Trinity Presbyterian Church

The Department's description

Exterior description and setting

A double-height Gothic-style cruciform church with diminished tower; built 1888 to designs by Samuel Patrick Close. Located on the east side, mid-way along Main Street in the centre of Bangor Town, set back slightly from the building line of the adjacent shops.

Pitched natural slate roof with terracotta ridge tiles; cast-iron rainwater goods, ogee moulded gutters with box section down pipes. The walling is squared rock-faced sandstone built to courses with chiselled draft margins to corners, slightly battered base; ashlar sandstone plinth course and dressings. Gothic windows with long-and-short chamfered sandstone surrounds and cills; principal windows have central mullions with cusped arches and panel tracery. Replacement timber sheeted entrance door; chamfered long-and-short ashlar sandstone jambs; moulded gothic arch with cusped tracery; sandstone label moulding over.

The principal elevation faces west and comprises a central symmetrical projected gable flanked abutments to the north and south. The central gable comprises moulded roll top saddleback coping stones with two intermittent kneelers; gable shoulders and square-headed apex-stone detail; three-stage lateral buttresses to either side. Four diminished lancet-arched windows at low level; string course over. Tripartite upper windows comprise a large central window flanked by diminished windows; hood mouldings over with moulded figure head stops. Square-headed timber ventilation louvers located at the gable head. (See south elevation for front entrance).

The north elevation is asymmetrically arranged. The right is abutted by a double-height, single-stage square-plan truncated tower; lateral buttressing to the northeast corner; abutting projected octagonal stair-tower with alternating lancet windows and a diagonal buttress to the northwest corner; blank east cheek; single lancet ground floor window with bi-partite cusped-tracery window over. The north entrance is located on the north face of the tower between the buttress and stair tower; the door and over light matching the front elevation and is embraced by an ashlar sandstone, three-stage moulded gothic opening surmounted by a gable head with spandrels and central quatrefoil. Three windows to the nave with a subservient projected gabled north transept; lower eaves and ridge level; two paired windows to the gable end; blank cheeks.

The rear (east) gable has a single square-headed timber louvered opening at high-level; the gable apex surmounted by a chimney. The centre of the gable is abutted by a diminished gable ended bay with large cusped tracery window. The ground floor is largely abutted by a series of asymmetrically arranged single-storey lean-to, pyramidal and hipped roofed secondary accommodation; generally matching in style and proportions with subdued detailing. uPVC replacement windows to ministers room.

The south elevation matches the north elevation with the exception of a double-height gable ended abutment to the left hand side; the gable face matches the details of the front gable with a single bi-partite cusped tracery window at high level; diagonal buttress to the south west corner; blank east cheek. The principal entrance is located on the west cheek; tri-partite square-headed window over with cusped openings.

Setting:

The church is situated on an elevated site mid-way along the principal commercial street in Bangor town centre which inclines from left to right; surrounded by two and three-storey Victorian buildings to the right and a modern shopping centre to the left. Set back from the building line of the neighbouring buildings, the church is bounded to the front by a masonry plinth surmounted by a wrought-iron railing. The principal entrance is accessed from the right via a wrought-iron gate hung from masonry piers with pyramidal cap surmounted by light fixings; to the right is another gate with matching ironmongery, accessing the rear of the church. Tudor-arched gated entrance to the left embraced by a gable surrounds; matching detailing to the front elevation of the church; serving the north entrance. All gates have associated steps with wrought-iron handrails leading to the elevated ground level. The north of the site is bounded by a large modern building with the remains of the elevation/walling of a former historic building. A large double-height church hall/office accommodation is located immediately to the east; the south is bounded by modern commercial premises.

