Church Street, Liverpool L1
Liverpool Record Office: Unique ID: Hf 283 1 PET
Description: Photo of St. Peter's Church, North West view from Church Street
Date: 24th Nov 1919
Copyright: out of copyright
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To the north of
Church Alley, was the site of St. Peter's Anglican church and it's
graveyard. The first chapel here is recorded in 1680, by the Lord Street
Bridge over The Pool. It was not until 1704 that the church was finally
consecrated as St Peter's. It was a famously ugly church, squat and with
an ill-proportioned octagonal tower, although it is seen photographed in
a beautiful grove of elms with the (present) Marks & Spencer building
across the street. It was the parish church of Liverpool until 1880 when
the Anglican bishopric of Liverpool was established and it became the
pro-cathedral, witnessing the enthronement of the first bishop. It was
closed in 1910 and demolished between 1919 and 1923. (It is not known
why demolition was so protracted but photographic evidence confirms the
time span. St. Peter's had an unprecedented throughput. Figures show
over 84,400 marriages and a staggering 362,117 baptisms in the church.
There would no doubt have been many burials but these ceased in 1823.
The church is remembered by a Maltese Cross set into the paving in
Church Street outside the building which has previously been Woolworth's
and H.M.V. All the remains in the graveyard were removed to Walton
Cemetery but there were scandalous tales, at the time of demolition, of
labourers seen playing football with skulls in the graveyard. Source: http://www.toxteth.net/places/liverpool/churches/st peters.htm Alan Maycock © 2007 View this page in high quality PDF format Walk 003 | Home Friends of Liverpool Monuments |