Gone but not forgotten. That’s the story of St Christopher le Stocks. This church once stood proudly on Threadneedle Street. It was a place of worship for centuries. Its origins trace back to 1282. The name’s meaning is debated. Some believe it refers to the City Stocks nearby. Others think it’s linked to the Stock Exchange.
St Christopher le Stocks wasn’t just an old building. It was a witness to history. It survived the Great Fire of London in 1666. Although damaged the outer walls and tower remained. Sir Christopher Wren rebuilt it in 1671. It was his first completed church. Wren used surviving materials from the original structure. Hatton’s New View of London describes the blend of Gothic and Tuscan styles. The old stone walls were rendered over.
The church was 72 feet long 52 feet wide and 40 feet high. Its tower reached 80 feet. It housed only one bell. The original peal was destroyed in the Great Fire. The interior featured a wooden ceiling oak wainscoting and seraphs carved on each arch’s keystone.
St Christopher le Stocks’ fate was sealed by the expansion of the Bank of England. The bank bought up surrounding properties. In 1781 an agreement was reached. The church was demolished the following year. This was partly to acquire land. There was also a fear of rioters using it to attack the bank. This fear stemmed from the Gordon Riots of 1780.
The parish was united with St Margaret Lothbury. The churchyard now lies beneath the Bank of England’s Garden Court. Some parish records survive. A boundary mark remains on the Bank of England’s wall. It shows the parish’s boundary with St Bartholomew-by-the-Exchange. Another mark on Princes Street indicates the boundary with St Margaret Lothbury.
The pulpit’s upper panels are now at St Nicholas’s Church Canewdon in Essex. They are a remarkable example of Grinling Gibbons-style carving. In 1867 and again in 1933 remains from St Christopher le Stocks were moved to Nunhead Cemetery. Among those buried there was Thomas Harriot. He was the first to map the Moon’s surface using a telescope. St Christopher le Stocks may be gone but its legacy endures. The story of this church reminds us of London’s ever-changing landscape and the enduring power of faith.