St John's Uniting (formerly Methodist) Church
Electra Street, Williamstown

This large bluestone church with yellow brick quoining and cement details was built in 1876 to the design of prominent Melbourne architects Crouch & Wilson at a cost of £5,800. Crouch & Wilson were in partnership from 1858-81 and were responsible for the design of such buildings as the Blind Asylum and the Deaf and Dumb Asylum in St Kilda Road, the Prahran Town Hall, the Church of the Immaculate Conception, Hawthorn, St Luke's Church, North Fitzroy and Paterson Street Methodist Church, Launceston, Tasmania.

The building consists of a central nave separated from the aisles by tall cast iron columns, taking the form of a hall church. The main facade incorporates twin doorways with unusual hood mouldings. There is a gallery at the rear and a choir loft at the front, both with cast iron balustrading.

The organ was built in 1893 by Fincham & Hobday at a cost of £670 and retains its original action, mechanical for the keys and tubular-pneumatic for the stops, extended blackwood console and attractive grained case containing diapered pipes. There have been renovations by S.I. Sakacs in 1966, Hill, Norman & Beard (Australia) Pty Ltd and Stewart Organs.

GREAT Open Diapason Claribel Dulciana8 Principal Harmonic Flute Twelfth Fifteenth Mixture Clarionet Swell to Great SWELL Double Diapason Open Diapason Gedact Gamba Celeste Octave Flute Piccolo Cornopean Oboe Tremulant PEDAL Open Diapason Bourdon Great to Pedal Swell to Pedal

8 8 8 4 4 3 2 II 8 16 8 8 8 8 4 4 2 8 8 16 16

John Parker 1985 on Trumpet slide gvd.bass TC

compass: 56/30
4 thumb pistons to Great
4 thumb pistons to Swell
mechanical key action
tubular-pneumatic stop action

Photos provided by JRM