By MARLENE NEWELL
THE work of the Anglican Church in Dandenong is closely connected with the history of the district.
The early settlers began to filter in from Melbourne in the middle and late 1840s.
The first church service in Dandenong was held in Dunbar’s Hotel (now Jim Dandy’s) on 21 July 1850.
As well as local people, officers of the Native Police Force attended and with them between 20 and 25 aborigines in training at the depot.
In July 1855 a site of two acres for Church of England purposes had been appropriated on the corner of Langhorne and Wilson streets and extending to McCrae Street.
Both day and Sunday schools were held in a large tent which was located midway between the present church and Laurel Lodge.
A school house was built in 1856 facing Wilson Street at a cost of £330.
In October 1863 a meeting of church members and others was arranged to discuss the erection of a church.
Twenty residents were each asked to collect £10 within two months.
A bazaar was held in March 1864 and with a grant of £200 from the Council of the Diocese funds stood at £406.6.0.
Plans and specifications for the building were drawn up and tenders called.
The Foundation Stone of St James’ Church of England was laid by the Governor of Victoria Sir Charles Darling on 5 July 1864, the opening and dedication taking place on 2 January 1865.
The church was built in the early English style and was purely rectangluar.
By 1886 it was obvious that the church could not hold the crowded congregations and a building committee was formed to raise funds to enlarge the building with the addition of the two transepts, a chancel and sanctuary.
To cater for parishioners who drove regularly to St James’ from as far away as Lysterfield, Hampton Park, Narre Warren and Rowville, stables and sheds were built on the McCrae Street side of the grounds for their horses and buggies.
The ministry by the vicars of St James’ included St Aidan’s Noble Park, St Laurence’s Doveton, St Michael’s and All Angels, North Dandenong, and St Luke’s, West Dandenong.
The latter two parishes joined together and formed the new parish of St Michael’s and St Luke’s.
The years following the centenary celebrations in 1964 saw unprecedented growth in Dandenong and surrounding areas as they changed from residential to commercial.
St James’ now also has a large ethnic congregation with folk from South Africa, Sri Lanka, India, as well as the recent migrants from the Sudan.
This multi-cultural influence has greatly enhanced both the spiritual and social life of St James’.
