RememberingSt Joseph’s

The Story of St Joseph’s Roman Catholic Church, Benwell

St James’ Heritage & Environment Group Local History Series

Remembering St Joseph’s

The Story of St Joseph’s Roman Catholic Church, Benwell

St James’ Heritage & Environment Group

Local History Series

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Introduction

In 2013 the closure of St Joseph’s Church on Armstrong Road, Benwell, brought to an end the 110 year history of the Parish of St Joseph’s. The building still remains with its exterior largely unchanged, but it is no longer a Roman Catholic Church. On the opposite side of the road, St Joseph’s RC School, whose history is entwined with that of the church, is thriving. This is the story of the church and its school, and those who built it, cared for it and worshipped in it over the years. Thanks are due to all those people who shared their memories and photographs in order to tell this story.

Interior of St Joseph’s Church pictured before and after the major reordering of the 1980s.

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Benwell in the early 20th century The 19th century was a time of rapid industrial and commercial development in Newcastle. The population soared as people moved into the city to take advantage of the economic opportunities. In only 40 years, between 1841 and 1881, the population of Newcastle trebled to reach almost 150,000. Many people came from the surrounding rural areas of Northumberland and Durham but, by the middle of the century, more than a third of the city’s residents came from further afield, with Irish immigrants accounting for at least 8% of Newcastle’s population.

The spectacular economic growth of Newcastle in the 19th century coincided with a period of desperate poverty in Ireland, leading to a rush of people leaving the country. Newcastle became a popular destination because of the job opportunities available in the growing industries of coal, iron, and shipbuilding, while Irish immigrants formed the majority of the workforce who laid the tracks for the expanding railway system. As the century progressed, many more families from Ireland arrived in search of a better life. Most of these Irish immigrants lived initially in poor and overcrowded housing near the river and in the city centre. As their economic situation improved, they were able to move to better housing in adjacent areas.

By the start of the 20th century much of Benwell was still open fields, but rows of terraced housing were already spreading across the area. Between 1851 and 1900, Benwell’s population grew from only 1,272 people to 18,158. Only a handful of the population in 1851 had been born in Ireland, but increasing numbers of the new residents were the second and third generation descendants of Irish immigrants who had been attracted to Tyneside by the promise of work in the booming industries. These families were predominantly Catholics. The Roman Catholic church of St Michael’s had recently been built in nearby Elswick, but Benwell had no Catholic church. “My father’s family lived in Elswick, and his father came over from Ireland – Belfast. My mother’s family lived in Benwell. Her father came over as a baby. First of all they came to Gateshead, and then they came to Benwell and opened a corner shop. The next generation were working in the mainstream employment of people who lived here, which was Vickers basically.”

The First St Joseph’s Church

In 1903 the Roman Catholic Diocese acquired a piece of land mainly surrounded by fields, just to the west of Atkinson Road, with the intention of building both a church and a school. It did not take long to build the new church as it was a “tin church” made of pre-fabricated corrugated iron sections. Such church-building kits were commonly used at this period of rapid industrial expansion as a way of meeting the spiritual needs of the new urban communities. Several other west end churches started in this way. St Joseph’s tin church cost £2,000 which was a substantial sum of money at that time. It was opened on the Feast of the Assumption on the 15th August 1903 by Father John Parker, the first priest to serve the newly formed parish.

Extract from 1913 Ordnance Survey map showing the location of the original tin church and the first St Joseph’s School , both of which stood on the north side of Armstrong Road. To the west are fields, while, to the east, terraced housing is spreading rapidly. The newly built Atkinson Road Schools can be seen at the bottom of the map.

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The tin church can be seen here behind this group of children dressed for a school concert in 1915.

The building stood for nearly 70 years until it was destroyed by a fire in 1974. After the new church opened in 1931 on the opposite side of the road, the tin church remained in the school grounds, serving as a church hall. It continued to be generally known as the “tin church”.

Certificate of First Holy Communion for Thomas McGleave, 1911.

The McGleave family had moved to Benwell in the early 1900s. Thomas’s father, a coalminer, was killed in the Montagu pit disaster in 1925. The family continued to attend St Joseph’s Church until its closure in 2013.

Thomas is pictured below aged five and later as a young man.

