Church Street takes its name from the now demolished Church of St Peter. This was the first church built in Lancashire after the Reformation. The design, attributed to a Scottish mason-architect, John Moffat (4),  has, over the years, taken a lot of criticism. It was hardly an attractive church but, with the exception of its octagonal turret, it is little different from Cuthbert Bisbrowne's, St James's Church and it is hard to understand the torrent of criticism that it has drawn.

'The Stranger in Liverpool' offers:- ' There are four portals, and each in a different style of architecture - a proof how little good taste or architectural beauty was understood at that time in this town. The upper part of the tower is octagonal and ornamented at the angles with pinnacles, each bearing a gilt vane.' The usually critical J. A. Picton is remarkably restrained (1) but still writes that 'The building is large and commodious, but possesses few claims to architectural design'.

St. Peters had an unprecedented throughput. Figures given by Peet (2) show over 84,400 marriages and a staggering 362,117 baptisms in the church. There would no doubt have been many burials but these were limited by an act restricting burials, on 17th June 1823. Later restrictions on burials within city boundaries were imposed and burials in St. Peter's churchyard were finally prohibited altogether by Order in Council. They ceased entirely after 1st October 1853.

This shot, taken on 13/08/1919, shows the gateway of Saint Peter's on Church Lane with soldiers standing in the gardens.

1680 The history of St. Peter's begins a little before its construction, around 1680 when the ancient 'pool' of Liverpool, began to silt up. This pool extended from the waterfront to approximately as far as present  Whitechapel.  Land reclamation began in  the earliest years of the 18th century. Until 1699 Liverpool was a chapelry of Walton on the Hill but on 24th June 1699, (8) Liverpool was created as a parish in its own right, distinct from Walton-on-the Hill.  Shortly after this construction work began on the south side of Church Street on a site just across from the Lord Street bridge (across what was still ' the pool'). The work started in 1700 according to the 'Annals of Liverpool' (in LRO) . These same Annals put the cost at £4,000, whilst the 'Stranger in Liverpool' for 1834 puts the cost at £3,500. Baines (8) says that £400 (presumably a part of the total cost),  was to be raised 'by an assessment of the inhabitants' .

The assets of the former parish of Walton were split between St. Nicholas and St. Peter's. The 1700  act states that 'two rectors shall be appointed ,one for the church of St. Nicholas, and the other for the new church (called St. Peter's). by whom all ecclesiastical benefits and advantages within the said town and liberties shall be jointly enjoyed in the same manner as they have hitherto been enjoyed by the rector and vicar of Walton; that all parish dues, contributions, lands and houses belonging to the said rectory, shall be equally divided between the two rectors'. The mayor, aldermen and council were given responsibility for the division.

Some 70 years later J. A. Picton (1)wrote that Church Street 'was laid out as a street at the latter end of the seventeenth century [but] very little was done in the way of building for many years subsequent. St. Peter's Church was the first building erected'. Records in the LRO (3) say that the church was 'originally surrounded by a picturesque belt of stately elms, whose foliage harmonising with the summer livery of the hedgerows, and the floral beauty of the meadows, completed the charm of rural peace' - a far cry from Church Street of the present day.

On 29th June 1704 the church was finally consecrated as St Peter's. Liverpool Records Office holds images of the deeds of consecration of St. Peter's Church, dated 9th June 1704. These deeds detail the permissions given, in 1700, to the citizens of Liverpool to build a parish church (LRO - 352 ENG / 2/3456). The church had a steeple 108 feet high with a peal of eight bells.

Inside it was said to be furnished with pews. There were galleries resting on four well carved oak pedestals, on which rose an equal number of plain columns, supporting the roof.  The altar was 'a fine specimen of rich carving in oak, and is generally and deservedly admired'. The east window had a stained glass representation of St. Peter, clearly visible in this 1758  picture by Herdman, right.. What was said to be 'a large and handsome organ' was sited at the west end. A gallery ran on each side, this was used by the children who belonged to the adjacent Blue Coat Hospital.  (The gallery and east window can be seen in the last of the block of six pictures below). There church and gardens contained monuments to the memory of William Lawley of Staffordshire, and another to the memory of Foster Cunliffe. Photographs of many of these carvings and columns were taken by the Liverpool City Engineers department prior to demolition, these are still held in LRO.

1767, it was ordered that the town be divided into 5 wards, to be named St. Nicholas, St. George, St. Peter, St. Thomas and St. John. At that time the town of Liverpool did not extend beyond what is now called Paradise Street (8).

1831 on September 10th, the church clock was lighted with gas.

1844 The church is illustrated by Clennell, left.

1868 on January 27th, the removal of bodies from part of St. Peter’s church yard commenced. About 200 bodies were moved, some of the coffins bearing dates of 1707. (The graveyard was first opened in 1704). The bodies were 'removed with the utmost decency and propriety', and were re-interred in Anfield Cemetery.

