Our Parish History

The history of Dural Parish reminds us of God’s faithfulness in using his people to bring about his purposes.

Beginnings

Anglican ministry in the district of Dural began in the early years of the 19th century with occasional visits by clergyman such as Rev Samuel Marsden to the sawyers and pioneer farmers of the area. In 1839 Rev William Clarke was appointed by Bishop Broughton as the first minister of the newly created parish of Castle Hill and Dural, although there was no church building as such in the parish. A Church of England denominational school already existed at Dural in 1839 but it was not until 1846-48 that the church of St Jude’s was built at Dural on what was then the Great North Road to the Hunter Valley. In Castle Hill, the former Government barracks building was used (and named St Simon’s) for church services from 1839 until 1861, when the church of St Paul’s was opened.

The First Century

Dural remained part of the parish of Castle Hill from 1839 to 1937. In that period, three Anglican branch churches were built in the Dural district: Kenthurst (1887), Annangrove (1899) and Arcadia (1907). Dural Public School took the place of the denominational school in 1869. St Jude’s Anglican Cemetery at Dural was opened in 1876 and is still in use for parishioners. A Parish Hall was built at Dural in 1914-16 on the site of the old school house.
In the first hundred years or so of St Jude’s existence, the main families who led activity at the church included the Bests, the Moores and the Fullers.

Becoming a Parish

In 1937 St Jude’s Dural became a Provisional Parish, with Rev Ronnie O’Brien being appointed the first Rector. During his incumbency (1937-1949), three more branch churches were added to the new parish: Galston (1938), Annangrove (1939) and Glenorie (1941). Dural became a fully fledged Parish in 1947.
The branch structure of Dural parish reached its peak with the addition of Hillside in 1951, bringing the number of churches to be serviced by the Rector to seven. The administrative pendulum began to swing in the opposite direction in the 1970’s, with Kenthurst acquiring the status of a separate Provisional Parish, and the branch churches of Glenorie, Hillside and Annangrove being closed. Galston followed suit in 1983, leaving Arcadia as the sole remaining branch church in the parish of Dural.

Most Recently

A new, larger building for church services and other parish functions was completed in late 1979 on the Dural site; the original church of St Jude’s also continues to be used for regular services.
Since 2005, the Anglican churches at Dural, Kenthurst and Arcadia have combined to form the re-named parish of Dural District.

The St Jude’s cemetery is in Old Northern Rd, about 500m south of St Jude’s.

Street address: 883-887 Old Northern Road, Dural NSW 2158

Burials in the cemetery are listed here, based on church records and transcription work done by the Dural Historical Society (last updated January 2023).

Public Cemetery Register as at 2024Jan31

Plot Locations

The Dural district was part of the Anglican Parish of Castle Hill from 1839 until 1937, when it became a separate parish. A list of the Rectors of Castle Hill Parish from 1839-1937, and of Dural Parish from 1937 to the present, with the date of their licence, is provided below. The dates of birth and death are mainly taken from an appendix in “Sydney Anglicans” (1987) by Stephen Judd & Kenneth Cable.

 

Castle Hill

 

July 1839: William Branwhite Clarke (1798-1878)
1845: Thomas Horton (1807-1896)
1 October 1856: Arthur Douglass (1816-1878)
1 July 1860: Robert Taylor (1834-1907)
15 January 1866: Henry Ham Britten (1836-1913)
31 January 1877: John Theophilus Schleicher (c1816-1892)
1 December 1885: Charles Henry Gibson (1846- ?)
16 June 1887: Francis (Frank) Rowling Elder (1855-1931)
23 July 1892: Edward Hargrave (1860-1920)
23 June 1899: Edward Glanville Cranswick (1853-1934)
1 July 1910: William John Roberts (1865-1938)
1 January 1925: Thomas Knox (1891-1972)
30 December 1931: Herbert Eric Felton (1899-1964)

 

Dural

 

1 December 1937: Ronald (Ronnie) Arthur O’Brien (1908-1998)
1949: Albert Thomas Pitt-Owen (1912-1997)
2 September 1953: Dennis George Hampton Johnson (1921-1998)
18 July 1956: Keith Henderson Marr (ca 1919-2019)
23 October 1958: Kenneth (Ken) James Leask (ca 1920-2008)
3 March 1961: Victor (Vic) William Roberts
30 October 1964: William (Bill) James Lawton
15 September 1967: Brian Franklin Vernon King (1938-2006)
7 October 1973: Donald (Don) Jesse Wilson
26 June 1985: Gerald Beckett
28 April 1998: Fergus Semler
1 February 2013: Adam Arnold Bennett Lamb
31 January 2018: Dougal Colin Michie

Churchwardens are normally appointed and elected at the parish’s annual general meeting. Each year one churchwarden is appointed by the Rector and two are elected by parishioners. The (incomplete) list below is drawn from surviving parish records, starting from 1881.

