Percy Bacon & Brothers Stained Glass

Stained Glass of Percy Bacon & Brothers

West Hartlepool: St James (lost work).

County Durham

St James Church Hartlepool Architects Plan 1870. Lambeth Palace Library. PD Image.

J. P. Pritchett's plan for the new St James Church on the corner of Whitby Street and Musgrave Street. PD Image.

Posted 26 December 2025.

St James church stood on the corner of Whitby Street and Musgrave Street. It was built in 1870 to designs by the Darlington architect J. P. Pritchett, with seating for 368 souls. Photographs on the Hartlepool History website reveal (with the exception of a rather splendid rose window in the west wall) a rather plain church consisting of nave with north and south aisles, a south west porch, and a chancel. The latter is narrower than the architect's original plan which shows the south aisle extending the full length of the chancel, but clearly not built. A rather narrow flèche probably housing a small bell was fixed to the roof ridge near the west end. The church was demolished in circa 1956,¹ and replaced by a new church on Rossmere Way which is now known as St James the Apostle.

Unknown Location: St Philip baptising the Ethiopian Eunuch. 1898.

An article in the North Star (Darlington) described the Percy Bacon window with a rather unique subject matter thus.

The Late Archdeacon Dobinson. The window which has been unveiled in St James’s Church, West Hartlepool in memory of the late Archdeacon Dobinson was executed by Messrs. Bacon Bros., London. It represents St Philip baptising the Ethiopian eunuch. There is tablet bearing following inscription — "To Glory of God and in thankfulness for Henry Hugh Dobinson MA of the Niger, formerly curate in this parish, who fell asleep on Tuesday in Holy Week, April 13th 1897, at Asaba”.²

The fate of the glass is not known.

References: Use your browser's Back button to return to text.

Hartlepool History Then and Now website.
North Star (Darlington) - Thursday 21 April 1898, p3.

Location Map:

NGR: NZ 51339 32284
Sat Nav Post Code: TS24 7JF

Church demolished circa 1956. Site is now occupied by housing, known now as Whitby Grove. Map published with permission of the National Library of Scotland under Creative Commons License CC-BY (NLS).