St Peter's Church, Wrecclesham Facts for Kids

Quick facts for kids St Peter's Church, Wrecclesham
View of church from School Hill
St Peter's Church, Wrecclesham Location in Surrey
51°11′53″N 0°49′04″W / 51.1980°N 0.8178°W / 51.1980; -0.8178
OS grid reference	SU 82698 44977
Location	Wrecclesham, Surrey
Country	England
Denomination	Anglican
Website	CofEWrecclesham.org.uk
History
Status	Active
Founder(s)	Bishop Charles Sumner
Dedication	Saint Peter
Consecrated	16 July 1840
Architecture
Functional status	Parish church
Heritage designation	Grade II
Designated	29 December 1972
Architect(s)	James Harding
Administration
Deanery	Farnham
Archdeaconry	Surrey
Diocese	Guildford
Province	Canterbury

St Peter's Church is a busy Anglican church located in Wrecclesham, a village near Farnham in Surrey, England. It's a special kind of church called a Parish church, which means it serves the local community. The church was officially opened in 1840. Today, it is a Grade II listed building, which means it's an important historical building protected by law.

The Story of St Peter's Church
Images for kids
See also

The Story of St Peter's Church

Why the Church Was Built

Back in 1820, the village of Wrecclesham had some challenges. A person visiting from Australia, who lived in Farnham, noticed that the village needed more positive activities. They felt it was important to create better places for people to spend their time.

The Bishop of Winchester, who lived nearby at Farnham Castle, heard about the situation in Wrecclesham. He decided that building a church would help bring good things to the village.

People started collecting money to build the church. After raising £1000, construction began. The new church was officially opened on July 16, 1840, by Bishop Charles Sumner.

Growing the Church Building

When it was first built, St Peter's was a small church. It had a main area called a chancel, a nave, and a north transept (a part that sticks out). The first vicar, Rev. R. D. Buttermer, was so important that a street in Wrecclesham, Buttermer Close, is named after him.

Over the years, the church became bigger. In 1861, the chancel was rebuilt, and a south aisle (a side section) was added. Later, in 1876, the nave was rebuilt, and a north aisle was added.

In 1890, Rev. Charles Keable became the vicar. He served the church for 33 years. After he passed away in 1923, Keable Road in Wrecclesham was named in his honor.

The church's organ has an interesting history too. It originally came from St James' Church in Farnham. In 1975, when St James' was turned into apartments, the organ moved to St Peter's. A new organ was bought in 1996 and installed in June 2001.

Helping the Community Grow

Building the church was just the beginning of helping the village. Many other important buildings and projects started from the church's efforts.

In 1860, St. Peter's School opened.
The Wrecclesham choir was formed from the school.
The Wrecclesham Institute was built soon after. It's across from the church on School Hill. This institute offered many sports and social groups for local people. It was even a founding team of the Wrecclesham Cricket Club.
The Knights Almshouse, a special home for older people, was built down the hill from the church.

The parish hall, which is right next to the church, is called Leverton Hall. It was named after Rev. Charles Leverton, who passed away in 1973. This hall was added in the early 1970s after the old village hall was taken down.