1902 The end of the church can be traced from now. The residential population of this inner city area was falling as was the size of the congregation. Further reductions in the number of worshippers were anticipated and the church was said to be used for little other than Cathedral purposes. Liverpool Cathedral Act (6) was passed and this authorised the Cathedral Committee to purchase a site and erect a building which was to become the Liverpool Cathedral at such time as ' a portion of the Cathedral Church sufficient for the due solemnisation of divine service therein has been erected and fitted up'.  The act further stated that St. Peter's would then cease to be the cathedral church of the bishopric of Liverpool'.

Within the act it was thought expedient .. 'to provide that at any time after the passing of this Act the Ecclesiastical Commissioners may cause to be prepared a scheme ... for substituting the chapel of St. Nicholas for the church of St. Peter as the parish church of Liverpool from the date of the opening of any portion of the cathedral church for divine service'  The Ecclesiastical Commissioners were authorised at that time to demolish St. Peter and 'to sell or otherwise dispose of the materials, ornaments, fittings ... thereof and to sell or otherwise dispose of the site of the church of St. Peter and the churchyard thereof...'  In short a new Cathedral was to be built and as soon as part of this was functional then, St Peter's would cease to be a Cathedral, would cease to be a Parish Church and would be demolished.

 
1910 On Wednesday 29th June 1910 St. Peter's ceased to be the Cathedral Church of the Liverpool Diocese. The photograph (left) was taken only two years before.

1916 on 3rd March 1916, formal notice was given by the Ecclesiastical Commissioners that as from 1st May 1916 St. Nicholas was to become the parish church of Liverpool and that all St. Peter's rights, endowments, emoluments etc. were to be transferred to St. Nicholas. It further stated that 'when the Cathedral is ready then St. Peter's will be closed.'

The LRO holds photographs of the demolition of the church dated 1919 and this must have continued for some time as LRO itself states that 'The internal fittings etc. of the church were removed and demolition of the building began early in 1922 and was completed by Sep of that year'.

A series of photographs were taken in the summer of 1919 by the Liverpool City Engineers Department

1922 The church is said to have been demolished in 1922 but  photographs at LRO show this happening from 1919, perhaps onwards to 1922. Demolition was completed on 2nd October 1922. The elaborately carved Reredos, Panels and Altar Rails were re-erected in St Cuthbert's Church in Churchtown, Southport. They were the work of Richard Prescot of Liverpool and were executed about 1704. (11). The site was sold of to Liverpool Corporation. Demolition allowed the widening of Church Street. The Corporation in turn leased the site to F. W. Woolworth and Co. for the erection of a new purpose-built Woolworth's store, which opened in 1924 (7). (Frank Winfield Woolworth actually opened his first British store opposite, at 25 Church Street, on 5th November 1909 on a site which was to become part of the site of the Tatler cinema). The Cross Keys symbol of Saint Peter is reportedly carved on the lintel above the upper windows of this ex-Woolworth's store as a memento.
 

The Woolworth's closed in 1985 and is now an HMV store.

Still adjacent is Church Alley with the Bluecoat Chambers (the old Bluecoat School) at the end.

References and sources. In writing this I have drawn extensively from work and research already performed by Liverpool Records office, which I gratefully acknowledge. In addition sources are as follows.

(1) J. A. Picton 'Memorials of Liverpool', 1875, vol. 2

(2) 'Reliquiae of St. Peter's Church, Liverpool' in 'Transactions of the Historic Society of Lancashire and Cheshire, 1922, vol.74, pp.74 - 82.

(3) Liverpool Courier, 2nd July 1910 ( in 'St. Peter's Church, Church Street, Liverpool, 1699 - 1922, Liverpool Record Office Local Studies Collection reference Hf 283.1 PET, p.26).

(4) (quoted From LRO)  T. Lloyd-Jones 'Liverpool Street Names', 1981, p.13 attributed the design to '... the mason-architect John Moffat, a Lowland Scot...' The building and design of St. Peter's and John Moffat's involvement with it are fully discussed by J. Gnosspelius and S. A. Harris in 'John Moffat and St. Peter's Church' in 'Transactions of the Historic Society of Lancashire and Cheshire', 1981, vol. 130, pp.1- 14.

(5) An Act to provide for the foundation of four new Bishoprics in England', 16 Aug. 1878, 41 and 42 Vic., ch. 68. Liverpool Bishopric Committee (at LRO).

(6) 'An Act to authorise the Liverpool Cathedral Committee to purchase a site for and to erect a Cathedral Church for the Diocese of Liverpool and other purposes', 8th Aug. 1902, 2 Edw. 7, ch. 231)

(7) Woolworths History

(8) History, Directory and Gazeteer of the County Palantine of Lancashire, Baines,1824, Vol 1. pp 166.

(9) Picture of Liverpool: Stranger's Guide", 1834

(10) Ken Roberts, Pers. Comm.

(11) Philp Mayer Pers Comm.

St. Peter's at Lancashire Online Parish Clerks