Church of St James
Sussex Gardens , Paddington, London
The
history of churches in the Paddington area is complex, due to the
massive development in the area during the 19th century. At its peak
in 1890 there were twenty three ecclesiastical parishes.
In 1845, the new church of St
James had become the parish church of Paddington, built at
southern end of Westbourne Terrace.
To retain the standing required by the main parish church, it was
decided to completely rebuild it. The rebuild was complex and entailed
the reconstruction on the existing site whilst still retaining its
function for worship. Despite this, incredibly it was rebuilt in
under a year in 1882.
Amongst the most famous being married here was that of Oscar Fingal
O’Flahertie Wills Wilde and Constance Mary Lloyd on 29/5/1884.
Unfortunately there was considerable damage to the structure during
the Second World War, including a loss of about 60 feet from the
top of the spire. The church was restored, but by the 1970s the area
had seen considerable exodus of its church population and subsequently
the churches of Christ Church Lancaster gate and Holy Trinity Bishops Bridge Road were
closed and the parish of St James was expanded to into these areas.
Those known to have been married here:
Edward Quinlan and Mary Reffell, marriage date: 27/2/1853
John William Reffell and Mary Ann Jones, marriage date: 12/10/1890