Year Rector’s Wardens Parishioners’ Wardens
1881 Edward Fuller (1855-1938) & Thomas Best (1845-1905)
1882 J. Foster Edward Fuller & Thomas Best
1883 J. Foster Edward Fuller & Thomas Best
1884 J. Foster Edward Fuller & Thomas Best
1885 Samuel Moore (1841-1919) Edward Fuller & Thomas Best
1886 Samuel Moore Edward Fuller & Thomas Best
1887
1888 Edward Fuller William Best (1847-1895) & Thomas Best
1889
1890
1891
1892 William Best & Thomas Best
1893 Edward Fuller William Best & Thomas Best
1894
1895 Edward Fuller William Best & Thomas Best
1896 Henry Best (1864-1934) Thomas Best & Frank Viney
1897 Henry Best Thomas Best & Frank Viney
1898 Henry Best Thomas Best & Frank Viney
1899 Henry Best Thomas Best & Frank Viney
1900 Henry Best Thomas Best & Frank Viney
1901 Henry Best Thomas Best & Frank Viney
1902 Henry Best Thomas Best & Frank Viney
1903
1904
1905
1906
1907
1908 Mr Turner Edward Fuller & Arthur John Best (1853-1921)
1909 Mr Turner Edward Fuller & Samuel Moore
1910 Frank Viney Edward Fuller & R. Turner
1911 Frank Viney Edward Fuller & R. Turner
1912 Frank Viney Edward Fuller & R. Turner
1913 R. Turner Edward Fuller & Frank Viney
1914 R. Turner Edward Fuller & Richard Marquett Blaxland (1866-1942)
1915 Edward Fuller R.M. Blaxland & Samuel Moore (1841-1919)
1916 Edward Fuller R.M. Blaxland & Samuel Moore
1917 Edward Fuller R.M. Blaxland & Samuel Moore
1918 Edward Fuller R.M. Blaxland & Samuel Moore
1919 Edward Fuller R.M. Blaxland & Samuel Moore
1920 Edward Fuller R.M. Blaxland & J. St George
1921 Edward Fuller R.M. Blaxland & George Best
1922 Edward Fuller Arthur Edgar Best (1882-1954) & J. Fuller
1923 Edward Fuller William Moore (1868-1937) & George Thacker
1924 ?Edward Fuller
1925 Edward Fuller Roy Best (1897-1986) & A.N. Thomas
1926 Edward Fuller Roy Best & A.N. Thomas
1927 Edward Fuller Roy Best & A.N. Thomas
1928 Edward Fuller Roy Best & P. Thomson
1929 Edward Fuller Roy Best & A.N. Thomas
1930 Edward Fuller Roy Best & A.N. Thomas
1931 Edward Fuller Roy Best & A.N. Thomas
1932 Edward Fuller Roy Best & Alan Blaxland (ca1904-1984)
1933 Edward Fuller Roy Best & Alan Blaxland
1934 Edward Fuller Roy Best & Alan Blaxland
1935 Edward Fuller Roy Best & Alan Blaxland
1936 Edward Fuller Roy Best & Alan Blaxland
1937 Edward Fuller Roy Best & Alan Blaxland
1938 George Deaman (d. 1960) Roy Best & Robert Ham (ca1869-1953)
1939 George Deaman Roy Best & Robert Ham
1940 Roy Best & Norman Livsey Rohan (1906-1981)
1941
1942
1943
1944
1945
1946
1947
1948
1949
1950
1951
1952
1953
1954 Thomas (Tom) Roden (1901-1984) Roy Best & Ellis Branz (1907-1982)
1955 Thomas Roden Roy Best & Ellis Branz
1956 Thomas Roden L. Buckeley & Ellis Branz
1957 Thomas Roden L. Buckeley & Ellis Branz
1958 Thomas Roden Robert Badger (ca1890-1963) & Ellis Branz
1959 Thomas Roden Robert Badger & Ellis Branz
1960 Thomas Roden Robert Badger & Ellis Branz
1961 Thomas Roden Robert Badger & Ellis Branz (later J. Eggleston)
1962 Thomas Roden (?)
1963 Thomas Roden Martin Brown & J. Eggleston
1964 Thomas Roden Martin Brown & J. Eggleston
1965 Thomas Roden Martin Brown & J. Eggleston
1966 Thomas Roden (?)
1967 Thomas Roden (?)
1968 Thomas Roden (?)
1969 Thomas Roden (?)
1970 Thomas Roden (?)
1971 Thomas Roden Geoffrey (Geoff) Walker (1924-2010) & Donald (Don) Hann
1972 Donald Hann Geoffrey Walker & Dr Saxton (1926-2005)
1973 Donald Hann Geoffrey Walker & Barry Hobart
1974 Donald Hann (later Barry Hobart) Barry Hobart (later Richard Wright) & Alton Musto
1975 Barry Hobart (later Alex Lee) Alex Lee (later Edward (Ted) Riley) & Geoffrey Walker
1976 Alex Lee Graham Fairbairn & Thomas (Tom) Webb
1977 Alex Lee Graham Fairbairn & John Griffiths
1978 Alex Lee Graham Fairbairn & James (Jim) Peddie
