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St. George’s Anglican Church outgrew a few buildings before this
magnificent kauri church was built in 1872. The hospital, shown
right,
now a much larger facility,
is also still in the same location
on Mackay Street,
wrapping around the church’s corner
.
THAMES CHURCHES
It did not take long for the businessmen, miners,
labourers, and their families to aim for real church
buildings. Many churches retained minutes of those
first meetings, noting the almost instant pledges of
seed money to get building started. Often members of
one church helped another denomination to get their
buildings off the ground. Land for churches, hospitals,
schools and parks were donated from grants from the
area’s Maori chief, Te Hotereni Taipari, and his son W.
H. Taipari; both worked closely with government land
warden James Mackay (see page 19 for article).
Newspapers and church minutes are full of accounts
of visiting pastors, priests and even bishops who either
moved to the area’s goldfields, or travelled to Thames to
conduct services, dedications and celebrations.
The first Anglican (Church of England) church, St.
George’s, was proposed in January of 1868, with starting
funds donated. Land was secured and the building soon
erected on a site on Rolleston Street, opening that May.
In 1880, St John’s Anglican Church was built to serve
Tararu residents, who had previously met in the Sunday
school hall built by the Presbyterians.
At one time, the Methodists had three churches in the
Thames area; all eventually folded into one another, then
further melding with the Presbyterian’s St. James to
become the Thames Union Church.
In 1889 (until 1925), Congregationalists joined Baptists,
both sharing a special interest in the Temperance
movement. In the same spirit, the Salvation Army arrived
in 1884; in 1886, they built their own barracks (and hall to
seat 500) in Grahamstown on Pollen Street.
St. George’s
Anglican Church
St. George’s
Anglican Chu ch
with Thames
hospital
Photo by Ross Davies
the kauri
interior of
st. james union
(presbyterian)
church
Photo: Charlotte Giblin
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