Have you ever wondered how some of the churches in our district were named? It is well documented that St. Phillip’s Anglican Church, Church Hill in Sydney was named in honour of our first Governor and a number of this district’s early pioneers also appear to have been immortalised in the same way.
St. David’s Anglican Church, Arncliffe originally stood on land given by Mrs. Mary Hannam In memory of her husband, David.
St. Joseph’s Catholic Church at Rockdale is on land donated by Joseph Walz, St. Patrick’s at Kogarah on land donated by Patrick Moore and St. Michael’s Church at Hurstville on land donated by Michael Cannon.
St. George’s Church at Hurstville has nothing to do with the fact that it is located in the St. George District. It stands on land given by early Hurstville pioneer, George Crew.
While none of these names are documented in the histories of these churches, I think you would agree, it is all too much of a coincidence for this pattern to be ignored.
This article was first published in the July 1990 edition of our magazine.
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