History of St James’ Church
St James’ Church is the oldest surviving church in Sydney, consecrated in 1824 to become only the second Anglican Church in Sydney.
The site of the Church was originally intended for the first purpose-built courthouse, and the Georgian form of the building was intended to mirror that of the Hyde Park Barracks, when viewed from the park. The change of the plans about the use of the site was a result of the arrival of Commissioner J.T. Bigge, who had been sent by the British Government to investigate all aspects of the administration of the Colony.
The steeple was for many years the tallest structure in Sydney. Ships captains in fact used it as a navigation mark upon entering the harbour. Beneath the Church is a large brick vaulted undercroft called the Crypt, famous for its Children’s Chapel.
The Church was designed by convict Francis Greenway (1777 – 1837) known as the father of Australian architecture. Greenway also designed many other well-known monuments in Sydney at the behest of Governor Macquarie, including the Hyde Park Barracks, stables for the first Government House – now the Sydney Conservatorium of Music, St Matthew’s Windsor, and the courthouse at Windsor.
St James’ Church remains an integral part of the most extensive surviving group of Macquarie period buildings in Australia. The first church service at St James’ held in the incomplete building in 1822 was for the occupants of Hyde Park Barracks.
The Hyde Park Barracks also designed by Greenway was built in the early 19th century and designed in the Old Colonial Georgian style. As the principal male convict barracks in New South Wales, the Barracks provided lodgings for convicts working in government employment around Sydney until its closure in mid 1848. The barracks has had many occupants since then, including use as law courts and as government offices.