building project.
The Church pulpit
and Last Supper window.
The Administrator
in his office with his trusty computer and cup of coffee.
Wesley's foundation stones
Wesley has a great many foundation stones laid when the church was
founded in 1897 and when the church building was dedicated in 1903.
Mrs Osborne was the wife of John Osborne of New Road church who provided
the land and a large part of the building money. Mrs Beecroft was the wife
of a former Mayor of Southend. The two stones above were moved slightly
when the entrance was redeveloped in 2003 and can now be found just inside
the rear glass doors.
There are 22 foundation bricks.
Children of the church laid these bricks in October 1903 and they are
engraved with their initials.
LJG = probably Leslie John Griffin, as in the stone above.
RJO = unknown, RM = Reginald Mitchell, WM = Winnie Mitchell, TFR = T.F.
Robinson, CPC = C.P. Craggs
IS = Isabel Smee, MS = Muriel Smee, EE = Emily Emery, GW = Gladys Watson,
AP = Amy Partridge, TE = 'Tiny' Emery, CJ = Cissie Johnson, FE = Fred
Epps, AS = Arthur Smee, NP = Norman Petch, SK = Stephen Kemp, FB = Fred
Bridge, SE = Stephen Emery, TJ = Ted Johnson, AW = unknown, PHW = Percy
Watson
The three Smees were the children of the architect (the firm of Smee,
Mence and Houchin of London). The Smees lived in Grand Parade and
worshipped at Wesley. Ted Johnson was the son of the builder (H.E.
Johnson).
Many thanks to Keith Charnock for his research (some details from the Southend Standard of 29 October 1903). If you have any further details about these people, or can fill in the missing names, we'd be pleased to have any help.
Inside the church
 |
A.
The stained glass window above the porch was dedicated to all those
from Wesley killed in action during the Second World War 1939-1945. B.
The first window on the left is in memory of Honor Chamberlain,
daughter of the donors of the window and a granddaughter of one of
the builders of Wesley. Look for the cat embodied in the glass. C.
The next window is in memory of Nathan John Osborne and his father
John Osborne. This present building was built in 1904 on land
donated by John. He also gave the land on which the Manse next door
was built. D.
The 2-manual organ was built for Wesley in 1907 by Norman and Beard.
It is mostly in its original condition (including almost all of the
bellows leatherwork, still functioning after over 100 years!) The
additional pipes added over the years, most recently in 1972, are
situated in the left hand gallery. E.
The beautiful window over the pulpit depicts the Last Supper, and
was installed in 1947 to commemorate the fiftieth year of witness at
Wesley. F.
A plaque on the wall adjacent to the flags is to the memory of Tom
Parrinder, a loyal member of Wesley and District Commissioner of
Scouts. He was awarded the OBE for youth work and the Silver Wolf,
the highest honour in scouting. He compiled the details of what is
contained in the stained glass windows, shown left. In
F, G and H, a small circle within a larger circle can be seen. This,
in scouting, symbolises "I have gone home", a sign which is
recognised world wide. G.
The first window on the right hand wall is dedicated to Ethel
Kittridge, founder of Wesley Cub Pack in 1918. The figures depicted
within the window are Scouts, Cubs, Guides and Brownies, in the
original colours of the Wesley packs. Mrs Kittridge's husband was
Wesley organist for many years. H.
The next window was installed in 1978 and is a memorial to Phyllis Reader, a well-known local
drama teacher, founder member of the Troubadours and founder of
Wesley Theatre Group (formerly Wesley Dramatic Society). Peggy Mount began her career within this
company. J.
The large font, a gift, came from Barnardo's former home at
Barkingside. K.
The next large window is a memorial to all those from Wesley who
were killed in the First World War 1914-1918. L.
The last window was given by the family of John Bonallack who was
killed at Passchendaele in 1917. M. From 1939-1945, under the leadership of Rev. Greville Lewis and his wife, there was a canteen on the premises which supplied over 2 million meals for the troops billeted in Leigh. The Troubadours also provided weekly entertainment. A plaque commemorating this is sited in the Canteen Room (Room 3) in the rear buildings. (N shows the position of some of the foundation stones and bricks.) |
