HISTORY
The Parish of St Paul’s, Burwood was originally part of the Parish of St Thomas’, Enfield. St Thomas’ was consecrated in 1849 and had been the place of worship for Burwood Anglicans since that time. By 1871, however, parishioners of St Thomas’ had decided to form a building committee in order to construct a church specifically for the Burwood area. The Rector of St Thomas’, the Reverend Richard Young, together with a committee of Burwood laymen, commissioned the renowned church architect Edmund Blacket to design and build the church that was to be dedicated and known as St Paul’s Church, Burwood.
For over 145 years, the Parish Church of St Paul’s Burwood has been a place of committed Anglican worship and ministry, housed within one of the architectural landmarks of Sydney’s inner west.
The Foundation Stone of St Paul’s was laid on 29 July 1871. The first section of the church to be completed was the Nave, which was opened for worship in April 1872. Ten years passed before the chancel and transepts were brought to completion and opened on 1 July 1882. In 1883, a small choir vestry was added, which was later enlarged in 1904.
The structure of St Paul’s was completed in 1924 with the addition of the bell tower, designed by Ernest Lindsay Thompson, the tower base having been in place since the 1880s. The tower remains the home of a peal of eight bells that were dedicated on 3 April 1960. Thompson also designed the stone fence along Burwood Road, constructed one year after the tower in 1925. The columbarium wall was built after World War II.
The fabric of St Paul’s is Sydney sandstone, rendered into a decorated Gothic style building. The church is cruciform in shape, aligned east west, and stands on the highest point in Burwood. Its windows sport a variety of tracery and provide the framing for a spectacular array of beautiful stained glass. The tower stands out as a landmark of the Burwood district, and the building as a whole is very much part of Burwood’s heritage.