St John’s, Kerry

The 10 acre block on which the church stands was designated as a school site and was purchased from the Crown by Fr. Benedict Scortechini for 10 pounds. A small church of sawn timber was built in 1883. This church was called St. Columba’s, and in early 1884 the church began to be used as a school. With the construction of a new St Mary’s in Beaudesert, the Kerry Church/School was sold to Mr T.F. Plunkett, of Kerry, and was converted to a barn on his property. The old church building of St Mary’s, was dismantled, re-erected at Kerry, and renamed St. John’s, with Fr. Enright opening the church on the 28^th of June 1908.

Fifty years after its removal from Beaudesert, St John’s underwent another change when it was renovated. The Beaudesert Times reported the changes:

“Previously a single-walled building on wooden stumps it is now a solid double-walled structure upon a brick foundation. The western doorway has been removed and replaced with a dummy porch, in which are the confessional boxes. A very attractive entrance porch, with wide concrete steps, railed with wrought iron showing the shamrock design, opens into a vestibule partly separated from the nave by a glass partition. The beautiful stained-glass window in the eastern wall, a memorial to the late Fr. Enright, has been floodlit from the outside, so that its beauty is seen at night as well as in the early morning light. The Alter and reredos, which were previously painted, have been cleaned and polished and most beautifully grained, this work having been done by Mr. John Doyle, one of the parishioners who does this work as a hobby. Every part of the church within and without has been entirely renovated. The work was carried out by Mr. Herb Davis and the excellence of his work was commented on by many on Sunday. The planning, design and supervision was all done by Mr. Harold Tommerup, of Kerry and he too, is to be highly complimented on what has been achieved.” (Beaudesert Times, June 1, 1958).

The renovations to St John’s were opened by Archbishop Duhig, with the official ceremony taking place on the porch from where Archbishop Duhig performed the blessing.