The Pebble Church – A brief History
I hope that you find this little church as beautiful as we all did.
St Peter’s Anglican Church, known as the “Pebble Church”, is located at 367 Dunolly Rd, Carapooee, approximately thirteen kilometers south of St Arnaud in Western Victoria, Australia. During the gold rush the area was called ‘St Peter’s Diggings’, but known by the local Aborigines as ‘The Carapooee’, (“an earthly paradise”). It was to here that many miners and their families made their way in the 1800’s.
The Pebble Church was designed by the then diocesan architect for the Anglican Church, and prominent Melbourne architect, Leonard Terry, and with land donated by the Edelsten family, the foundation stone was laid in May 1869. Using English vernacular building techniques, where local materials are used in order to avoid the high cost of transportation, the simple rural Gothic Church was constructed primarily of random-coursed rounded water-washed quartz stones set in a pink toned mortar. Of note, the pebbles were collected by the miners from their claims, and delivered to the site of the church. The local men also assisted with the construction of the church, thus keeping the costs to a minimum.
A close look at the random-coursed rounded water-washed quartz stones set in a pink toned mortar
From the viewing window in the front door, you will see the beautiful, yet simple stained glass windows which were supplied by the Melbourne stained glass firm, Ferguson and Urie, incorporating the design of plain diamond quarries with red and blue stained glass borders. You can glimpse the windows in the photo below – they always look much better with the sun streaming through.
The interior of the Pebble Church, with glimpses of the beautiful stained glass windows.
The first service was held in the unfinished church on 10 July 1870 with borrowed seating placed on the bare earth floor. It took another four plus years before the church was formally opened in October 1874.
Serving the community for almost 150 years, the final service of de-consecration was held on 2/6/2019, conducted by the Bishop of Bendigo, Bishop Matt Brain. The church was then put on the market to be sold by the Anglican diocese.
Not wanting to see their heritage end up in an individuals’ hands, the locals formed the Pebble Church Heritage Association Inc. (PCHAI), and set about, to quickly raise the funds required to purchase the property for the community, as was intended when it was originally built.
After an amazing fundraising effort, and successful negotiations with the Anglican Church, the heritage listed property was purchased by the PCHAI, with settlement taking place on Friday 27 November 2020.
The Pebble Church – Carapooee, Victoria
It is the aim of the PCHAI to oversee the preservation of the church and make it available for celebrations and event hire.
The church that was originally built by the local people for the local community has been rescued by the local people for use by the community for years to come!
It is amazing what a small community can achieve in such a short period of time.
There’s nothing like home baking
As you know I always like to include a special recipe with my posts, and after looking at the PCHAI Facebook page, the recipe(s) to be shared become obvious! In April of 2021, to honour those who come together to form the PCHAI raising the funds to save the church, along with new members, a garden party was held. Along with their post are images of members and also of the beautiful food that was set out for the celebration.
My mother was known for her chocolate sponge which she always made for such community events in her day, and I might add that she also made a fabulous plain sponge. So I share with you, my beautiful mum’s sponge recipes.
- 4 eggs
- 1 dsp golden syrup
- 2 heaped dsp cocoa
- ½ tsp carb soda
- Pinch of salt
- ½ cup cornflour
- ¾ cup caster sugar
- 2 heaped dsp Plain Flour
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Preheat oven to 200˚C.
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Grease two 20 cm round cake tins with butter, making sure that all the internal surface is covered. Add a little flour and shake, twist and turn the tin to make sure the butter is then lightly dusted with flour. Set aside.
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Carefully separate the egg yolks from the whites, placing the egg whites into a large basin, and the egg yolks into a small dish for later.
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Sift the dry ingredients (excluding the salt and sugar). Set aside.
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Beat egg whites with salt until stiff.
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Add yolks, then add the sugar gradually, while still beating. Beat well to ensure the mixture is not grainy from the sugar.
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Add the golden syrup and beat again, to combine.
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Sift in the dry ingredients and fold through the wet mixture.
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Pour the batter into the two prepared tins.
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Bake for 20 minutes in preheated oven, or until you notice it just beginning to come away from the side of the tins and the sponge bounces back when you press it lightly with your fingers.
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When cool, split each sponge in half and fill with whipped cream which is sweetened with a little sugar, and flavoured with vanilla. You could ice the sponges, if you wish, but we prefer just to dust them with icing sugar.
- For gluten free, replace the plain flour with gluten free custard powder, and dust the cake tins with cornflour.
- I like to sift the dry ingredients three times to incorporate as much air as I can, and to ensure that they are all well blended together.
This plain sponge is always popular, particularly if filled with passionfruit cream or vanilla cream and berries.
- 4 eggs
- 1 heaped tbsp custard powder
- pinch salt
- 3/4 cup cornflour
- 1/2 tsp bi-carb soda
- 1 tsp cream of tartar
- 3/4 cup castor sugar
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Preheat oven to 200˚C.
-
Grease two 20 cm round cake tins with butter, making sure that all the internal surface is covered. Add a little cornflour and shake, twist and turn the tin to make sure the butter is then lightly dusted with flour. Set aside.
-
Carefully separate the egg yolks from the whites, placing the egg whites into a large basin, and the egg yolks into a small dish.
-
Sift the custard powder, cornflour, bi-carb soda and cream of tartar. Set aside.
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Using a stand mixer, beat the egg whites with salt until stiff.
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Add yolks, then add the sugar gradually, while still beating. Beat well to ensure the mixture is not grainy from the sugar.
-
Sift in the dry ingredients and fold through the wet mixture.
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Divide the batter between the two prepared tins.
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Bake for 20 minutes in preheated oven, or until you notice it just beginning to come away from the side of the tins and the sponge bounces back when you press it lightly with your fingers.
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When cool, split each sponge in half and fill with whipped cream which is lightly sweetened with a little sugar, and flavoured with vanilla. You could ice the sponges, if you wish, but we prefer just to dust them with icing sugar.
- Note that oven temperatures vary. Depending on your oven the temp required may vary.
- Some ideas for finishing the sponge
- cream and fresh fruit
- cream and berry jam
- passionfruit cream and iced with passionfruit icing
- For gluten free, ensure that the custard powder and cornflour are gluten free when you purchase them.
Until next time…
Bon appétit!
Links/Sources
- Benjamin Preiss and Jackson Graham, The Age, May 7, 2021 — 3.19pm
- Chocolate Sponge
- Ferguson & Urie
- North Central News
- The battle to save the Pebble Church
- Negotiations continue for Pebble Church
- Carapooee Community wins Pebble Church
- We saved the Pebble Church
- Mum’s Plain Sponge
- The Pebble Church Heritage Association
