Right here on your right, you’ll spot St Joseph’s Church-handsome and quietly self-assured at the junction of London Road and Western Avenue. Even if you’re not in the habit of noticing church architecture, this place makes you pause. It’s a local landmark for good reason.
So, what’s the story? Well, rewind to the mid-1800s. Back then, the Catholic population in Newbury was so small, they basically started out in a regular house-number 105 London Road-with their priest doubling up as both spiritual leader and, rather bravely, headteacher. Resourceful doesn’t even cover it.
Soon enough, they managed to cobble together a church next to the house for £800-a princely sum in those days. If you adjust for inflation, that’s roughly £120,000 or $150,000 today. For a ‘small’ church, that was no small feat.
But by the roaring 1920s, Newbury’s Catholics had outgrown their home. Enter Canon Francis Green-a man with the nerve to fundraise at the racecourse, collaring punters just as they were leaving the thrill of the track. Imagine that: “Hello, did you win big? Care to share with the Lord?”.
The new church’s foundation stone went down in 1926, and just two years later, Wilfred Clarence Mangan’s Italianate masterpiece was complete-local firm Hoskings & Pond made sure it all stood the test of time. The final bill? Around £20,000 then-a jaw-dropping half a million pounds, give or take, in today’s money.
Today the church is still a vibrant piece of local life, with Mass every day and the doors open to new stories and old souls alike. A cornerstone of the community-literally. Not a bad place to end our wanderings, wouldn’t you say?
