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From: "Alan Earwaker" <>
Subject: [EARWAKER] 'The Parish Church of Saint John the Evangelist, West Meon, Hampshire'
Date: Tue, 8 Aug 2000 20:12:03 -0400


The Building of the Present Church:

The foundation stone of the new church was laid on 9 August 1843 by the
Rector, Archdeacon HENRY VINCENT BAYLEY. His invitation to a farmer
parishoner is still kept with the parish records and reads, "Archdeacon
BAYLEY will feel obliged if Mr. ARNOLD will give his labourers a holiday
from 3 o'clock to enable them to be present in the Church field." The
ensuing merrymaking resulted in several men being away for the whole week.
(Sounds like my EARWAKER Ancestors! - Alan))

The architect was GEORGE GILBERT SCOTT the elder, though the outline of the
plan seems to have been that of the Rector who had built and repaired
several churches elsewhere. West Meon Church is architecurally noteable as
being among the first in Hampshire to be influenced by the ideals of the
Cambridge Camden Society, the Rector being a Cambridge man. (So is my first
son, my second is a civil engineer - Alan)
The society was instumental in re-introducing an archaeologically-convincing
Gothic style, as opposed to the older, romantic and insubstantial "Gothick".
An example of the latter can be seen at Emsworth, completed only four years
before. West Meon was also SCOTT's first church in Hampshire, there being no
further work of his until St. Denys, Southampton (1868) and Highclere
(1869). The builders were WILLIAM and HENRY LEWIS of West Meon, a most
remarkable piece of workmanship for village builders. (Some EARWAKER's were
builders - Alan). the fabric is still in extremely sound condition, needing
only a minimum of repair and maintenance, a considerable tribute to both
architects and builders. (The builders were in when I visited on 7/8/00 -
Alan)........

........The flintwork is believed to be unique in church building, and the
individual flints were "knapped" by the women of the village who are said to
have received a farthing apiece for them. The builders' yard lay just north
of the church and is still known as Knapsyard (1977) or, less correctly
Knaps Hard. Of the total cost of £12,000 only £1,000 was raised by the
village, through a Parish rate, the remainder being a gift from the wealthy
Rector. He had also been instrumental in considerably renovating the old
Holy Trinity, Privett, then a Chapelry within the Parish, and removed the
Rectory from the present (1977) Red Lion Inn to what is now West Meon
House. He died before his Church was completed.......

The day of consecration was Tuesday 5 May 1846.......
.......The consecration was undertaken by the Lord Bishop of Winchester,
CHARLES SUMNER, and again the occasion was marked with a village holiday.

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