Roofing: Natural slate
Walling: Sandstone
Windows; Leaded and stained
RWG: Cast-iron

Historical information

The present church dates from 1888 and replaced an earlier building of 1830 located to the south-west of the town. Bangor experienced a steady expansion in population at the beginning of the nineteenth century rising from 3025 in 1764 to 9139 in 1834. The vast majority of whom were Presbyterians and it became apparent that the town was in need of a second Presbyterian church. The new church (later remodelled as a schoolhouse) was built in what is now Brunswick Road in 1828-30. A school was later built adjoining the church and a manse nearby. (Reid, p.1-2) By 1884 the early church was in need of expensive repairs. Furthermore, Bangor’s population had continued to expand following the arrival of the railway in 1865 and a more central church was required. (Patton, p.xii) The site in Main Street was obtained from Robert Ward of Bangor Castle in 1885 and valuation records note that a rent of £13 was paid for the site from 1886. (Annual Revisions; Reid, p.5) Dwelling houses on the site were demolished and work began in 1887. The church opened for worship on Sunday 12th August 1888, and was constructed of Yorkshire stone, with dressing from the Glebe quarries of County Down. The intention, at the time of opening, was to complete the upper stages of the tower at a later date. (Belfast Newsletter; Reid, p.5)

The architect of the present church, Samuel Patrick Close, was articled in the 1860s to the firm of Lanyon, Lynn and Lanyon. In 1872 he opened his own practice in Waring Street, Belfast and designed a large number of buildings in Counties Antrim and Down over the next forty years including Methodist, Church of Ireland and Presbyterian churches. (www.dia.ie) The present church was completed at a cost of £4,370 including fittings such as the heating system by Messrs Clements and Acheson, wrought-iron work by Mr Alfred Webb of Ballymacarrett and stained glass by the London and Glasgow Stained Glass Company. The general contractors were Henry Laverty & Sons of Carrickfergus. (Reid, p.5; Belfast Newsletter) The church enters Annual Revisions in 1889 at a valuation of £150 and no changes are noted in the period up to 1930.

In 1891 the church was named ‘Trinity Presbyterian Church’ and in 1894 a lecture hall was built to the rear of the church. This was completed at a cost of £620. (Reid, p.11) The ‘Ch[urch]’ and ‘Trinity Hall’ are first shown, captioned, on the third edition OS map of 1901.

An organ by Evans and Barr of Belfast was installed in 1921 as a memorial for the fallen in the First World War. The installation of the organ entailed alterations to the choir area of the church which included moving the pulpit to the centre of the new choir platform. (Reid, p.17) A minor hall was built in 1931 as the requirements of the church increased. (Reid, p.20) The church was renovated in 1946, the organ, choir stalls and pulpit were repositioned and further renovations took place in 1971 to the designs of Gordon McKnight. (Reid, p.27, 47) In 1960 a site adjoining the church, formerly occupied by the Adelphi cinema was purchased for the erection of new church halls. Repairs and renovations to the church halls were carried out in the early 1980s (Reid, p.43, 67)

References:

Primary Sources

1. PRONI OS/6/3/2/3 – Third Edition OS Map 1901
2. PRONI OS/6/3/2/4 – Fourth Edition OS Map 1919-26
3. PRONI OS/6/3/2/5 – Fifth Edition OS Map 1939
4. Belfast Newsletter, 26th July 1888

Secondary Sources

1. “A History of Congregations in the Presbyterian Church in Ireland 1610-1982” authorised by the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland, Belfast: Presbyterian Historical Society of Ireland, 1982 (available at www.presbyterianhistoryireland.com)
2. Patton, M, “Bangor, An Historical Gazetteer” Belfast: Ulster Architectural Heritage Society, 1999
3. Reid, T “Trinity Presbyterian Church, Bangor – The Story of One Hundred Years 1888-1988” Trinity Presbyterian Church, 1989
4. www.dia.ie – Dictionary of Irish architects online

Criteria for listing: architectural interest

Not listed

Criteria for listing: historic interest

Not listed

Evaluation

A double-height Gothic-style cruciform church with unfinished tower; built 1888 to designs by Samuel Patrick Close. It is of a robust character and there are some interesting details although the exterior is awkward in its composition. Overall the building has largely retained its original interest but is of a late date and not one of the best examples of the type.