Warwick, QLD - St Mary's Catholic

History and Architecture:

The first Mass was celebrated in Warwick in 1854 - the Town had only been settled in 1840. Fr. McGinty said that Mass in the Horse and Jockey Hotel in 1854 and ministered the Warwick parish from Ipswich until 1862.

Plans for the first church were duly drawn by prominent Brisbane architect, Benjamin Backhouse, to the specifications that it was to be simple but tasteful, in the Gothic style and in stone or brick. Despite the setback of severe damage during a thunder storm the church was officially opened on August 23 1865 by Bishop Quinn, the first Bishop of Queensland. The contractor was CA Doran and the structure cost £1500. The stone for the construction of the church was obtained from the Sidling Quarries, which were a small group of quarries in Warwick.

The foundation stone of the current church was laid by the Archbishop of Melbourne, Daniel Mannix assisted by Archbishop of Brisbane James Duhig on 29 February 1920. Sandstone for the church was obtained from the nearby Yangan quarry and the granite, used in the piers both internally and externally, from Greymare.