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This photograph of a group of women connected with St Joseph’s was taken about 1910, probably in Hodgkin Park. Wedding of George Norman and Mollie Bell at the Tin Church, 1924.

Building a New Church

The population of Benwell continued to grow in the early 20th century, and the tin church soon became too small for the needs of the parish. Plans were made to build a replacement. A suitable plot of land was purchased for £600 on the south side of Armstrong Road at the junction with South Benwell Road. It had formerly been used as a corporation tip.

The ceremony to lay the foundation stone, pictured here, took place on 18th February 1930. The new church was opened by Bishop Thorman on 31st October 1931. The total cost was £13,000, surprisingly low for such a grand building. Father Milroy, the priest at St Joseph’s, had a hands-on approach to the work and was not afraid to get his hands dirty. Much of the manual work was carried out by the priest and a large group of parishioners.

“Parishioners would all buy a brick. And the men in the parish actually laboured alongside Father Milroy, who worked himself and did some of the labouring jobs. Local firms would donate materials at a very reduced rate, but obviously he spent a lot of money bringing the marble over for the altar and the dome and everything. I think the bulk of the money was raised locally.”

Designed by the architects Steinlet and Maxwell, the church was built in a Byzantine style, cruciform in shape, with a high dome that reached 60 feet above floor level. Generous donations of money and practical support enabled it to be of high quality and finely decorated. The cost of the marble font and communion rail was met by contributions from the schoolchildren, and the Italian marble in the sanctuary was paid for by an anonymous donor. The costs of the building were completely paid off by 1938. This was a remarkable achievement for a poor parish at the height of the depression.

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Reordering St Joseph’s Church

The 1970s saw a great reduction in the population of Benwell as a result of large-scale clearance programmes. Consequently, the congregation of St Joseph’s decreased. The building itself was in need of repair and restoration after fifty years of wear and tear. These factors, coupled with changes in the organisation of worship in the Catholic church generally, led to a major reordering of the church building.

The main features of the reordering were to infill the sanctuary arch with a stained glass screen designed by L.C.Evetts in order to create a day chapel in the former sanctuary. The marble altar was re-sited beneath the dome, and a suspended ceiling was introduced in the nave and under the dome to reduce the space which would need to be heated. A narthex was created at the west end of the building, making a large entrance porch. The old organ, which had originally come from a cinema, was replaced by a refurbished organ from St Mary’s College, Fenham.

The total cost of the work came to £68,000, and was substantially supported by the congregation. This photograph shows the opening of the reordered church and reconsecration of the altar in its new position on 15th May 1982, with the parish priest Father O’Connell officiating. Sadly, despite the commitment of its congregation, the church closed in February 2013. Citing health and safety issues and the escalating cost of repairs, the Diocese closed the building. St Joseph’s was merged with the church of St Bede’s at Denton Burn to form a new Parish of All Saints. The building with its stained glass screen and other beautiful features was transferred to the Jesmond Trust, refurbished and opened as an Anglican Gospel Church.

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St Joseph’s People

The people of St Joseph’s were not just building a church, they were also building a community. In the early days nearly everyone was new to the area. Many were descended from Irish immigrants who had come to England in search of work. The most common source of employment for men was Armstrong’s engineering factory, but others worked in the coal mines, on the railways, or in the other factories that clustered along the banks of the Tyne. Many people were involved in building St Joseph’s Church, and many people worked to maintain it over the years. “While my grandfather was busy working for Vickers, my grandmother got really involved in raising money and things like that for the church. I think ladies did that in those days. I think they pulled together and did things.”

Charles and Elizabeth Bell donated the sanctuary light. Active members of the church, they are pictured here outside their home in Ethel Street.

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The Lady Chapel of St Joseph’s was dedicated as a memorial to those parishioners who died in the First World War. One of those commemorated was Charles Bell who was killed in action during the Gallipoli campaign in 1915 at the age of 18.

Bob Barradell was a painter who did all the gold leaf inside the church, including the dome. He is pictured here with his wife Bessie at their wedding in the old tin church.

“I was baptised at the little tin church in 1924. I got married there in 1942, and later my children were baptised there in 1943,1954 and 1960. The church was the background of your life. I knew everybody.” St Joseph’s played a major part in many people’s lives over the decades. It was a centre for community and social activities as well as a place of worship. Various clubs and groups flourished over the years. When the old tin church was destroyed by fire in the 1970s, it was decided to open up the church crypt as a social club providing activities for all ages. There was a bar, and the room could be hired out for weddings and other events. As the local community changed, the church looked for ways of meeting the changing needs. In its final decade, it ran regular drop-in and advice sessions for asylum seekers.

