more history, St. John's RC Church, Portobello

The present church occupies the site of an Episcopalian chapel built in 1825 primarily to meet the needs of the large influx of military and naval officers who were quartered in Portobello at the beginning of the 19th century. The chapel, St. John’s, was consecrated by Bishop Sandford on 20th October 1825. However, with building of another Episcopalian chapel, St. Mark’s, at much the same time and because of some financial difficulties experienced by the then owner, St. John’s was put up for sale by public roup and was purchased by Bishop Carruthers in 1835 at a cost of £600. The Catholic Directory for that year expressed the purchase in the following terms:- “We hear that the Bishop, relying on a kind Providence, and the charitable contributions of the faithful, has lately concluded the purchase of a chapel in the thriving village of Portobello, as a convenient station from which religious assistance may be extended to the numerous Catholics in the different villages to the South and East of Edinburgh; the incessant labour to which the Catholic Clergymen in the City are subjected putting it entirely out of their power to take any regular charge of these various localities.” What the Directory does not define is the extent of “various localities” which took in the whole of what is now East Lothian, Roxburghshire, Selkirkshire, Berwickshire and part of Midlothian.

The Directories of that time go on to say a little bit more about the area; “The Catholics, who may number 1000, are, for the most part, Irish immigrants earning a precarious livelihood as labourers and farm servants. They are scattered over the country in detached groups, a great many at such a distance that is a matter of physical impossibility for them to attend divine service at Portobello. With a view to offering them at least occasional opportunities of assisting at Mass, and of discharging their other religious duties, the clergyman has opened stations at Dalkeith, Prestonpans, Pathhead, Tranent and Haddington, each of which localities is visited at stated times”.

Initially St. John’s operated as a mission station served by a priest from the Cathedral, but with the appointment of Fr. Clapperton as a resident priest, it was formally opened as St. John the Evangelist on Low Sunday (27th April) 1844. Fr. Clapperton appears to have been a remarkable man, as indeed have been all the succeeding pastors. He was born in Fochabers in 1813 and his is the first name on the register of seminarians at the new College at Blairs, which he entered at the age of 13. Following his studies, there and in France, he was ordained in 1836 and was immediately appointed a professor at Blairs and subsequently at Valladolid in Spain before his appointment to Portobello. Notwithstanding he was just over 30 and full of youthful vigour, the strain of tending such a large area must have been hugely challenging. At that time considerable work was going on with railway development in which a great number of Catholic labourers were employed, and with the nature of this work a great many accidents and exposure to the elements would have been suffered. Consequently the number of sick calls Fr. Clapperton had to attend must have been very demanding and we are told that “it was not unusual for him to return home from a long sick call at midnight and then to be called out 30 miles in the opposite direction”. One can only speculate how the good priest made these journeys with no public transport other than the occasional stagecoach. One supposes he had to rely on horses. Fortunately for him the livery stable in Portobello was run by the Forsyth family, who were among his first parishioners, and in church records, there is a note for a slightly later date which states that “Robert Forsyth, once a month, drove the priest to Tranent, in an open gig and took with him an altar boy”. Later in life Fr. Clapperton is reported to have said that in Portobello “I did in those days what is now the work of 16 priests”.

After 5 years at St. John’s, no doubt exhausted by his labours, Fr. Clapperton was moved to the newly established church at Peebles where he ministered for over 40 years before increasing deafness required him to move to a less demanding charge. He moved to Aberlour in 1883 where he remained for a few years before returning to his birthplace where he died in 1901, in his 88th year of age and 66th year of priesthood.

The Catholic population of Portobello itself must have been very small in those early years as the number of baptisms recorded in 1844 was only 5. The first entry in baptismal register is that of Jane Kelly, daughter of James Kelly and Jane McCulloch born on 15th March 1844 at Wellington Place “near Portobello” and baptised on 21st March 1844. One wonders whatever happened to young Jane. Other baptisms listed in that year were from various places, Musselburgh, East Linton, Dunbar and Cockburnspath - an indication in itself of the territory which had to be covered by the priest.

The Old St. John’s

The old St. John’s could seat just over 200 people, which was estimated to be the then Catholic population of Portobello and Musselburgh, but as the Catholic Directory of 1851 puts it “in summer, when an influx of strangers, attracted by the matchless loveliness of the surrounding scenery, pours in from Edinburgh and from all parts of the Empire, this number is considerably increased.”. Even then it seems that Portobello was Edinburgh’s seaside! The additional income which presumably flowed from these summer visitors must have been of great comfort to the then resident priest for the record of 1855 states that “the chapel has of late received a thorough repair, the expense of which, at least to a great extent, the zealous incumbent has been enabled to defray by the aid of charitable contributions of the Catholic public”. However the need for a newer and bigger church continued to be advocated but lack of funds proved too big an obstacle and instead in 1876 the then resident priest, Fr. Smith, began to collect funds to enlarge and improve the existing building.

