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St. Mary's Church

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auskiwi
auskiwi
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4 out of 5
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St. Marys Church

  • August 6, 2006
  • Rated 4 of 5 by auskiwi from Tacoma, Australia
St. Marys Church

Located on Vivian Street, just at the foot of Marsland Hill and a 10 minute walk from the centre of New Plymouth, St Marys was one of the first structures erected by the Europeon Settlers in the mid 1800’s and is possibly the oldest remaining church in New Zealand.

The main building of St Marys is made of stone with a slate tiled roof and has many beautiful preserved stained glass windows.

There are several hatchments to different infantry groups, war memorials and a Maori memorial scattered around the internal walls of the church and within the baptistery. The Maori memorial has wooden panels carved with traditional Maori designs which all have a story to tell.

There is one ornately decorated main altar, to the front of the building, centred between choir stalls and behind the lectern.

To the left of the altar is the large pipe organ and to the right is another smaller chapel – The All Saints Chapel where there is a carved altar which is a memorial to one of the late bishops.

Later extensions have been added at various times as the congregation grew with the latest timber Main Entry and Foyer added in the 70’s.

Next door to the church is a grand old house that used to be the minister’s quarters but is now used by youth groups and the like.

The church grounds are dotted with a number of graves of the earliest settlers with some dating back to the 1840’s and is interesting to walk around reading the headstones – entire families are buried here and some of the children were so young.

Behind the church is a walkway that takes you to the top of Marsland Hill where there is a memorial to the people that served in the Maori Wars, a Caroline with many bells – I have not heard the bells playing yet but am told that they do chime on special occasions – and some of the best views in New Plymouth.

This was a great way for me to pass a couple of hours getting to know some of the history of the early settlers and Maori people of New Plymouth and Taranaki.

The entry was free – a donation box is located near the door so I put a couple of dollars in – and there are information booklets, about the church, available for purchase which I did.

From journal New Plymouth - My Home Town

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