Standing on the corner of Berry Street and Leece Street, at the top of Bold Street, the church was built between 1811 and 1832, and was designed by John Foster Sr and John Foster Jr who, as father and son, were successive surveyors for the municipal Corporation of Liverpool. The site for the church was given by Edward Smith-Stanley, 12th Earl of Derby, in 1791 on condition that the land should never be used for any other purpose than that of a church. In addition to being a parish church, it was also intended to be used as a venue for ceremonial worship by the Corporation and as a concert hall. The foundation stone was not laid until April the 9th, 1811 but building work, supervised by Foster Sr, progressed slowly. In 1822 it was decided to add a chancel to the church when Foster Jr took over the role of Corporation surveyor and continued to supervise the building, making further changes to the design in 1827. Building work was finally completed in 1832 and became known as 'the doctor's church' because of its location near to Rodney Street, the home of many doctors. It continued to be used as a concert hall as well as a church until the Philharmonic Hall opened in Hope Street in 1849. Minor alterations to the church were made between 1864 and 1873 by W. & G. Audsley.
Originally there were two aisles, and the nave had a groined ceiling which was 'richly ornamented'. The whole roof and the arcades separating the aisles from the nave were lost as a result of damage when on the 6th of May 1941, during the 'May Blitz, the church was hit by an incendiary device that caused a large fire that left only a burnt out shell. The roof of the tower was lost and of the eight bells that hung in the tower, cast in 1818 by William Dobson of Downham Market at a cost of £645 (equivalent to £50,000 in 2020), five fell to the ground on impact and the remaining three were badly cracked in the flames whipped up by the bombing. Another casualty was the three-manual pipe organ made by Gray and Davison in 1865, with improvements made to it by Rushworth and Dreaper in 1902. The clock made by Roskell's of Derby also fell to the ground and many of the windows that contained stained glass have now only fragments of glass remaining. During the clearing of an area of St Luke's that was closed off to the public for safety reasons, in 2011 custodians of the Church spotted the image of a cormorant on one of the pieces of stained glass on a window next to what would have been the main entrance to St Luke's on Bold Place. Many were quick to dub it 'the first Liver Bird', convinced that it predated the images created by Carl Bernard Bartels for the Royal Liver Building by almost a century. Leaving only the external masonry walls and tower, the building was earmarked for demolition in the 1950s but became regarded as a war memorial to the civilian casualties sustained during WWII in Liverpool and became Grade II listed. The surrounding garden plants were allowed to grow up the walls of the now windowless church and a lovely state of ruin settled on the site.
A repair project, jointly funded by Historic England and Liverpool City Council, was to carry out emergency repairs to high-level masonry which was becoming a danger to users of the building. Attention had been focused on the loose masonry at the wall tops, pinnacles, the chancel parapet, and the north and south vestry roofs. Donald Insall Associates were subsequently appointed to lead the installation of an architectural lighting system, which was unveiled at the church in the presence of the Mayor of Liverpool to mark its removal from the Heritage at Risk Register. After surviving a number of demolition threats, the church was reopened in 2007 and is still being used for arts and community events. Urban Strawberry Lunch have used the space to great effect, holding events, gigs, exhibitions and displays. The film nights that they have run were wonderful affairs, showing classic old black and white films for Valentine's Day, Christmas or just on a cool summers evening, showing how it is now such a versatile and useful space. There is also a open air bar and cafe serving a wide variety of beers, wines and spirits alongside cocktails, hot drinks and soft drinks for the little ones with food also available. The re-imaging of the space is a wonderful tribute to the city’s creative spirit, and whether you're a fan of the arts or not, it's hard not to fall in love with the interior which has been landscaped with greenery and strung with romantic fairy lights.
see also :- http://www.thefootballvoice.com/2022/01/remembering-liverpool-structures-grand.html
No comments:
Post a Comment