BETHNAL GREEN

St. Matthew's Church
from an original photograph by Kathleen Andersen

St Matthew's is the original parish church of Bethnal Green although it isn't one of the ancient churches of the East End. It was formed from part of the parish of St Dunstan and All Saints, Stepney, in 1746, due to the increase in population. Building commenced in 1743 and was completed by 1746 to a design by George Dance the Elder. The church we see nowadays was rebuilt in 1859 after a fire; and remodelled after severe damage in the Second World War.

From 1837 onwards, St Matthew's parish was itself divided into a number of smaller parishes and the Bethnal Green Registration District ended up with 17 churches in its area, the majority of which were built between 1840 and 1845.

The church is situated in St Matthew's Row, a quiet street off the busy Bethnal Green Road. It was in the Bethnal Green Registration District and, in 1965, became part of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets.

The parish registers are at the London Metropolitan Archives and the dates available are:

Baptisms 1746-1964
Banns - dates unknown
Marriages 1746-1976
Burials 1746-1877
No funerals and there are no gravestones in the churchyard.
Baptisms from 1964 and marriages from 1976 are with the incumbent vicar.

Kathleen Andersen
December 1999

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