"For my body, I desire it may be buried in the same grave with my dear mother, in the centre of the dome of St. Edmund's Church, in Dudley; on the right side of which I desire may be fixed in the wall, a small monuiment of marble, of an oval form, with this inscription :-" Near this place lies interred the body of Penelope Antrobus, widow, who departed this life the 10th day of Aug. 1756, aged 59, adding these words: "She departed not from the temple, but served God with fastings and prayers night and day.” On the left side I desire another for myself, and of the same size and form, with this inscription ::- Here lies the body of the Rev. Henry Antrobus, &c." adding these words :-"Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am chief." As for my wordly estates, which God of his undeserved goodness hath given me, I dispose thereof as follows: 66 "Whereas, it was my aunt Oliver's desire, that I should buy Land to the value of ten pounds per Annum, to pay a School Mistress FOR TEACHING FORTY POOR GIRLS, of the Parish of Dudley, to read, sew, and knit; that they be brought to church constantly when there are prayers, and to be catechised every Friday in Lent, by the Minister of the Parish; which Land is not as yet purchased. I do hereby give, devise and bequeath MY ESTATE AT HOKEHAM, which John Whitehouse holds of me, for that purpose; and desire my executrix, hereafter mentioned, to lay out the sum of SIX HUNDREDS POUNDS, the profits whereof to make a provision for Clothing the said Girls every year, and to buy Books for the use of the School. Item.- I give, devise, and bequeath MY ESTATE which William Aynsworth holds of me, in the Parish of Rowley Regis, to the intent TO CLOTHE, (according to Mr. Oliver's will, who left One Hundred and Fifty Pounds for that purpose, to which was added Fifty Pounds more by his Wife, which money remains in my hands, and has not, as yet, been disposed of,) SIX POOR MEN, belonging to the Parish of Dudley, upon every 1st day of November for ever; and if the profits of the said Estate will bear it, to add a seventh then to the above-mentioned number. "Whereas, my aunt Oliver had desired that FIFTY POUNDS might be given to erect a GALLERY in the NEW CHURCH in Dudley:-I desire my executrix, hereafter mentioned. to pay within twelve months after my decease, or begin the Gallery, and carry it on as far as the money will go, as soon as possible. "I do hereby appoint and nominate the said Elizabeth Perry, sole executrix of this my last will and testament: CHARGING HER, AS SHE MUST ANSWER IT AT THE DREADFUL DAY OF JUDGMENT, to fulfil the Will of the Rev. Thos. Oliver, my aunt, and my own, as punctually as may be ; and to have all the Charities enrolled in Chancery, as soon as possible; THAT THE POOR MAY NOT BE DEPRIVED OF THEIR RIGHTS!!! To this my last will and testament have set my hand and seal, this 30th day of December, 1762." Proved at London, 9th Dec. 1766, by the oath of Eliz. Antrobus, formerly Perry, widow, relict of the deceased. ST. THOMAS'S PARISH CHURCH. Much unkindly feeling and animosity was occasioned in the Parish when this fine Old Parish Church was doomed to be demolished, more especially when it became known that a heavy Church Rate for years to come would be levied upon the Ratepayers, partly to meet the cost of building the New Parish Church. * On laying the Foundation Stone of the present St. Thomas's Church, on October 25th, 1816, the following ticket was issued : : ADMIT THE BEARER INTO ST. THOMAS'S CHURCH YARD, On the 25th of OCTOBER, 1816. N.B.-This Ticket will entitle the Purchaser to a Medal. DUDLEY CHEN HURCH 1791 As many discrepancies have often appeared in print as to the cost of the erection of the present Church of St. Thomas, Dudley, I am enabled, through the courtesy of Ephraim Ball, Esq., of Halesowen, to lay before the reading public some authentic information on this head, taken from valuable documents now in his possession, which belonged to the Churchwardens and Building Committee at that remote period. Mr. Ball's subjoined letter to the Dudley Guardian, in 1871, effectually sets that question for ever at rest. *The reason why this account of the building of the Parish Church does not appear at the beginning of this Book, ar se from the inability to obtain a copy of these documents until the work was nearly printed off.