Diamond Creek, VIC - Uniting
Year Built: 1984
Denomination: Uniting
Address: 32 Wensley Street, Diamond Creek, Victoria, 3089
Previous Denomination: Methodist
Architect: Unknown
Traditional Owners: Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung people
Last Updated: 11/03/2023
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History and Architecture:
The Diamond Valley Parish traces its origins to the Heidelberg Primitive Methodist Mission, which dates from 1854. The Primitive Methodist Church was a nineteenth century evangelical revival grounded in the teachings of John Wesley. A branch of Methodism, Primitive Methodism originated amongst the poorest farmer labourers and miners of the English midlands, and spread throughout England and eventually to the colonies.
The first Primitive Methodist service was held in Melbourne in 1849.
The Heidelberg Mission opened a church Eltham in 1860, then reached out to Diamond Creek. It is believed that services commenced in a barn, near the site of the present Diamond Creek East Primary School, in the September quarter of 1861. In March 1862 a small chapel was built on a site 500 metres east of the present church. That little chapel was the first church, and possibly the first public building, in the Diamond Creek district. It also housed the district's first school.
A Foundation stone was laid by Reverand R. Milligan on 3 November 1963. The church is predominantly made out of mud bricks and was erected in 1984.
Clergy:
This list may not contain every serving cleric, past or present, for this church.
Further submissions welcomed.
| Years | Name | Annotation | D.o.B | D.o.D |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1861 - 1865 | Rev Henry Heathershaw | M | 1833 | 1907 |
| 1865 - 1867 | Rev J. H. Brown | M | ||
| 1868 - 1869 | Rev Henry Gordon Robinson | M | 1899 | 1965 |
| 1870 - 1871 | Rev William Henry Walton | M | ||
| 1871 - 1875 | Rev Alfred T. Glasson | M | ||
| 1876 - 1877 | Rev William Adams | M | ||
| 1877 - 1878 | Rev William Moore | M | 1855 | 1914 |
| 1878 - 1879 | Rev A. M. Taylor | M | ||
| 1879 - 1880 | Rev Reuben Newell | M | 1851 | 1926 |
| 1880 - 1881 | Rev William Ride | M | ||
| 1881 - 1883 | Rev Samuel Richards | M | ||
| 1883 - 1884 | Rev John Ogiethorpe | M | ||
| 1885 - 1886 | Rev William Ride | M | ||
| 1886 - 1889 | Rev Robert Jackson | M | ||
| 1889 - 1891 | Rev Thomas Roberts | M | 1860 | 1922 |
| 1892 - 1896 | Thomas Nichols | M | ||
| 1896 - 1899 | Rev Charles Mason | M | ||
| 1899 - 1900 | Rev G. R. Neilson | M | ||
| 1900 - 1903 | Henry J. Wiltshire | M | ||
| 1903 - 1906 | Ephraim C. Perkins | M | ||
| 1906 - 1907 | R. T. Marshall | M | ||
| 1907 - 1910 | F. R. Wilks | M | ||
| 1908 - | William H. Collom | M | ||
| 1910 - 1913 | Alfred Coates | M | ||
| 1913 - 1916 | Benjamin Moffatt | M | ||
| 1916 - | Walter J.C. Ashley | M | ||
| 1916 - 1919 | E.C. Mcintosh Brown | M | ||
| 1919 - 1921 | Rev Henry D. Ford | M | ||
| 1922 - 1924 | William H. Collom | M | ||
| 1924 - 1927 | Joshua Courtney | M | ||
| 1927 - | Bert Seaton | M | ||
| 1927 - 1931 | Rev Alfred William Redvers Milligan | M | 1901 | 1991 |
| 1931 - 1934 | Rev C. K. Daws | M | ||
| 1934 - 1936 | Rev C. P. Murray | M | ||
| 1935 - 1938 | Rev P. Lassam | M | ||
| 1938 - 1941 | Rev S. Shepherd | M | ||
| 1941 - 1946 | Pastor G. Richards | M | ||
| 1946 - 1953 | Pastor F. Garrett | M | ||
| 1953 - 1955 | Pastor A. E. Dunstan | M | ||
| 1955 - 1960 | Pastor R. B. Hewes | M | ||
| 1960 - 1968 | Pastor R. B. Lade | M | ||
| 1968 - 1971 | Pastor R. Harkness | M | ||
| 1972 - 1973 | Pastor B. Haywood | M | ||
| 1973 - 1977 | Rev I. Haywood | M | ||
| 1977 - 1984 | Rev C. Chapman | U | ||
| 1985 - | Rev J. Torris | U | ||
| 1986 - 1983 | Rev W. Lowrey | U | ||
| 1994 - 2002 | Rev G. Joyce | U | ||
| 2003 - 2008 | Rev B. Wood | U | ||
| 2008 - 2009 | Rev S. Bannon | U | ||
| 2009 - | Rev Loni Vaitohi | U | ||
| 2016 - | Rev Fiona Hill | U |
Source:
1. A History of the Diamond Valey Uniting Church 1861 - 1961. Lesley Alves. SLT 287.93099451 AL8H
2. The Church website