Reproduced from
DRYPOOL -
Being a History of the Ancient
Parish of Drypool cum Southcoates
by M. Edward Ingram (1959)
by M. Edward Ingram (1959)
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We have now reached the end of the first decade of the present century, and Mr. Beddow's ministry finished in April, 1914. The population had now reached 47,000 and the parish was being run by two men. Nothing had been done towards endowing St. Bartholomew's or the new church, and the time was ripe for a change. Mr. Beddow was an extreme Low Churchman. To him music and ceremonial of any kind was anathema, and detracted from the preaching of the Gospel. Yet he could hardly be said to be in the true Evangelical tradition. Whilst others had introduced such things into their services without detriment, those at the parish church remained on what the Hull Daily Mail describes as " austere Evangelical lines." There was little music, and only a short time before he left had the vicar been persuaded to permit the psalms to be sung. For the sermon he wore a Geneva gown. His extreme Protestantism was rather akin to that of the seventeenth century Puritan. His attitude to the Church can best be summed up in his successor's obituary notice, printed in "Drypool Leaves" on Mr. Beddow's death in 1926 : "His firmness of principle made him feel that there were tendencies in the Anglican Church that made it impossible for him to continue as the incumbent of a parish, and therefore with great faith and boldness he resigned his benefice and took up work elsewhere." On Mr. Beddow's resignation the new incumbentthe Reverend Edward Arthur Berry-came to a parish beset with problems. Unlike Sculcoates, Drypool's growth had been retarded, but after the building of St. Andrew's it had come on apace. But planning was haphazard and it was difficult to forecast where the Church could best serve the growing population. |
Scarcely had Mr. Berry entered the parish when the first World War burst upon the country and further complicated matters. Despite the War, however, three projects went ahead. St. Columba's temporary Church was dedicated in December, 1914, and in 1915 St. Michael's in Sutton Ings was dedicated also, with the Reverend W. Hollis as priest-in-charge. A temporary district was assigned to it, taken from the parish of Sutton and the north-eastern part of Drypool. When St. Michael's was consecrated as a parish church in 1927, this with some minor adjustments became its parish. For some time there had been discussion about the future of St. John's Church, in the city, which stood on the site of the present Ferens Art Gallery. It was eventually decided that the church should be demolished, its site sold, and its endowments, emoluments and furnishings transferred to Drypool. In June, 1916, the necessary Act of Parliament was obtained. It was originally intended to build near the iron church on Hedon Road, but other councils prevailed and a temporary church was built at the end of Rosmead Street. This was badly sited. When first built it was on the very edge of its parish, and was cut off from the main portion by two railway lines. Later adjustments were made, but one cannot help feeling that with more foresight a much better arrangement could have been achieved. The temporary church with its furnishings was destroyed by fire in 1923, but under the Reverend S. G. Gaman and his devoted wife, supported by a loyal band of workers, a parish hall and a new church were built. The latter, designed by Leslie Moore, was consecrated by Archbishop Lang in June, 1925. This church too was gutted by incendiary bombs in the late war. It has been restored, but not quite to its former beauty, since sufficient money was not available to do this. St. Bartholomew's became a hall until it was reopened during the incumbency of the Reverend W. G. A. |
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