Eton Wick Church of St. John the Baptist

Eton Wick Church of St. John the Baptist 

A history by Frank Bond

In 2013 and 2014 the Rev. Holt left the village and the Rev. Stacey came to be the new vicar. This seems an appropriate time to reflect on its conducts, priests and Vicars. Eton Wick had no church building until 1866/7 when St. Johns was built in Sheepcote. Previously services (but not the Sacraments) were held in the school room at the top of the walk, but of course that building did not exist until 1840. We are told of earlier services in a farm building, but l have no details.

The Eton church of St. Johns the Evangelist was built mid 1850s, but not until 1875 would Eton or Eton Wick be a parish independent of the 'College', where the College Chapel continued to be the Parish Church and as such provided conducts for the services in town and village. Until 1875 the provost was responsible for the spiritual care of the communities and as such delegated the care to his conducts. In that year the town church became the parish church and town and village were served by a vicar and a priest respectively. In 1972 the village's became the Parish church, and it was during the time of vicar Rev Johnson who for personal reasons did not choose to leave the town vicarage for the village. Excluding the early conducts we have listed, to be best of our knowledge, all the curates since 1875 when the 'Parish Church' was the Church of St. John the Evangelist (Eton).

Notable Occasions at St. John the Baptist (Eton Wick):

Church designed by Arthur Blomfield (later 'Sir')

Built 1866 - 1868

Consecrated 1867

Church Yard consecrated 1892

First burial 1892

First marriage 1897

Gas lighting installed 1935

Gas heating installed 1942

Church room dedicated 1951

Stained glass east window in memory of E. L. Vaughan 1951

Electric lighting installed 1952

Churchyard extension 1955 - 1957

Electric heating installed 1958

Became Parish Church 1972

Churchyard maintenance scheme started 1972

Curates of Eton with special responsibility for Eton Wick (or later living in the village and having charge of Eton Wick):

1875 – 1879 Revd. W. W. Keating (4 years)

1880 – 1882 Revd. A Symonds  (2 years)

1882 – 1885 Revd. A. S. Hawthorne  (4 years)

1886 – 1892 Revd. A. H. Blake  (6 years)

1892 – 1892  Revd. H W. E. Molony (7 months)

1892 – 1894  Revd. E. H. Clarke (2 years)

1894 – 1892  Revd. L. E. Dickenson (3 years)

1897 – 1897  Revd. E. C. Lestie (2 months)

1897 – 1898  Revd. R. H. Mitchell (1 year)

1898 – 1900  Revd. R. G. S. Demaus (2years)

1900 – 1904  Revd. L S. C. Waldy (3 years 6 months)

1904 - 1904 Revd. D. E. Johnstone LL.D. (4 months)

1905 – 1910  Revd. F. H. Smith (4 years 3 months)

1910 – 1910  Revd. S. Burgess (3 months)

1910 – 1910 Revd. Dickinson (2 months)

1910 – 1910  Revd. C. W. Fisher M.A. (2 months)

1910 – 1911  Revd. H. Mounsey of St. George's Chapel (2 months)

1911 – 1915  Revd. H. Crabtree - (4 years)

1916 – 1917  Revd. G. E. A. Hilliard (1 year +)

Parish magazines from which this information was collated were not published from March 1917 due to war-time shortages. Started again in January 1920.

1917 – 1921  Revd. J, M. McAnaily (3+ years)

1921 – 1924  Revd. H. C. Onstow M.A. (2 years 9 months)

1924 – 1929  Revd. F. S. Hulbert (5 years)

1930 – 1944  Revd. D Wingate (14 years) in WW2 Longest serving

1944 – 1945  Revd. H. Luce (1 year)

1945 – 1954  Revd. C. Hare (9 years)

1954 – 1957  Revd. D. Galliford (2 years 6 months)

1957 – 1962 Revd. J. Nourse (5 years)

1962 – 1963 Revd. R. Wickens (6 months) died in office

1963 – 1975 Revd. A. Paice (11 years)

1975 – 1988 Revd C. Johnson (14 years) vicar of Eton took charge

Parish joined Team Ministry

1988 – 1995 Revd C. Pontin (7 years) first vicar resident in Eton Wick

1995 – 2005 Revd P. Reynolds (10 years)

2005 – 2013 Revd. Lucy Hott (7 years) First lady vicar

2014 to date Revd. La Stacey

This article was first published in Our Village, Eton Wick's own village magazine.