The History of All Saints Church
Along with St Luke’s, there are two sister churches in Toowoomba with long and varied histories. Find out more about All Saints by reading the information below. You can contact us to find out more about current events, services and church activities.
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The history of All Saints dates back to 1888, for in that year the Rector of Toowoomba, Archdeacon Thomas Jones, signed contracts for two school-rooms, one in Arthur Street, Toowoomba East and the other in Drayton Road, Toowoomba West. Each measured 25 feet by 15 feet (7.5 x 4.5 metres) and was built of wood on hardwood blocks.
The Arthur Street building was fitted with an altar and Holy Communion was celebrated on the first Sunday of the month at 8 a.m. The division of the Toowoomba parish in 1905 resulted in the Arthur Street schoolroom being in the parish of St Luke. Much importance was attached to Sunday School as religious education in State schools was still not permitted, and the new Rector, Canon Oakeley, pressed for the building to be extended.
Three years later in 1909, the Arthur Street school passed more children in the diocesan examinations than any other school in the diocese!
The only service at the Arthur Street centre, variously described as a school-room or a Mission room, appears to have been Evensong on Thursday at 8 p.m.; the first indication of Evensong and Sermon on Sunday evening is in 1908. All Parish Papers between 1913 and 1929 have been lost; however, it is known that on 6 November 1921 Archdeacon E.C. Osborn dedicated the Arthur Street mission room as a church, henceforth to be known as “All Saints”. From January 1938, Holy Communion was celebrated every Sunday at 8 a.m. Mr Connal, Headmaster of the Prep School, regularly conducted Evensong, thereby relieving the Rector.
1966 To Today
Soon after Canon Lupton’s induction in 1966, the future of the All Saints’ building came under discussion. Instead of constructing a new church, the existing building was moved closer to the street and a hall was built at the rear. The various additions to the little building of 1888 have perpetuated the architecture of the period – a simple wooden building but with lancet-type windows and internal pillars and arches – a really delightful Victorian pseudo-gothic structure with furnishings to match, but in the 19th century Australian idiom.
– A History of St Luke’s by Max Brightman
To find out more about the history of our parishes, call 07 4639 1910