In 1877/78 the church was extended by 20 feet, with a handsome façade in the Italian style, and so allowed the seating to be increased to around 400. The improvements included a semi-circular apse with two side recesses which were to serve as chapels of the Sacred Heart and of Our Blessed Lady. The Lady altar was presented to the church by the Rev. Dr. Rawes, as a memorial of the late Mrs. Frances Rawes - and still carries an inscription to that effect. (The other altar is in very much the same style and it is thought to have been erected at the same time. In the church records, a note, by Miss Gertrude Forsyth, claims the altar was installed as a memorial to Fr, D’Arcy who was the resident priest from 1856 - 1872.) The cost of the extension was just under £900 and when completed much of this sum had still to be raised. No records exist as to how this debt was extingus the great majority of the parish were still likely to be in straitened circumstances, it is entirely possible that the method adopted was one favoured by a neighbouring station in a similar situation, where each family paid one penny a week with one day’s wages every quarter.

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The New Church

The enlarged church proved to be adequate for around twenty years, during which time most of the mission had become independent churches, and St. John’s own boundaries had been significantly reduced in size. It was not until the last few years of the century, with the appointment of Fr. Donlevy in 1890, that the need to build a new church again became a live issue. The ingathering of funds began in the latter part of the 90’s and it appears the decision to start building was deferred until there were sufficient funds in hand to make that a reality. That position must have been achieved by 1903 when Mr. J. T. Watford was appointed as architect and submitted drawings to the Dean of Guild in November of that year with approval coming in the following month. Clearly, a much larger church would require more space than would be available from the demolition of St. John’s, and the two houses at nos. 1 and 2 Sandford Gardens were purchased in May 1904 to allow the building to go ahead. Interestingly, no. 2 was occupied by the aforementioned Forsyth family. The foundation stone was laid on 19th October 1904 but it appears that the church was not built exactly to the original design, with some omissions to the side chapels and, among others, the addition of the south porch. (A note in the church magazine for September 1925 states that the stone over the south porch “presents the appearance of a building that has been standing for centuries. The curious thing is that being an addition to the original plan, the stone, we are told, is from a different quarry to that from which the rest of the church was built.”)

The builders were Messrs. John Smith and sons. The tower of the church, 130 feet above the foundation stone, provides an interesting story. A stone at the top of the tower contains a tin box which was sealed into the stone with a slate. The box contains the following information :- “This tower was built entirely by four brothers named Flockhart, sons of the foreman; James, Archibald, Alexander and William, along with their assistant William Mooney in the year 1906.” Along with the document went a copy of the Edinburgh Evening News and some coins subscribed by the masons. A small Maltese cross marks the spot where the box was placed.

The church is in (idiosyncratic) Gothic style consisting of a nave, sanctuary, side chapels and baptistery, and externally perhaps its most prominent and distinguishing feature being the landmark tower mentioned above, which is crowned by an ornamental cross. In the interior, the High Altar, designed by the architect, is of white alabaster with a painting of the Last Supper, painted on a copper and gold ground, after the school of Fra Angelico. The tabernacle and throne are of white marble, with the floor of the sanctuary being of black and white marble squares, as are also those of the side chapels and baptistery. A notable feature of the nave and adjacent aisles are the octagonal piers with carved angels at their caps, carrying scrolls on which is written in Latin “Thou art Peter and upon this rock I will build my Church and the gates of Hell shall not prevail against it.”

The stained glass windows above the High Altar, featuring the Nativity, Crucifixion and Resurrection, are by Edward Frampton. The cost of the building at that time has been put at around £13,000 although an entry in the parish magazine for November 1927 records that “from first to last the cost of the erection was about £14,000, including the extension of the site and the buying out of the feus.” Roll mouse over images to see larger versions.