Wedding of Edith Bell and Clem Macdonald at St Joseph’s, 29th April 1939. The boy looking through the railings was Ted Featherstone who later became a priest.

“My happiest memories were, I’ll say, my childhood. It was security. It was always there. It was part of your life. We were bathed on a Saturday night. You put on your best clothes and your hat – because we all wore hats. Then we would all go to church. And that was the highlight of the week. If you had nothing else, you had that day to be special.”

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Altar boys, 1970s

“It was a very big part of my life. When we had the old church, which was the tin hut in the grounds of the primary school across the road, we had loads of activities there – dances and all sorts of things. We had the over-sixties and the youth clubs, and I did the Brownies there, and it was a very active place. And unfortunately it got burnt down, which was devastating because it had been there a long, long time.”

Helpers at St Joseph’s Summer Fayre, 2000.

Celebrating the 50th anniversary of VE Day.

“It was a really thriving parish. We had a social committee and there were all sorts of things going on including day trips. We had a youth club we were involved in with Irene and Charlie Devlin. Irene ran an over-sixties club and I helped out there. When Father McFadden was here we had lots of things going on in the crypt, and then it became a club which thrived for many years. “

Celebration of Father O’Connell’s Jubilee, 1987

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St Joseph’s Priests During its 110 year history St Joseph’s Church was served by thirteen parish priests and thirty four curates. The first Presbytery was a terraced house at 150 Armstrong Road. It was home to St Joseph’s priests until the 1930s. St Joseph’s is pictured here in 1935 with the new presbytery at the rear of the church.

St Joseph’s Priests: 1903-2013 1903 -1906 John Parker 1964 Charles Mundy 1906 - 1908 John Murphy 1965 – 1971 James McKenny 1908 - 1910 John Rodgers 1972 – 1979 Peter Smith 1910 - 1911 John Rowe 1980 – 1994 Patrick O’Connell 1911 - 1924 Richard Vaughan 1995 – 2004 Roger Burns 1924 - 1960 John Milroy 2005 – 2013 James O’Keefe 1961 - 1963 James Kenny

Father John Milroy

Of the priests who served St Joseph’s Parish, John Milroy had the greatest and most lasting impact. Father Milroy devoted his life to St Joseph’s for 36 years, starting in 1924. He is still remembered by those who knew him or heard stories of his life and work. More than 40 years after he died, a Mass was still being said for him every year on the anniversary of his death.

Father Milroy prompted divergent opinions – a man with a stern and austere manner and an absolute conviction of his own rightness, combined with great generosity and an unstinting commitment to working on behalf of St Joseph’s.

As late as 2004, his legacy was still being debated, with the last word going to this tribute in the Northern Cross by a former parishioner, Jennifer Nicholson:

“I am eternally grateful for a man of integrity who nourished the first seed of my faith and pointed me in the right direction. This Father Milroy was a giant of a man, who was totally dedicated to the people he was chosen to serve and took no more for himself than the poorest of his flock.”

Everyone had a story to tell about this long-serving priest:

“Father Milroy was a character, wasn’t he? He used to scare the living daylights out of me. We had little square panes in the classroom door. You could be sitting at your desk and, if you looked up, you’d see him pressed up against the glass. He would come in and have a chat.” “Father Milroy had the reputation of turning up at the dances with a ruler which he would put between the couples because they weren’t able to dance any closer than that.”

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“My mam said Father Milroy would spend nothing on himself. He had great holes in his boots. So my mam for a couple of years bought his boots and slippers, and she used to repair his vestments because it had holes in. She hoped he didn’t mind if she got him boots. And he said ‘I can’t afford to be proud’. But it was all for the church. As far as I know, it was nothing for himself.”

“I remember my dad saying he thought Father Milroy was wonderful because he would have a cap on and be covered in cement, because it was his baby, St Joseph’s, wasn’t it?”

A total of 33 curates served with Father Milroy whose strictness was legendary:

“There was traditionally three priests and a housekeeper. One of the curates that was very friendly with my mum’s family used to go every Saturday night and play cards with them, and there are stories of him having to climb in windows to get back into the presbytery.”

