Heritage grant secures future of Sacred Heart Church at Beagle Bay

19/12/02
The collapsed belltower on the Sacred Heart Church at Beagle Bay has been rebuilt and urgent conservation works completed thanks to a $25,000 grant from the State Government's Heritage Grants Program.
Environment and Heritage Minister Dr Judy Edwards said the works had been designed to stabilise and conserve the structure.
"The belltower on the historic church collapsed in September 2000 after showing signs of structural fatigue.
"The urgent conservation works have restored the tower and the hanging bells.
"The church was built of rendered clay bricks, between 1915 and 1918, in the Inter-War Gothic style by the Pallottine Brothers and Aboriginal residents of the Beagle Bay Mission.
"It is an outstanding example of the creative use of local resources for both construction and decorative purposes and includes interior decorations formed from of mother-of pearl and cowrie shells.
"Some of the decorations form the tribal symbols of local Aboriginal groups, others form symbols of the Christian faith.
"The original bush and plaster ceiling of the church was destroyed by termites in the 1920s and replaced by flattened kerosene tins joined together inlaid with fragments of pearl shell.
"The church is still used for religious purposes and forms a focal point for the remote community of Beagle Bay.
"It is a local landmark and a popular tourist attraction."
Dr Edwards said the Heritage Grants Program aimed to encourage owners to conserve places of heritage significance.
Minister's office: 9220 5050