—EDITOR. We have also another very pleasant evidence of the liberality and care for the spiritual wants of the parishioners displayed at that time by the then Viscount Dudley and Ward, in erecting a new Gallery in St. Edmund's Church, to enable the church going inhabitants to obtain some sitting accommodation in public worship, during the very protracted time occupied in the erection of the New Parish Church. MY LORD, Dudley, July 10th, 1815. The Churchwardens of Dudley beg leave most respectfully to inform your Lordship that, as it is found expedient to put up a Gallery in Saint Edmund's Church, for the accommodation of the inhabitants, while the Parish Church is building; that a space on your Lordship's Chancel being the only one for such Gallery, which will become your Lordship's property hereafter; that there is no power of applying any part of the subscription money, raised for the intended New Parish Church, towards the said Gallery; and that the parishioners having contributed to the utmost of their means, for the erection of the Churchwe are emboldened by your Lordship's great liberality, on all occasions to the town of Dudley, to solicit your kind assistance to enable us to complete the Gallery, according to an estimate amounting to £181, which will greatly add to the many obligations which we owe your Lordship. In behalf of the parish, we are my Lord, I shall be at Himley, quite as soon as I intended, and take the liberty of sending the enclosed for your inspection; and beg that you will inform the inhabitants of Dudley, that I shall be happy to accommodate them with a Gallery in my Chancel, and will talk further on the business when I have the pleasure of seeing you. I am, yours sincerely, London, Wednesday July 12th, 1815. DUDLEY AND WARD. MY LORD, Dudley, October 15th, 1815. A wish having been expressed by a few, that the Gallery with which your Lordship has had the goodness and generosity to present to this parish in the Chancel of St. Edmund's, should consist of close pews instead of open benches, we respectfully request your Lordship will be pleased to inform us, whether (if deemed expedient), such wish shall be complied with, no additional expense falling on your Lordship in consequence of any deviation from the original plan. And, if complied with, whether any rent for the seats ought to be paid to the Minister of St. Edmund's for the same. The children of the charity schools being about 1,000 in number, we also beg leave most respectfully to submit it to your Lordship's consideration, whether, (when the new Parish Church is completed), the said Gallery (if thought advisable), should not be converted into open benches for their accommodation. We are, my Lord, your Lordship's I wish the Gallery to be so constructed as may best answer the wants of the inhabitants, especially the householders, while the Parish Church is being built. If close pews will be most eligible for the purpose during that time, I have no objection to their being put up by the persons wanting them, under the direction of yourself and the Churchwardens, provided the pews be so formed as to be capable of being altered hereafter, as I may think proper. I am, my dear Sir, Himley, November 4th, 1815. Yours sincerely, DUDLEY AND WARD. The following correspondence is a valuable compendium to Dudley loreDUDLEY DURING THE LAST SIXTY YEARS. To the Editor of the DUDLEY GUARDIAN. SIR,-In my former letters to you I have given an account o what took place and about the old Parish Church, in this I shall give some information respecting the present church, which is so great an ornament to the town. The foundation stone was laid in the year 1816, and finished building in the year 1819, at a cost of £24,000, raised partly by rates and partly by voluntary contributions. The following is a list of the donors : The Right Hon. Viscount Dudley and Ward ... ... ... £ 8. d. 2000 0 0 120 0 500 0 0 So that it will be seen that upwards of twenty thousand pounds were raised from the Parishioners by a rate levied upon them under an Act of Parliament. It would not have fallen so heavily upon the Ratepayers as it did but for the fact that the person who bought the materials of the old church never paid for them. The agreement with the purchaser was to pay for them when he fetched the last load away, but this part of the contract was never completed, for he either forgot it or wilfully neglected it. However this may be, a nice row of houses were built with the materials he did fetch away on the road that cuts off at right angles leading to Rowley from Dixons Green. The bottom part of the ovens which were in the brewhouses belonging to these buildings were laid with some of the gravestones taken from the old churchyard, and not unfrequently was to be seen upon the newly-baked loaves Sacred to the Memory,' Departed this life," or "Here lie the remains," &c. The individual referred to was one of the leading men of the town in that day, and the least we can say is that he had a jolly bargain at the expense of the parishioners. The first Vicar of the newly built Church was the Rev. Luke Booker, the next the Rev. W. H. Cartwright, M. A., who gave up the living, and was succeeded by the Rev. J. C. Browne, D.C.L. The present Vicar is the Rev. W. R. Cosens, M.A. The magnificent organ in the church was the gift of the Right Hon. Viscount Dudley and Ward, and at his request, Mr. Richard Bourne, a very respectable inhabitant of the town, was appointed organist. Mr. Bourne was much respected by his Lordship, having been for many years his |