The Rev. Richard Burgess, of Trinity Church, Sloane Street, then offered an appropriate prayer, after which,
Mr. W. Rabbits, one of the vestrymen, presented a silver trowel to Viscount Chelsea, to be used in laying the first stone, and to be kept by his lordship as a token of the respect of the parishioners for him.
Viscount Chelsea having expressed his acknowledgments for the compliment paid him,
Mr. Pocock, the architect, then placed the bottle containing the documents, &c., in the cavity of the under stone, which was covered with mortar. The other portion of the stone was then let down, and Viscount Chelsea having gone through the usual “masonic” operations in a workmanlike manner, his lordship declared the Vestry Hall to be in due course of erection amidst the loud cheers of all present.
The erection of the entire building was completed in 1860, and, occupying such a central position, it adds materially to the respectability of the King’s Road. It is an attractive structure, and its architectural design reflects great credit on Mr. Pocock. The estimate laid before the Vestry Finance Committee on the 21st of February, 1861, by Mr. Charles Lahee, the Vestry Clerk, of the total probable cost of the Vestry Hall buildings, including the fittings and furniture, was altogether £12,059 16s. 2d.
A portion of the building is occupied by the Chelsea Literary and Scientific Institution, for the use of which a rental is paid. T. L. Bull, Esq., was the original founder, and to his indefatigable efforts, for a considerable time, may be attributed the advantages that have been derived from it. It appears, however, that the receipts of this useful and admirable institution are unfortunately just now insufficient to meet the necessary expenditure, but it is gratifying to record that at a late influential meeting, held at the Vestry Hall, to consider the “present position and future prospects of the Institution,” and at which Lord George Hamilton, M.P., presided, it was unanimously resolved to extricate it from temporary difficulties.
Mr. Charles Lahee, who has been Vestry Clerk for many years, has a private dwelling-house at the Vestry Hall. The offices are on the ground floor, and the large hall is at the rear of the building. The spacious room above the offices, and which fronts the road, is where the vestrymen weekly assemble, adjoining it are committee rooms, &c. The whole interior is well-arranged and admirably adapted for the requirements of the parish, which has now become one of the most populous and important in the metropolis.