Left: at the wedding of Joan Quinn and Don Cuthbertson at St Joseph’s. Below: invitation to Fr Milroy’s Golden Jubilee, 1960.

A Roman Catholic School for Benwell

St Joseph’s School was built on the original area of land bought in 1903 on the north side of Armstrong Road. Before this, the nearest Catholic schools were in Bell’s Close and Elswick.

The new school stood next to the tin church. It catered for children of all ages. In the early years there were two separate schools – an Infant School and one for older children known at different times as Junior, Mixed and Senior School. From the outset there was a close relationship with the church.

The Junior School opened on 25th July 1905. The school logbook reports that the entire first day was occupied with enrolment and registration. On the second day, “in consequence of the desks not being ready for us, oral lessons only taken.”

The headteacher of the Infant School recorded in her new logbook on 26th July 1905 that workmen were still at work on the building. Over the following weeks, books and other items of equipment began to arrive. The Infant School already had 136 pupils on its register. For many of these children this was their first experience of school. According to the logbook entry for 29th September: “They are exceedingly backward throughout the school – this may be accounted for from the fact the greater majority of them have never been to school before.”

This class photograph taken in the school grounds dates from 1906, just after the school opened.

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Extract from Evening Chronicle, 25 July 1905

In the early years, the school building seems to have been unsatisfactory in several respects. The Inspector of Schools reported that the heating was inadequate. The classrooms were very cold and in some cases lacked natural light. Noise was also a problem as this logbook entry shows:

“It is unfortunate for the classes on the ground floor that the floor over their heads was not made noiseless when the building was constructed.” Despite these problems, the Inspector found that the school provided a good education: “The Infant School has made a successful start. The teaching is rigorous and sympathetic and the attention and interest of the children are well secured.”

As more and more houses were built in Benwell, hundreds of families moved into the area. By the time of the outbreak of the First World War in 1914, the school was full,

St Joseph’s schoolchildren pictured prior to the First World War.

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The Impact of War

The two world wars disrupted school life. During the First World War the building was commandeered by the military authorities. At the end of the summer holidays in August 1914, the school moved into St James’ Parish Hall in Atkinson Road because the school premises were being used to house German sailors who had been interned when the war began. Former pupils recall that there were carvings on the trees in the school grounds that were believed to be made by German prisoners.

Several teachers went away to fight in the war. In July 1919 a garden party was held for those who had been demobilised. The 1919 summer holidays were extended to five weeks because of the peace celebrations.

School life was also overshadowed by illness during these years. In 1918 many children were affected by the Spanish flu epidemic which killed more people than the war itself. Other dangerous infectious diseases such as measles, diphtheria and tuberculosis were still serious hazards during the first half of the 20th century, and had a significant impact on school attendance.

At the start of the Second World War, pupils and teachers were evacuated to Cumberland. The evacuees left on 1st September 1939, and their education was continued at four schools: St Mary’s in Cleator, St Patrick’s in Cleator Moor, St Bridgid’s in Egremont and St Joseph’s in Frizington. Many of the evacuees returned several months later, and the school officially reopened in April 1940. As several teachers were still in Cumberland, the school operated for a while on a part-time basis, with staff from the Infant and Senior departments sharing teaching responsibilities.

In May 1940, air raid shelters were built underneath the Infant School building. Over the following months there were several air raid alarms. Children and teachers had to retreat to the shelters when this happened during the school day. After overnight air raids, the school would open late.

A second evacuation took place in July 1940 – this time to Whitehaven and Workington. After a short closure, and despite the growing frequency of air raids, St Joseph’s continued to operate in Benwell with a small staff and fewer than a third of its pupil numbers. It was not until 17th September 1945, after the end of the war in Europe, that the school officially reopened.

Growth and Change

By the 1920s the school had become very overcrowded. The Infant School, built to accommodate a maximum of 163 children, had 200 pupils by 1925. The situation was exacerbated by the layout of the classrooms which meant that over 80 children were being taught in one space separated by a curtain.

In 1925, an area of land to the west of the school building was purchased for £600, and a new Infant School was built there. As money was short, the new school yard was concreted by volunteers from the church congregation.

