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History

Why “St Olave’s”?

“St. Olave's” is the anglicised version of “St. Olaf’s”, and the pronunciation rhymes with “olives”, as it has done from at least the seventeenth century. St. Olave’s in Mitcham took its dedication from the redundant church of St. Olave’s, Tooley Street, once sited at the southern end of the medieval London Bridge; that church took its name from Olaf, patron saint of Norway and once the saviour of London from the Danes.

Olaf Haroldson was born in Norway in 995. During the reign of Aethelred the Unready of England he took service and fought with him against King Swein of Denmark's invasion of England, saving London from the Danes by breaking down London Bridge, and he was with Aethelred when he was restored to the English throne in 1014.

During his time in England, Olaf was converted to Christianity and was baptised at Rouen at the age of 19. In 1015 he returned to Norway and by defeating Earl Swein of Norway in a great sea battle off Nesjar, he became King of Norway. He set about converting the people, assisted by a number of English bishops and priests, the organisation of the Church following English practice. Olaf is the Patron Saint of seafarers.

The Tooley Street Church

St. Olave's, Tooley Street, was located near Winchester Palace, the mediaeval London residence of the Bishops of Winchester, and St. Mary Overie, (later enlarged to become Southwark Cathedral). In 1736, St. Olave's was famous for being "the last church in London remarkable for possessing 4 aisles and 3 rows of pillars". However, it fell into disrepair. A report states that, in January 1736, in consequence of digging graves in the church too near the foundations of a pillar, the whole of the north side of the church fell down. The steeple and most of the church was demolished and rebuilt by Act of Parliament.

The succeeding church, designed by Henry Flitcroft, was built between 1737 and 1739 of Portland stone. The nave and aisles were divided by fluted columns of the Ionic order and there was a semi-circular apse. The renowned “Father” Schmidt built the fine organ. Almost 100 years later, during the night of 19th August 1843, there was a great fire in Tooley Street. Of the fabric of the church, only the tower and the bare walls remained, whilst the only wooden structure to escape the fire was the pulpit.

The old church was speedily rebuilt to the same design during 1844. However, in the early twentieth century the building was declared redundant and finally demolished in 1928. Fortunately, a decision was made at the same time to establish a new district and parish in the north-eastern portion of the old parish of Mitcham, to which the dedication of St. Olave was transferred.

The New Church

A missionary priest was assigned to the new district in 1927 and a building of wood and asbestos sheeting was erected in 1928 to serve as a temporary

church and later as the church hall. The Foundation Stone of the new church building was laid by Mrs. Garbett, the Bishop of Southwark's mother, on May 3rd 1930, and on January 17th 1931 the church was consecrated by the Rt. Revd. Cyril Garbett, Bishop of Southwark. The main Sunday service was "Holy Communion: Sung with Address"; the celebrant wore vestments and the Blessed Sacrament was reserved.

During the 1930s the vicarage was built; a Lady Chapel was established by the removal of the font from the North transept to the West end and the placing of an altar and a statue of the Virgin and Child in its place; and the use of incense was approved. The new parish grew and thrived in the pre-war era, with many social groups and youth organisations as well as a full observance of the Church’s liturgical year.

In 1950 the Stations of the Cross were placed on the walls of the church and were, after a Consistory Court, the very first set to be sanctified in the Diocese of Southwark. In 1951 the mid-morning service on Sunday was High Mass from The English Missal; attendance at the eight o'clock Mass only dropped below fifty for special reasons, such as the Parish Holiday, or unusual cold.

Six years later the figure of the Reigning Christ was placed on the east wall. Alterations were also made to the Chancel to allow for the rebuilding of the organ. By 1961 it was the older members who attended the early Sunday celebration, and the main service was a "Parish Eucharist", still with music and ceremonial, but more soberly "Prayer Book Catholic". In the 1960s an active stewardship and Planned Giving campaign was mounted, and a successful and popular innovation was the institution of regular Parish Breakfasts, at which members could meet each other after the Sunday morning Eucharist.

By 1967 the need for extensive repairs to the church fabric led to plans for a sale of part of the church grounds for housing. Many problems had to be overcome and progress was slow, but eventually the old Hall was demolished, houses were built on the land to the west and south of the church, a church car park was formed and by 1976 the new Parish Hall had been built on the north side of the church.

The introduction of new, alternative forms of service in the 1970s led to much discussion and heart-searching, and experiments were carried out also in the arrangements of the church furniture. A perpetual memorial of the church's Golden Jubilee in 1981 was the establishment of a nave altar on a carpeted platform in front of the entrance to the chancel, under the dome.

After discussions in the 1980s the parish became part of the Upper Mitcham Group Ministry, now formed of the parishes of St. Barnabas, St. Mark, St. Olave and SS Peter and Paul.

During the 1980s financial problems accumulated; these have been partly solved by the hire of the Hall to a Day Nursery and by rental income from telephone masts on the tower. There has been much social and demographic change since the first houses were built in the late 1920s and more movement of population.

The decision of General Synod to allow the ordination of women priests has had a profound effect on the parish. A ballot of the congregation resulted in the PCC passing Resolutions A and B, and two years later Resolution C, asking for alternative oversight by an Episcopal Visitor, the Bishop of Fulham. The parish belongs to "Forward in Faith", an organisation for similar churches. It remains to be seen what these decisions will mean for the parish's future, although the situation seems stable at the moment, with signs of growth in Sunday attendance.

Further reading: Article by Ray Ninnis in Bulletin 139 of Merton Historical Society.

Mitcham Histories 3 by E.N Montagu, published by Merton Historical Society