All Saints Anglican Church, Yandilla facts for kids
Quick facts for kids All Saints Anglican Church, Yandilla |
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All Saints Anglican Church, 2010
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| Location | Gore Highway, Yandilla, Toowoomba Region, Queensland, Australia |
| Built | 1878 |
| Official name: All Saints Anglican Church and cemetery Yandilla, All Saints Church of England | |
| Type | state heritage (built, landscape) |
| Designated | 21 October 1992 |
| Reference no. | 600722 |
| Significant period | 1860s–1880s (historical) 1860s–1920s (fabric) ongoing (social) |
| Significant components | stained glass window/s, grave surrounds/railings, tower – bell / belfry, memorial/monument, fencing, headstone, graveyard, spire, church, cemetery, pipe organ, furniture/fittings |
| Builders | John Baillie |
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All Saints Anglican Church and its cemetery in Yandilla, Queensland, is a very old and important church building. It's located on the Gore Highway in the Toowoomba Region of Australia. This church was built around 1878 by a person named John Baillie. It's also known as All Saints Church of England. Because of its history and special features, it was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on October 21, 1992. This means it's protected as a historical site.
Contents
The Story of All Saints Anglican Church
All Saints Church is a timber (wooden) church built at Yandilla Station by the Gore family. It was built around 1878, replacing an earlier church that looked very similar. The graveyard around the church is thought to have started in 1863. Before that, people were usually buried closer to the main homestead (the main house on the station).
The Gore Family and Yandilla Station
The Gore family came from Ireland and moved to Australia for health reasons. In 1841, Ralph and St George Gore brought sheep to the Darling Downs area. They started a large farm called Yandilla. Their brothers, Robert and St John, soon joined them. St George later became a politician, serving in Queensland's first parliament. In 1846, the Gores also bought a nearby property called Tummaville.
The Gore family were very religious Anglicans. They felt responsible for the people who worked and lived on their large Yandilla Station. In 1843, a government official reported that 30 people lived there. There were also buildings like a woolshed and huts for workers.
Early Church Services at Yandilla
In the early days, ministers rarely visited remote areas like Yandilla. The first church service at Yandilla is believed to have happened in 1843. Reverend Benjamin Glennie, a dedicated pioneer minister, first visited Yandilla in 1848. From 1850, he visited regularly. The women of Yandilla also ran a Sunday School for the children living on the station. It's thought there was a small chapel from the very beginning, perhaps even part of the main house.
Reverend William Gore, another member of the Gore family, often visited Yandilla and led services. In 1860, he became a major owner of the family business. By then, the "village" at the station had over 100 people.
The First Church Building (1863)
A new church was built near the homestead in 1863. It was made of sawn timber and measured about 9 meters by 6 meters. It had a small chancel (the area around the altar) and a porch (an entrance area). The roof was steeply pointed, which looked very nice. A beautiful stained glass window was planned for the eastern end of the building.
Even though a minister was appointed to serve eight stations in the area in 1861, Reverend Gore often held services when the regular minister was away. The church was used by workers of all Christian faiths on the station. Catholic services started there in 1862, and Presbyterian services began in 1891.
Building the Current Church (1878)
The church you see today was built in 1878. This was when Francis Gore, William Gore's eldest son, was managing the property. Francis was very involved in local community matters. During this time, more people settled in the area.
The new church was built on the same spot as the old one and looks very similar. It might even use some materials from the first church. A local carpenter and storekeeper named John Baillie built it. He also built the courthouse and St Augustine's church in Leyburn. It's said that station workers and Aboriginal people living at Yandilla helped him.
Consecration and Special Gifts
Reverend Gore passed away in 1885. On November 15, 1887, the church and graveyard were officially made sacred as All Saints Church of England. This happened because Francis, Gerard, and Robert Gore asked for it. On that day, Madame Blumenthal (who was Leonie Gore, a major owner of Yandilla) gave three stained glass windows to the church. These windows were made in England and cost a lot of money (£600). They were given in memory of her uncle, Reverend William Gore.
These beautiful windows were placed in the chancel of the church. Madame Blumenthal asked that the church be officially recognized by the Church of England. She also asked that all burials in the churchyard be done by an Anglican minister. However, Catholic services still continued at All Saints, and Madame Blumenthal even helped pay for them.
Church Life and Features
The church served not only the people living at Yandilla but also many shearers and seasonal workers during shearing season. These workers often moved around, so it was hard for them to attend church regularly. In 1888, a special Christmas service was held just for them.
Also in 1888, a pipe organ was installed. Reverend Gore himself had made this organ from oak wood from a tree at Feniton Court, a Gore family home in England. Around the same time, two beautifully carved oak chairs with reading desks were added. One is thought to have been made in Florence, Italy, and the other was copied in 1886 by John Baillie.
