Christ Church Anglican, Port Antonio

Christ Church Anglican Church was built between the 6th of January 1838 and the 26th of April 1840, the former being the day on which it was consecrated by the Right Reverend Lord Bishop of the Diocese of Jamaica, Christopher Lipscombe, Doctor Divinity (the first Bishop of Jamaica). The land on which the church stands in Port Antonio was indentured on the 3rd of September 1836 by John Dean and Jane Brown on behalf of themselves and the rest of the parishioners and inhabitants of the Parish to the Right Reverend Christopher Lipscombe D.D and Reverend Griffiths Griffith.

The church was erected because:

1. Congregation numbers had grown from 500 to 1500.

2. The old church had been difficult to reach because of its position on a hill.

The land was a gift, but the estimated cost of the structure was £7000. Christ Church was designed by English architect Annesly Voysey, who died shortly before the work was completed. The design of the church was not ornate but solid: thick-set towers, substantial body, low lines, main door set in a wide façade.

The interior of the church has been renovated many times, and in 1903 when the whole east end was severely damaged, it took eight years before the windows were restored. Stalls were replaced by pews between 1894 and 1895. The communion vessels bear the date 1821 and are those of the original Church. The lectern was a gift of the Boston Fruit Company and was presented by those who had been confirmed in October 1899. The organ is the work of Messrs. J.W. Walker and Sons and was acquired through Major W. H. Plant. On January 27, 1915, the Refectory Table and a pair of wrought candle sticks were given to the church as a gift from Alexander Seddon. The Reredos and Stevens were a present from Charles Albert Moseley in memory of his wife Alice Cecilia.

Christ Church was declared a National Heritage Site on the 2nd of May 1996 by the Jamaica National Heritage Trust and is run by the Anglican Diocese of Jamaica.