Our History
Until about 1800 Southsea was an area of marsh, grass and gorse bushes. It was outside the walls of Portsmouth and was used to camp troops from the 13th century up until the early 1800s, when the whole area was levelled and drained.
Houses began to spring up and Southsea soon became a seaside resort popular with officers returning from the Peninsular War, wanting sea baths to recover from their wounds. Hotels soon followed and in the 1850s a boom in land-buying started and hundreds of new houses sprang up.
Church leaders soon realised that with the increase in population, the existing churches of St. Mary Portsea, and St John Portsea, could not cope. To that end, St Jude's Church was consecrated in 1851 as the parish church of Southsea.
With the expansion eastwards continuing fast, further provision was needed for the work of the Church in this area. In 1860 it was decided to build a District Church, to be called St Simon's, to serve this development.
The Revd. Frederick Baldey, curate at St Jude's, began his ministry at St Simon's on Christmas Day 1862. There is a tablet bearing his name above the pulpit. Under his leadership, plans were laid for a large church.
In the interim, to meet the needs of people for a centre for worship, the now famous "Crinoline Church" was bought for £200 and erected on a site just north of the present building at a cost of £150. The Crinoline Church, so called because it was round and shaped like the fashionable skirt of the day, was later sold and used for 40 years at Eastney Barracks.
The new church was finally built and after a hurricane in 1866 caused it to be re-constructed at a cost of £4,500 in June 1866, it was consecrated on 2 July 1868 by the Bishop of Winchester.