Description:
Black and white photograph showing the interior of St Francis Xavier Catholic Church in Broad Street, Hereford. The photograph is taken from the middle of the centre isle looking towards the altar.The foundation stone of Saint Francis Xavier's was laid on Tuesday 19 September 1837. The Church was designed by Charles Day of Worcester and superseded a Chapel built in 1792 by Father Horne. The building itself is of the Doric order. The principal light within comes from a large dome. Ionic columns balance and harmonise the Sanctuary. The Church was built at a cost of over £16,000. The marble Altar and Tabernacle, with its pillared drum and surrounding Dome - elegant in design, rich in structure and colour is a replica of the Tabernacle by Bernini in the Chapel of the Blessed Sacrament in Saint Peter's Rome.
Jesuit Priests had the charge of the Hereford Mission from 1779 to 1858; and thereafter the Benedictines commencing with Father Beneclict Scarisbrick in 1858, following the foundation of Belmont four miles away. During the tenure of Father Waterworth SJ (1842-1854), the Sanctuary was adorned and the Organ was given to the Church.
The Benedictines looked after the Parish, from Belmont, until 1954 when it was handed over to the Archdiocese of Cardiff. In 1992 the Archdiocese asked the Community of Belmont Abbey if, once again, they would serve the Church and Parish.
The restoration of the Church took place through grants from English Heritage, the National Heritage Memorial Fund and the Herefordshire Historic Churches Trust. The Friends of Saint Francis Xavier was formed to raise money and awareness of the plight of the Church.
