NEW CATHOLIC CHURCH

£9,000 Building at Iford. Blessed by Bishop of Portsmouth.

The new Catholic Church of St. Thomas More at Exton Road, Iford, was opened on Monday 29th May, the ceremony of blessing being carried out by the Bishop of Portsmouth (the Rt. Reverend Mgr. W.T. Cotter)

This is the second time in six days the Bishop has been in Bournemouth in connection with the blessing of new Catholic churches, his previous visit being on Wednesday last, when a similar ceremony took place at the Church of Our Lady of Peace, in Douglas Road, Southbourne.

The Bishop was accompanied by the Rt. Rev. Bishop King, auxiliary Bishop of Portsmouth. A number of Priests from the surround district attended the ceremony and a large congregation was present.

Before the service in the church began, the Bishop, with the priests and choir, walked from the Sacristy to the front of the church in procession, and while the choir sang the Litanies outside the entrance, the Bishop went around the outside of the building and sprinkled the walls with Holy Water.

Afterwards in the church the Litany of the Saints was sung, and was followed by High Mass.

In a brief address to the congregation the Bishop reminded them that they had now, on that growing district, the opportunity of taking part in prayer and worship of the diocese, of keeping themselves watchful I their faith and of showing an example of the good life to their neighbours and their children.

He spoke of those who, by their work, their spiritual effort and their benefactions, had made the erection of the church possible. All should feel deeply thankful to them for providing that beautiful temple of God, in the parish of Corpus Christi.


The church, a brick structure in a modern Norman style, has been built at a cost of about £9,000 and will be served from the church of Corpus Christi, at Boscombe.

The foundation stone was laid on January 11th last. Over the entrance is a mosaic of St. Thomas More and inside the porch is the baptistry. Thus infants will be christened before entering the church proper.

The building contains one large nave and two wide aisles, with a beautifully designed sanctuary. The pillars are square and coloured in a pale cream, giving the interior a cool and spacious effect. The church with its gallery is capable of holding between five and six hundred people.

Catholics from different parts of the country have helped to provide it, 'bricks' having been contributed from various parts of East Anglia, Sussex, and Buckinghamshire, There is a large sacristy attached to the church and space is available for the provision of a presbytery at some future date.

The priests present at the blessing of the church were:- The Rev. Fathers Gibbons, Ingram, Ross, Triggs, Turner, Burrows, Flynn, Grieg, Hetherington, Sexton, Pinkman, Chappic, Leahy, MacSwiney, Campbell, Mayo and FitzMaurice.

The architect for the building was Mr. T.H.V. Scott FRIBA of Westminster and Brentwood. The mosaic over the entrance is the work of Mr. Gabriel Pippet.

NEW CATHOLIC CHURCH

£9,000 Structure at Iford. Stone-laying by Bishop of Portsmouth.

Between two and three hundred people attended the stone-laying ceremony yesterday of the new Catholic Church of St. Thomas More at Iford, Bournemouth; which was performed by the bishop of Portsmouth, the Right Rev. Dr. W. T. Cotter, assisted by the Rt. Rev. Bishop King, bishop auxiliary of the diocese.

Headed by the Crucifix, the bishops and clergy in their robes entered the partly constructed building from Exton Road.

A service was held among the partly-raised walls and the scaffolding, during which the Bishop of Portsmouth sprinkled the place where the Sanctuary will be with Holy Water.

In laying the foundation stone, he scratched with the trowel six crosses on its surface and then walked around the structure, followed by the priests, sprinkling holy water as he went.

Beneath the foundation stone was placed a casket, inscribed on parchment together with sacred medals and coins of the realm.

Dr. Cotter's Address

After the ceremony the bishop addressed the gathering, reminding the people of their obligations to assist in completing the building of the church.

The foundation stone set that afternoon was the primary stone upon which was to be built the Word of God, by which they learned how to live and how to die.
He urged them to do all they could to see that the new church was equipped adequately in every way, and used to the Glory of God.

The need for it had arisen through the number of Catholics who had taken up their residence in that part of the town and who were too far removed from the parish church.

It would help them to serve Almighty God as good and earnest Catholics and to fulfil their duty to their neighbours and themselves.

The bishop emphasised that he wished his hearers to take an interest in the church, not only in a pecuniary way. They could all join in prayer to advance its welfare. By prayer they could secure the help that would enable them to complete the church for God's service and worship.

The building was being raised in an area where some 70 or 80 years ago there were only two Catholic churches - one at Burton Park and the other near Lulworth Cove.

Today in the same district the Catholic churches were almost beyond counting.

Another Report on St. Thomas More Church.

During the period from early 1937 to mid-1939 the proposed church for Iford was very much before the parish and many fund raising events were organised to collect funds for it.

The Iford Estate, consisting of about 450 acres and extending from the River Stour up to the top of Pokesdown Hill by King's Park gates and down the centre of which ran Christchurch Road to Iford and beyond, had been purchased in 1898 by the Cooper Dean Estate.

When in 1931 the Boundary of Bournemouth was extended to Iford, housing development commenced in earnest.

The Misses Cooper Dean were mindful of the spiritual as well as the temporal needs of the Estate and they decided that three sites should be reserved for future church buildings, one each for Anglican, Nonconformist and Catholic, these sites all being adjacent to Holdenhurst Avenue.

The estate developed rapidly, especially between Christchurch Road and the railway and in 1937 it was decided that the proposed Catholic Church would be better sited in a more central position.

Accordingly, a site was purchased in Exton Road in January 1938, when Mr T.H. Scott FRIBA was invited to draw up plans for the church.

In October 1938 the building contract was signed with Messrs. Fassnidge and Norris of Uxbridge and work commenced on the 25th October.

On January 1939 the foundation stone of the church, which was to be dedicated to St. Thomas More was laid by Bishop Cotter of Portsmouth. The solemn opening took place on Whit Monday, 29th May, the ceremony being carried out by the Bishop Cotter, Fr. Ingram SJ, Rector of Wimbledon and priests from many local parishes.

Norman Romanesque in style, the church has a wide nave with side aisles. The cost was in the region of £9,000 of which almost £3,000 had been raised. St. Thomas More's was served from Corpus Christi and in October 1939 Fr. Widdowson SJ was appointed to Corpus Christi to work in the Iford District.

In 1949 Iford became a separate parish and Canon Moore became parish priest.