The Cache
At the given co-ordinates you will find a large signboard with a contact number for the Parish Office.
Call this 01932 ABCDEF.
The cache can be found a short walk away at:
N51 (A) (D) . (F-D) (F) (B-C)
W 000 (D) (F+C) . (A+F) (B+C) (E-D)
Please note-
- THERE IS NO NEED TO ENTER THE CHURCH PROPERTY TO EITHER RETRIEVE THE MISSING INFORMATION OR TO FIND THE CACHE.
- Parking is available but please take note of local restrictions and you may wish to avoid peak school hours.
- The cache has a log book but no pen so please bring your own.
- This is our first cache hide and we hope you enjoy it (there may be more to come). We would welcome any comments.
The Church
From 1838 the railway progressively transformed Oatlands into a populous, middle-class residential district needing its own place of worship instead of the parish church in Walton-on-Thames.
In April 1861 six trustees paid £200 for a site in "America" - as the wild, overgrown area was nicknamed - on the corner of Duchess (now Oatlands) Avenue and Victoria Road (now Beechwood Avenue). The new building consisted of the present nave, south aisle and a chancel ten feet shorter than now. Public subscriptions of £3,000 included £400 from the Convalescent Institution, founded by the Earl of Ellesmere in 1840, in return for free pews in the south aisle.
The Bishop of Winchester opened the "chapel" on 2 February 1862. In 1867 the Ecclesiastical Commissioners took over, consecrated it as a church, bought out the Convalescent Institution for £600 and sold the advowson (patronage) for £1,000 to the Rev. Bowden as Vicar. At that time servants from the big houses would attend the 8 o'clock service and then rush back to prepare breakfasts for their families before they departed for the 10 o'clock service.
In 1869 the parish was created out of St Mary Walton. It has been known as St Mary Oatlands ever since to distinguish it. Later the north aisle was added, an organ was installed and enlarged, stained glass replaced the old clear windows and a wealth of memorials appeared. In 1905 the addition of the tower commemorated one of the original trustees.
The Chapel of the Resurrection built in 1920 honours the 49 parishoners who died in the Great War and later the victims of the Second World War, including the six civilians killed by a bomb which hit Oatlands in 1944.
If you would like to add to the Church Micro series yourself then please look here
http://churchmicro.co.uk/
There is also a Church Micro Stats & Information page that can be found at
http://www.15ddv.me.uk/geo/cm/index.html