In 1890, a professional gardener named Hartley Moore was hired from London to look after the homestead's gardens. He also helped care for the church and its grounds, planting shrubs and keeping everything tidy.
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Changes Over the Years
Even though fewer people attended the church as time went on, a new spire (the tall, pointed top) and belfry (the part that holds the bell) were built in 1900. A bell was also brought from America.
In the early 1900s, plans were made to divide Yandilla Station into smaller parts and sell them. In 1906, it was sold to the Lomax Pastoral Company. In 1910, a new vestry (a room where the clergy prepare) was added to the church. In 1913, a stone font (a basin for baptisms) was placed in the church. This was in memory of Gerard Gore, who had been the churchwarden for many years and continued to support the church financially.
In 1914, the organ made by Reverend William Gore was sold and replaced with a smaller one.
Later Years and Preservation
The number of people attending church continued to decrease over the years. In 1919, a fire destroyed the Yandilla station office, and many church and cemetery records were lost.
In 1923, the church saw a bit of a comeback. Reverend T Bird became the minister for Millmerran and Yandilla. John (Jack) Rademy became the manager of Yandilla for the new owners. Rademy and his wife were very active in church matters and continued to support the church. In 1924, the parish of Millmerran was created, with services held at Millmerran, Yandilla, and Leyburn. In 1925, new brass decorations and hangings were added to the church. In 1936, the Cowlishaw family took over Yandilla and also took an interest in the church, keeping its connection to the property strong.
Other work done later includes an altar given in 1957. In 1958, fourteen of the oldest gravestones were repaired. Around c. 1968, the main road from Toowoomba to Goondiwindi (now the Gore Highway) was moved to pass close to the church. Any remaining trees from the pine avenue that connected the church to the homestead likely disappeared at this time. None of the original homestead buildings are left today. The church was the oldest building in the area.
The Gore family still cares about the church. Family reunions and christenings (baby naming ceremonies) have been held there recently. In 1970, the Anglican Church received a new official document for the land where the church and graveyard are located. In 1975, All Saints was listed on the Register of the National Estate, another important heritage list. In 1988, a stone monument was unveiled in memory of the Gore family.
What Does All Saints Church Look Like?
All Saints Church is easy to spot in the flat landscape between Toowoomba and Millmerran. It's a wooden building with a Gothic style, sitting on low stumps. The outside is covered with wooden boards and painted white, just as it was originally. The roof is very steep and made of corrugated iron. At the western end, there's a belfry (for the bell) with slats and a thin, pointed spire.
You enter the church through a porch on the south side. On the north side, there's a small vestry covered with vertical wooden boards. Inside, the timber is oiled. Light comes in through simple, tall, narrow windows called lancet windows. In the chancel (the area near the altar), there are three lancet windows with beautiful stained glass. This area is separated from the main part of the church by a Gothic arch and is smaller.
The stained glass windows above the altar are in memory of Reverend William Gore and show Christ the King. On either side of the chancel, there are two oak prayer desks and chairs. They are heavily carved with figures like cherubs (angel-like figures) and lions. Other than these special pieces, the church is simply furnished.
The Cemetery
There are 95 burials around the church, dating from 1864 to 1982. The earliest burial is Charles Owen, who was a manager and partner at Yandilla. He died on April 29, 1864. Some graves have railings, and the memorials were made by famous stonemasons. The most detailed grave, with fancy ironwork, belongs to Harriet Gore, who was Francis Gore's wife. There are also some old, large trees in the grounds, including a bunya pine. A simple fence surrounds the churchyard.
Why is All Saints Church Important?
All Saints Anglican Church and its cemetery in Yandilla were added to the Queensland Heritage Register on October 21, 1992, for several reasons:
- It shows how Queensland's history developed. The church shows how early large farms (pastoral runs) like Yandilla were like small communities. Yandilla, started by the important Gore family in 1841, had a "village" with a school and a church. The church, its memorials, and the graves of family members, workers, and early settlers are now the only visible signs of this old settlement.
- It's a great example of its type. All Saints is a good and early example of a church with a graveyard around it. This was common in Europe but less so in Queensland.
- It's beautiful. The church building itself, along with its stained glass windows and furniture inside, are very beautiful.
- It's important to the community. The church has a long connection with the local community. The graveyard holds the burials of many early settlers in the area.
- It's connected to important people in Queensland's history. The church building, the family memorials inside it, and the burials in the churchyard have a strong link to the Gore family. The Gores were very important in starting the farming industry in the Darling Downs and in the early political life of Queensland.
See Also
- Anglican Diocese of Brisbane
- Anglo-Catholicism
- Liberal Anglo-Catholicism
- High church
- Ritualism in the Church of England
- Anti-Protestantism
- Progressive Christianity
- Liberal Christianity