The church was formally opened on 25th February 1906, and the event was reported in the Scotsman of the following day as follows :-

“ECCLESIASTICAL
NEW ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH at PORTOBELLO
Yesterday forenoon the new Roman Catholic church, which has been erected on the site of their old church in Brighton Place, was opened for public worship. A large congregation of about 900 persons, including a large number of non-Catholics, completely filled the church. His Grace the Archbishop of St. Andrews and Edinburgh attended in person. The Rev. Charles Duperier, as master of ceremonies, with the cross bearer headed the procession, and the Archbishop in the rear, was attended by three train bearers. The Archbishop intoned High Mass, and was attended by the Very Rev. Mons. Grady, St. Patrick’s, Edinburgh, and the Very Rev. Canon James McGinnes, Innerleithen. The Very Rev. Canon Smith, VG., Stirling, a former pastor of the congregation, was Mass celebrant, and the Very Rev. Canon Turner, Lennoxtown, and the Rev. Father Callan, O.M.J., Leith were deacon and sub-deacon respectively. The preacher was the Very Rev. Canon Holder, Dundee.”

Landmark Events

After the completion and opening of the church the priority was to pay off the debt so that the church could be consecrated. However, the greater cost of the upkeep of a much larger building, as well as the continuing improvements and the intervention of the Great War, meant that it was not until 1927 that this step could be taken. That milestone fell to Fr. Franklin who took over in 1924 following the death of Canon Donlevy. It is clear from notes made at that time that a great deal of preparatory work was involved since the consecration of a church is the longest of all the in the church. Some idea of the work involved can be had from the estimate made that it would take around six hours. Mercifully, if only for the sake of the parishioners knees, it lasted merely five hours during which the relics of Sts. Dignus and Eutropius were placed in the sepulchre in the high altar. Fr. Franklin later noted that “For all time coming the third of August will be a great feast for the parish of St. John’s. As such, by ecclesiastical law, we are bound to observe it, and it will be known as the Feast of the Dedication. The Consecration of the Church ~~~ has put ~~~ a finishing touch to the work which was commenced by the laying of the foundation stone on the 19th October 1904”.
Canon Franklin, who served the parish until his death in 1955, continued to make improvements to the church beginning with the installation in 1926 of a chime of bells dedicated as a memorial to the long and zealous pastorate of his predecessor. In 1931, to mark the silver jubilee of the building, the chime was completed by the addition of five more bells, the funds for which were raised at the time of the depression and high unemployment, surely a remarkable tribute to the parishioners of that day and testimony to the great devotion in which they held their church. Additional improvements took place to mark the centenary of the parish in 1935 with the extension of the alabaster altar rails to the two side chapels, the appearance of which was further enhanced in 1938 with the erection of a reredos of panels of coloured marble framed in alabaster.
During the war years, little could be done other than the very basic maintenance and so it was inevitable that major expenditure would be required and this was undertaken by Dr. Ward who had been appointed administrator during Canon Franklin’s ill health in his last few years in office. The work that was necessary included renewal of the lighting system, the provision of toilets, as well as the repair of recent storm damage to the tower. All this work was undertaken in 1955, the year preceding the golden jubilee of the church.

The Golden Jubilee

The jubilee itself was celebrated on Sunday 22nd April 1956 with general Holy Communion at the 8am and 9.20am Masses followed by Pontifical High Mass with the sermon preached by the Very Rev. J. McElhinney. (As an aside it was announced that seat holders would have no priority and, apart from a few seats reserved for specially invited guests, parishioners could seat themselves wherever they pleased - the forerunner of today’s arrangements.) The day closed with Pontifical Benediction at 6pm. In the week following a number of social functions, tailored to suit all ages, were held to mark the occasion.

Second Vatican Council

Much of the first fifty years was taken up with the extinguishing of the debt and then the subsequent embellishment of the interior of the church and of necessity the parish tended to be rather inward looking. Since then, however, there has been a marked shift in outlook with the church playing a much more active role in the wider community. Perhaps the prime motivating factor in this shift was the setting up in 1962 by Pope John XXIII of the Second Vatican Council, the impact of which began to be felt towards the end of the decade. The Council emphasised that the Church - both clergy and laity - formed the people of God and that consequently all, in their proper function, had the duty of forming the Kingdom of God. To that end the Council recommended among other matters, the formation of parochial councils and steps were taken early in 1968 to establish a council in St. John’s covering such areas as liturgy, education, social, finance and general purposes. Some of the early outcomes flowing from that initiative led to the setting up of a parent teacher committee and the adoption of a much more participative role in the ecumenical and social life of the community. A notable step in that area was the appointment of Fr. (now Canon) Rae as the first chairman of the Portobello Council of Churches.