The School Inspector was delighted, commenting that:

“The overcrowding has been relieved by the provision of this new and commodious building. The rooms are bright and airy and the teachers have done their best to make them attractive.”

Architect’s plans for the new Infant School. 1926.

“I went to St Joseph’s Primary School from 1929 until 1938 when I was 14, and I loved it. It was a big part of my life. One of my special memories was when we did A Christmas Carol in the Christmas concert. The girl who was supposed to play Mrs Cratchit got the flu so I got the role instead. There was a lot of TB and consumption at the time, and kids who had TB had to sit in the front row.”

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It had been evident since the mid-1930s that senior school provision needed to be expanded at St Joseph’s. The anticipated change in the school leaving age to 15 added to the pressures from the increasing numbers of children of Catholic families living in the parish.

Plans were developed for a new two-stream entry Senior School to accommodate 280 girls and boys. The site chosen was immediately to the south of the church. St Joseph’s already owned a strip of land here, to which would be added another 1,132 square yards of vacant land further south owned by Newcastle Council. The architects Steinlet and Maxwell, who had recently designed the church, were again appointed, and they submitted their plans in September 1937. However, the outbreak of war in 1939 put an end to all school building projects, and St Joseph’s plans were put on hold. Although the need to increase education provision in the parish continued to be pressing, a major building project was not feasible in the climate of austerity that followed the war. A temporary solution was reached in 1949 with the construction of a classroom of a type known as a “Horsa Hut” on the school site. The initials stand for Hutting Operations for Raising of School Leaving Age”. Changes in education policy over the following years meant that the plans to create a new Senior School for St Joseph’s were never resurrected.

This photograph shows the main school buildings on the right, with the Infant School to their left and the “Horsa Hut” in front.

The 1960s saw a major reorganisation of the education system throughout Newcastle. Whereas previously children had been educated on the St Joseph’s site from reception to school-leaving age, secondary education was now based elsewhere. This paved the way for further changes and, from September 1969, St Joseph’s Infant and Junior Schools were amalgamated to form the new St Joseph’s Primary School. From here, pupils moved on to schools such as St Aloysius for boys and St Wilfred’s for girls, and later to St Cuthbert’s and Sacred Heart.

In 1975, a nursery was added to St Joseph’s. This is still there today. Above: St Joseph’s pupils, 1962. Right: St Joseph’s School, 1993.

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Remembering St Joseph’s Church

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Remembering St Joseph’s The closure of St Joseph’s Church in Benwell in 2013 brought to an end the 110 year history of the Parish of St Joseph’s. Although it is no longer a Roman Catholic Church, the building still stands. With its brightly coloured dome, it is a distinct landmark which can be seen from across the river. This is the story of the church and of those who built it, cared for it and worshipped in it over the years. An important part of the area’s history, it deserves to be remembered and celebrated.

St James’ Heritage & Environment Group

St James’ Heritage & Environment Group is an independent volunteer-run organisation and registered charity providing activities and resources for people of all ages to explore and celebrate the history of the west end of Newcastle.

Email: stjamesbenwell@gmail.com Website: https://stjamesheritage.com Address: St James’ Heritage & Environment Group, c/o Sunnybank Centre, 12/14 Sunnybank Avenue, Newcastle, NE15 6SD

© St James’ Heritage & Environment Group, 2021. ISBN 978-1-9989951-0-3

Remembering St Joseph’s The closure of St Joseph’s Church in Benwell in 2013 brought to an end the 110 year history of the Parish of St Joseph’s. Although it is no longer a Roman Catholic Church, the building still stands. With its brightly coloured dome, it is a distinct landmark which can be seen from across the river. This is the story of the church and of those who built it, cared for it and worshipped in it over the years. An important part of the area’s history, it deserves to be remembered and celebrated.

View from the river, with the dome of St Joseph’s Church in the centre, 2015.

St James’ Heritage & Environment Group St James’ Heritage & Environment Group is an independent volunteer-run organisation and registered charity providing activities and resources for people of all ages to explore and celebrate the history of the west end of Newcastle. Email: stjamesbenwell@gmail.com Address: c/o 12/14 Sunnybank Avenue, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE15 6SD

© St James’ Heritage & Environment Group, 2021 ISBN 978-1-9989951-0-3

View from the river, with the dome of St Joseph’s Church in the centre, 2015.