1979 Alex Lee James Peddie & Vittoria Smith (1913-1986)
1980 Alex Lee James Peddie & Vittoria Smith
1981 Alex Lee James Peddie & Vittoria Smith
1982 Alex Lee James Peddie & Vittoria Smith
1983 Alex Lee James Peddie & Vittoria Smith
1984 Mark Sutherland-Harris James Peddie & Vittoria Smith
1985 Mark Sutherland-Harris Wendy Varcoe & Stephen Lo (1942-2010)
1986 Mark Sutherland-Harris Wendy Varcoe & Stephen Lo
1987 Mark Sutherland-Harris Wendy Varcoe & Robert (Bob) McKew
1988 Mark Sutherland-Harris Cynthia Marriott & Arthur Field
1989 Mark Sutherland-Harris Cynthia Marriott &
1990 Arthur Field Cynthia Marriott & Graeme Dodds
1991 Arthur Field Cynthia Marriott & Ross Waddington
1992 Arthur Field Cynthia Marriott & Robert McKew
1993 Arthur Field Margaret Turner (1925-2009) & Robert McKew
1994 Robert McKew Margaret Turner (later Margaret Duckworth) & Mark Sutherland-Harris
1995 Robert McKew Margaret Duckworth & Mark Sutherland-Harris
1996 Robert McKew Margaret Duckworth & Mark Sutherland-Harris
1997 Mark Sutherland-Harris Susan (Sue) Hargraves & Graham Brown
1998 Mark Sutherland-Harris Susan Hargraves & Graham Brown
1999 Mark Sutherland-Harris Susan Hargraves & Graham Brown
2000 Graeme Dodds Susan Hargraves & Nicholas (Nick) Dahdah
2001 Graeme Dodds Susan Hargraves & Nicholas Dahdah
2002 Graeme Dodds Susan Hargraves & William (Bill) Drew
2003 Arthur Field Susan Hargraves & William Drew
2004 Arthur Field Susan Hargraves & William Drew
2005 Arthur Field Susan Hargraves & William Drew
2006 Arthur Field Susan Hargraves & William Drew
2007 Arthur Field Susan Hargraves & William Drew
2008 Hilton Bell Arthur Field & Alison Guthrie
2009
Hilton Bell Alison Guthrie & Ross Pendlebury
2010 Hilton Bell Alison Guthrie & Ross Pendlebury
2011 Hilton Bell Alison Guthrie & Ross Pendlebury
2012 Ross Pendlebury Alison Guthrie & Arthur Field
2013 Ross Pendlebury Alison Guthrie & Arthur Field
2014 Gregory Denton Alison Guthrie & Nicholas (Nick) Maude
2015 Gregory Denton Alison Guthrie & Nicholas (Nick) Maude
2016 Andrew Junor Dana Gruben & Nicholas (Nick) Maude
2017 Andrew Junor Dana Gruben & Nicholas (Nick) Maude
2018 Joel Fulton Dana Gruben & Andrew Junor
2019 Hilton Bell Dana Gruben & Andrew Junor
The design of the church is that of a Norman, single cell, aisleless, apsidal church of the 12th century.

There are four examples of such a church in England. If St Jude’s church is based on one of these, the mostly likely model is St Swithun’s church, situated in the village of Nately Scures, near Basingstoke, Hampshire. It is similar in appearance and size to St Jude’s, although built of different local materials.

Another reason for speculating that there is an architectural link between the two churches is that Bishop William Broughton, who authorised the building of St Jude’s, lived for nine years in the nearby village of Hartley Wespall, Hampshire, before he came to New South Wales. It is possible that he had the church at Nately Scures in mind when the design of St Jude’s was decided.

Read the article Who Designed St Judes AHS article 2007 for more detail on this subject.

Here are some downloads of historical interest (including some parish records). The following downloads are made available for public viewing. Parish permission should be sought for any use intended for publication or profit.

Minutes_of_meetings_1881-1923

Minutes_of_meetings_1925-1941

Historical notes on St Jude’s – 2018

List of memorials in St Jude’s church

The most likely candidate for a model for St Jude’s Dural:

St Swithun’s Church, Nately Scures, Hampshire, England, built circa 1150-1175.

South-east aspect, showing the apsidal east end; the bell gable dates from the 19th century