The liturgical changes introduced by the Council affected not only the way in which the laity had a more participative role in the sacrifice of the Mass, but also the physical environment in which it was said. With the priest now facing the congregation this meant that the altar had to be repositioned, and this was done in 1968, at the same time as the ornamentation to the reredos was removed. With the homily now more often delivered from the altar steps the pulpit became redundant and it eventually was removed with the very fine side panels, depicting the four evangelists, saved to embellish the sacristy corridor, which also provided access to the new hall adjoining the church.

Restoration and Refurbishment

These changes underlined the need for a more informed view of the maintenance and upkeep of the building and this led to the formation of a fabric committee and this came into its own with the decision taken in the early 1990s that the parish needed to ensure that it was properly equipped to fulfil the more active role in the local community that was now its lot. In this connection the lack of a hall had been something of a drawback and while such a facility had existed in the inter and immediately post war years, in the shape of Mount Charles in Bath Street, by the late fifties it had outlived its usefulness as a building, and was sold with the site now occupied by Scotmid. Canon Gordon, who had succeeded Canon Ward in 1972, devoted much time and energy in trying to find a suitable and acceptable alternative but without success. Eventually it was decided to erect a replacement hall on the restricted space beside the church and this was achieved in 1989 with completion the following year at a cost of £100,000. Other major work undertaken by the committee included the complete rewiring of the church in 1997, and the redesigning of the lighting to enhance the architectural features of the church and to offer a more adequate level of lighting for the congregation. But by far the most taxing work came as a result of the decision by the parish to ensure the church continued as a place of Catholic worship for the next century with one of the prime objectives to make more effective use of the interior space to meet the demands of a changing liturgy. As noted earlier to encourage the congregation to become more involved in the Mass, the High Altar had been moved forward in the sanctuary in 1968 but, because of the problems created by the inadequacy of underground support, it now needed to be restored to its original postion and be replaced by a new, smaller (and lighter) altar. The Baptimal Font would be repositioned from the baptistery to the sanctuary both for liturgical and practical reasons, the latter allowing the space so released to provide a facility which would be able to cope with demands created by such occasions as the monthly fair trade stall. The entrance to the church needed to be upgraded to provide an enclosed space under the organ gallery through the erection of glass doors thereby improving heat and sound insulation. However some of the other proposals affecting the side chapels were inconsistent with list building status and had to be abandoned.The nature of the changes proposed provided an ideal opportunity to improve the access and facilities for the disabled and these were put in hand. The cartilage of the church detracted somewhat from the imposing surrounding Georgian villas and a more sympathetic approach was needed to the grounds to make them more in line with the immediate area as well as helping to offset the church itself through a softening of the landscaping.
The total cost of the works decided on came to just under £850,000 and in order to progress the works with minimum disruption to services a phased approach was adopted. In April 2000 a start was made on the heating installation as well as repairs to the boiler room. In 2002 the main work began on the fabric and the church alterations and involved quite an upheaval in the day to day running of the church. Indeed, had it not been for the availability of the hall the disruption would have been much greater.

Fund Raising

When the preliminary costings for the restoration and refurbishment were first intimated the substantial nature of these proved to be a daunting task for the parish but immediately it set about fund raising through a number of wide ranging and imaginative schemes. The position was considerably eased through the receipt of one or two legacies, one of a very substantial nature, and when it was appreciated that St. John’s was one of the very few Grade A listed buildings in the Portobello area, possible new avenues of funding were opened. Applications for funding were then submitted to Historic Scotland, Heritage Lottery Fund, City of Edinburgh Council, and Scottish Architectural Heritage Trust all of whom responded positively. The final cost of the works came to £861,715 and was met as follows - Historic Scotland, £257,366; Heritage Lottery Fund, £305,230; City of Edinburgh Council, £5000; and Scottish Architectural Heritage Trust, £4000; Listed Places of Worship Scheme (VAT Refund) - £54,697; St. John’s Restoration Fund, £235, 422. The parish is indeed most grateful for the support of all the funding agencies as well as its own congregation which has enabled the church to be fittingly restored for its primary purpose of Catholic worship.
Although not directly related to the above financial detail the following work is nevertheless of considerable interest to the congregation as well as contributing to the general refurbishment of the church. The original furnishing of St. John’s, in keeping with the spirit of those early days, was somewhat spartan and particularly so with regard to the seating and kneelers. Kneelers were made more parishioner friendly in 1957 with foam padding and parishioners very much welcomed the replacement of this padding. Even more acceptable for those parishioners who inhabited the side aisles was the replacement of the rather distressed chairs which provided the seating in that area by pews which were made available from a redundant church.

