St Stephen the Martyr

St. Stephen the Martyr Anglican Church, High Street Penrith

St Stephen the Martyr Anglican Church, High Street, Penrith

First Incumbent: The Rev. Henry Fulton was the first rector. He knew the area and its people well, as he had been a minister of the older area of Castlereagh just north of Penrith since 1814, and was also a magistrate of the court in Penrith.

A Local Landmark: The northwest corner of the Church’s thirteen metre tower was made Penrith’s trigonometric point and the tower became a landmark for travellers in the early days.

The Fabric: Built in local sun-dried brick, the exterior of the church began to crumble and was cement-rendered in 1906, both inside and out. Restoration and repairs have remained an on-going necessity.
The Interior: Originally, the pew settings were box type, rented as was the custom of the time, by various families. The box pews were removed and open long pews installed in the 1860’s. In 1952 the present arrangement of a centre aisle was effected. The bell, said to have been cast on the site, is dated 1838 and is still in use.

The Windows: The eastern window demonstrates the style produced in the 1870’s in N.S.W. and later ones present as pictures – those in the vestry depict the marriage in Cana and the 4 in the northern porch have caused it to be known as the Apostles’ Porch.

Rector: Rev. Tom Harricks

Associate Minister: Rev Mark Bolas

Postal Address:
252 High St
Penrith 2750
New South Wales Australia

Phone: (02) 4721 2124

Service Times:
Sundays – 7:30 am | 10 am | 6:30 pm

St. Stephen’s Mission Statement:

At St Stephen’s we are a church that greatly values community and relationships of all ages. We meet regularly to get to know each other, encourage each other and seek to live out our faith in the life-changing Son of God – Jesus Christ

St. Stephen’s Anglican Church was the first Church built in Penrith and is now the 15th oldest surviving church in NSW. The foundation stone was laid on 22nd November, 1837, the local community contributing freely towards the cost of building the church.

The Site:
The land on which the church stands was part of the original grant to John Best. Subsequently sold to John Tindale, this “one acre more or less”, which at the time was in the centre of the little village of Penrith, was obtained from John Tindale by the church for “£20 of lawful money”.

The Consecration:
The Bishop of Australia, the Rt. Rev. William G. Broughton, consecrated St. Stephen’s Church on July 16th, 1839.

Henry Fulton1838-1840
Thomas Makinson1840-1841
Robert Knox Sconce1842-1843
Ben Lucas Watson1844-1853
Elijah Smith1853-1868
John Vaughan1868-1880
George Brown1881-1899
Edward Hargrave1899-1902
Henry Holliday1903-1907
Mervyn Archdall1908-1913
Montague Hinsby1914-1920
Leslie Hatfield-Fall1920-1924
H. Norman Powys1924-1932
John William Ferrier1932-1936
Raymond Chapple1936-1947
Archibald Hodgson1947-1960
Richard Owen Dykes1960-1966
Warron Bryden Brown1967-1984
Donald Jesse Wilson1984-1993
David Gray Mulready1993-2000
Rick Miller2000-2013
Tom Harricks2014-Present

The Archives Office is located in the old rectory next door to the Church in High Street. The archivists are always keen to receive information about the parish, however trivial. Their aim is to index material so that it can be made available for interested persons and those conducting research.

The honorary archivists may be contacted through the Parish Office 9am-1pm, Monday to Friday or by telephoning (02) 4721 2124.