Christ Church has had many faithful documenters over the years. Denis Bird provided us with an
invaluable archive of
pictures From Christ church's past"
. Brian Bridgeman and
Teresa Squires compiled the story of Christ Church, Parish Church of Swindon and its community
from 1851-2001. It is a fascinating read and you can
buy the book here.
Dennis & Brian also provided us with a large selection of historic photographs of the town. You can
see a selection in our
Swindon Past & Present Album.
If you can add information to any of the pictures
or correct us where we have things wrong then please feel free to use the comment feature under each
picture or contact us at
s.grosvenor@gmail.com.
There are many historic and interesting things to see as you walk around our church. The tour gives you information and pictures of the many memorials and architectural features there. here
Christ Church's burial ground is a haven of peace and quiet and it's the final resting place of many generations
of Swindonians. We've produced a plan of the burial grounds
which you may find useful if you wish to visit the Church grounds.
Photographs of many of the graves are available on
Duncan and Mandy Ball's excellent website and they've also done a survey of Churches in Wiltshire which you can
view here.
During the recent work on our Community Centre, we also did a photo survey
of the older graves in the Churchyard itself. You can see it here:
https://photos.app.goo.gl/OvDinvFjE3QDgHXe2
Although we don't hold our own parish registers, we have taken some of our burial records (1905 - date) and added them to a database that you can search through on this website. You can find the database here.
You can use the grave reference in each record in conjunction with our plan of the burial grounds to locate the area where the grave may be found. Unfortunately many of the stones are now illegible and many graves were never marked. If you would like help to locate a relative's grave then please contact us. here
Christ Church has always relied on the generosity and support of its local community to enable it to continue its mission in Swindon and further afield. We have compiled a searchable database of inscriptions and memorials spanning the more than 165 years of Christ Church life. You can find the database here.
Click on one of the thumbnails below to view the album in a new window:
We've uploaded lots of photographs that have been taken of Christ Church and the older Holy Rood Church, in the Lawns, so why not take a look?
The Armin-Grewe website
also has some nice old photographs of Swindon.
The Swindon Web
also has some interesting stories and background on Swindon's past. The Swindon Central
Library holds a brilliant archive
online here on Flickr.
For those researching local burials, the Friends of Radnor Street Cemetery also
have Facebook page here.
Click here for a descriptive tour of our Church building, complete with photos.
Our parish registers are stored by the Wiltshire and Swindon History Centre - and contain the details of births, marriages and deaths in our parish dating back to 1623. Find out more here.