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Benefactions

As noted at the beginning of this history the original parishioners were among the poorer members of society of the day. But as Portobello itself prospered so also must some of the parishioners since at the time of the building of the present church it is noticeable that quite a few parishioners contributed very generously to its adornment. As Mrs. Agnes Denning records in her guide prepared for the 1996 Open Day, the architect, who was at that time himself a parishioner, waived his fees and she also lists several major items contributing to the ornamentation of the church, such as the stained glass windows above the High Altar, the Baptismal Font, the Pulpit as well as a donation of £1000. This spirit of generosity was also evident at the time of the consecration of the church when the twelve consecration crosses were funded by individual parishioners, as were the provision of altar cloths. Others gave equally generously of their time and/or skills to make the church suitable for the occasion. The Golden Jubilee also attracted significant individual gifts including the provision of boundary railings, the brochure produced for the occasion, along with individual commemoration cards for every child in the parish. In that same decade a group of parishioners decided to put fund raising on a more organised basis and set up a Parish Development Scheme. Their enthusiasm and dedication soon provided sufficient funds to allow the acquisition of a Rushworth and Dreaper organ which was installed in 1961, which Agnes Denning states was in memory of Canon Franklin.

St. John’s School

No history of the Church of St. John the Evangelist would be complete without reference to St. John’s School. In the early days, as now, the church attached a great deal of importance to education, and at the time of the setting up of the mission station at St. John’s there were a number of schools already operating in Edinburgh. However it was not until 1864 that there is a reference to a school in Portobello, but it was short lived for in 1866 we are told that “The schools formerly set up in Portobello have been removed to Tranent, being found more useful there, where the Catholics are more numerous than at Portobello.”

In 1872 it appears that the day school was again in operation in Portobello although the Catholic Directory for that year records that a school is urgently needed and solicited contributions to that end. In his Annals of Portobello and Duddingston, Baird tells us that during Fr. Morris’ pastorate (1881 - 1888) the former United Presbyterian Church in Bath Street was purchased and turned into a school. In 1886 it was announced that the Ursulines of Jesus from St. Margaret’s would run the school from December of that year. The brochure prepared for the school’s centenary records that the school was formally opened by Archbishop Smith on 15th February 1887 with Sr. Mary Theresa as head teacher and a roll of 73 pupils. By the end of the first year that number had risen to 142, presumably from a wide catchment area since in 1895 the brochure refers to children coming on foot from Musselburgh, Newcraighall, Liberton and Niddrie

The continuing increase in numbers put a strain on accommodation for in 1910 the school had an annexe at 2 Windsor Terrace. In 1919 responsibility for the school passed to the Edinburgh Education Authority and some years later, on 15th December 1926, the formal opening of the present school at Hamilton Terrace took place. Continuing pressure on accommodation led to the opening of an annexe at Niddrie to cater for the housing developments in that area and was only eased by the opening of St. Francis School in 1935. In the post war years overcrowding again became a problem and temporary schoolrooms had to be provided in the playground but the position was eased when the secondary element of St. John’s came to an end in the early 1960s.
From the first inspector’s report in 1887 right up to the present day St. John’s has enjoyed an enviable record for academic achievement and excellence due in no small measure to the dedicated service of the many teachers, religious and now lay, who have given unstintingly of their service over all these years. Click here to see St. John's School website

Looking Back and Looking Forward

In all the years since the parish of St. John the Evangelist has been in existence many thousands have served God and their neighbours with love and perhaps none more so than the clergy charges with the responsibility for the parish. Interestingly, whereas prior to the appointment of Fr. Donlevy in 1890, St. John’s had been served by a succession of priests, most serving for only short periods - perhaps a reflection of the arduous nature of covering such a large area with little or no transport or roads - the period since then has been characterised by the opposite with only five parish priests covering the hundred years of the present church: Canon Donlevy until 1924; Canon Franklin 1924 -1955; Canon Ward 1955 -1972; Canon Gordon 1972 -1981 and from 1981 the current parish priest Canon Rae.
At one time there were many societies in the parish and whilst many of these groups have lapsed there are others, especially in the area of outreach which have flourished. We think especially of the relationship of St. John’s and Legho Small Christian Communities in Tanzania which started in 1984 and goes from strength to strength with regular interchanges between the two parishes.
Finally we think of and thank God for the many individuals within the parish who, quietly and without fuss or seeking recognition, go about contributing to the spiritual and material wellbeing of the parish and the community, with the aim of meeting the challenges of the Second Vatican Council to achieve the ideal of the early Christian communities as outlined in the Acts of the Apostles - “The whole group of believers was untied, heart and soul. “ (Acts 4:32).