Union of Benefices Act 1860

The Union of Benefices Act was a piece of legislation regarded as necessary^[1] to reduce the number of parish churches in the City of London^[2] as the residential population declined^[3] in the second half of the 19th century.^[4]

Churches affected were

Church	Fate	Year	United with
All Hallows Bread Street	Demolished	1876	St Mary-le-Bow
All-Hallows-the-Great	Tower demolished first; then main body	1876/1894	St Michael Paternoster Royal
All Hallows Lombard Street	Demolished	1938	St Edmund the King and Martyr
All Hallows Staining[5]	Demolished	1870	St Olave Hart Street
Holy Trinity Gough Square	Demolished	1906	St Bride, Fleet Street
Holy Trinity, Minories	Closed[6](destroyed 1940[7])	1899	St Botolph's Aldgate
St Alphage London Wall	Demolished[8]	1924	St Mary Aldermanbury
St Antholin, Budge Row[9]	Demolished[10]	1875	St Mary Aldermary
St Benet Gracechurch	Demolished	1867	All Hallows Lombard Street
St Dionis Backchurch	Demolished[11]	1878	All Hallows Lombard Street
St George Botolph Lane	Demolished	1901-04[12]	St Mary-at-Hill
St James Duke's Place	Demolished	1874	St Katherine Cree
St Katherine Coleman	Demolished	1926	St Olave Hart Street
St Martin Outwich	Demolished	1874	St Helen's Bishopsgate
St Mary Somerset	Demolished[13]	1872	St Nicholas Cole Abbey
St. Mary Magdalen Old Fish Street	Caught fire,[14] subsequently pulled down	1887	St Martin Ludgate
St Matthew Friday Street	Demolished	1885	St Vedast alias Foster
St Michael Bassishaw	Demolished	1900	St Lawrence Jewry
St Michael Queenhithe	Demolished[15]	1875	St James Garlickhythe
St Michael Wood Street	Demolished	1895	St Alban, Wood Street
St Mildred, Poultry	Demolished	1872	St Olave Jewry
St Olave Jewry	Demolished	1888-91[16]	St Margaret Lothbury
St Peter Le Poer	Demolished	1907	St Michael, Cornhill

As churchyards were emptied for construction projects, such as the new railway stations, many remains were exhumed and re-interred in the City of London Cemetery.

This Act was amended by the Union of Benefices Act 1898 (61 & 62 Vict c 23).

Notes

1. ↑ Borer, M.I.C. The City of London – a history. New York, D. McKay Co, 1978 ISBN 0-09-461880-1
2. ↑ Huelin, G. Vanished Churches of the City of London, London Guildhall Library Publishing 1996 ISBN 0-900422-42-4
3. ↑ The 1860 United Benefices Act Wright, G.W. in "Notes and Queries" 1943 184(10):290-291
4. ↑ Reynolds, H. The Churches of the City of London. London, Bodley Head, 1922
5. ↑ The Tower, however remains "The City of London Churches" Betjeman, J. Andover, Pitkin, 1967 (rpnt 1992) ISBN 0-85372-565-9
6. ↑ The Times, Tuesday, 20 June 1899; pg. 8; Issue 35860; col A Ecclesiastical Intelligence Ancient church closes
7. ↑ "Local Administrative Units: Southern England" Youngs, F London: Royal Historical Society, 1979 ISBN 978-0-901050-67-0
8. ↑ Tower remains- Betjeman (Ibid)
9. ↑ Viewed by many as the most tragic loss of all "Notes on Old City Churches" Pearce, C.W. (Winthrop Rogers Ltd 1909)
10. ↑ To make way for the new Queen Victoria Street "A Dictionary of London" Harben, H.: London, Herbert Jenkins, 1918
11. ↑ Proceeds went to building of St Dionis, Parson's Green
12. ↑ A survey at the beginning of the century had identified it had not been used for worship in 10 years The Times, 23 June 1900; pg. 15; Issue 36176; col F Survey Of The Memorials Of London.
13. ↑ The Tower, however remains Betjeman (ibid)
14. ↑ 2 December 1886 Huelin (ibid)
15. ↑ Demolition details
16. ↑ Tower remains-Betjeman(Ibid)

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